Hello and happy Monday to all! Starting this week off with a bit of fairly mundane (but hopefully pertinent) news: I have made the executive decision switch up the format of this newsletter. You see, up to this point, we’ve done a deep dive into a single topic almost every week. Thorough? Yes. Detailed? Totally. But I’m craving a little more variety in my life so moving forward each week I’ll be sharing a restaurant I’m into, a wine I’m drinking, and a dish I’m cooking. A more well-rounded glance into how I’m living, if you will. So without further ado, let’s get into it.
Where I’m eating
I have walked by Hak Box, a tiny little shop underneath the Manhattan Bridge on East Broadway, dozens of times since moving to Two Bridges and every time I do, I make a mental note to go. Well, today was the day that mental note came to fruition.
According to this Eater article, Hak Box was founded by Warren Wan, a Chinatown local, as an ode to old Chinatown. I actually met Warren while I was there and (between very loud, conversation-stopping train noises) he told me a little bit about the food and how he decided to open Hak Box because he felt this type of Chinatown culture was dying.
The food at Hak Box is Hakka-style. The Hakka people are a Han Chinese subgroup and, according to my brief research, the food is highly focused on texture. I didn’t know that going in but it all makes so much sense now: the springy texture of the rice noodle, the chewy dried shrimp, and the dumplings - well, 1) I’ve never had such plump, stuffed dumplings and 2) the filling is a mixture of pork and some kind of seafood that gives it that bouncy, fishball-like texture.
But if you’re only going to order one thing, it’s gotta be the Hakka roll. It’s something of a steamed rice roll (the likes of which have taken Instagram by storm in recent years) but it’s much different visually and texture-wise. The rice noodle itself is more firm which is probably why it maintains its shape and looks like an actual roll whereas the typical Cantonese steamed rice rolls lie flat. The filling is round pork, dried shrimp, and scallion. My entire meal was $6.75 and you better bet I’m gonna become a regular.
Hak Box: 88 E Broadway #106, New York, NY 10002
What I’m making
Meat.
So. Much. Meat.
Why, you might ask, am I cooking so much meat? Well, I’ve been spending a lot of time with someone who is pretty particular about what they eat. Specifically, they subscribe to some version of the carnivore diet. Are you rolling your eyes? It’s okay, you can admit it. I felt the same way at first! I mean, I’ve been told my entire life that red meat is the enemy (specifically when it comes to cholesterol, heart disease, hormones, all that). At the end of the day, there are a million schools of thought when it comes to health and what the healthiest diet is and they’re changing every day. I don’t pretend to know any more than the next person. Obviously, my career and my life prevent me from sticking strictly to any diet which means I’m pretty accommodating/flexible with those around me - I like it all. And I’ve actually really been enjoying my foray into the land of meat!
I’ve been making strip steak, skirt steak, lamb shoulder, bacon, burgers, lamb meatballs…the works. But if I had to choose a highlight, it would be the dish where both our worlds collide: a creamy lamb shoulder ragu with handmade pappardelle. It’s similar to the spiced white ragu we serve at my pasta popup but even more decadent (due to the lamb shoulder vs ground beef we use at PPJ) and that depth of flavor from hours of braising….just wow. Recipe coming soon! But for now, it’s pretty similar to the braised lamb I made a while back. After braising I simmer with heavy cream and grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese.
What I’m drinking
I was a huge fan of the Slovakian producer Slobodne’s Oranzista last summer (or was it the summer before that? All covid-adjacent summers are blended together in my mind). It was a gorgeous orange wine - perfumey, floral, tangy and bright - and I was borderline depressed when it started disappearing off the shelves of my local wine shop and from the menus of the select few bars/restaurants that stocked it. However, in a stroke of luck/fate (or neither…just like, coincidence) I stopped by a wine shop in South Williamsburg on the way to my friend’s apartment last week and there, for the first time in at least a year, I saw a Slobodne wine. It wasn’t the Oranzista - it was the Deviner. But at this point, I will try anything Slobodne makes. Unsurprisingly, it was a hit. It’s definitely tangier and more robust/tannic than the Oranzista which makes sense because the Deviner has 6 weeks of skin contact whereas the Oranzista was just 6 days. (Quick refresher course here: all the tannins, aka that grippy/drying feeling you get when you drink wine, come from the wine’s skins, stems and seeds. So generally, the longer the skin contact, the more tannic the wine becomes). It was beautiful and floral and perfumey - an absolutely perfect wine to drink on a super hot summer day.
I got mine from Dandy Wine Shop in South Williamsburg but I’m certain if you look up the name, you might be able to find some Deviner near you.