Eating In Translation

"Corn in Cup"

Is this an effort to commercialize esquites? I might have expected to see this poster on Roosevelt Ave. or in Sunset Park rather than in Sunnyside, whose Mexican community is comparatively small. The CupItFood website, however, indicates broader ambitions: Corn in Cup recipes include "original, Southern, Mumbai, East/West, Roma, Moroccan, West Indies, and Parisienne," and the company also markets products named Potato in Cup, PotaCorn, and Waffle in Cup.

I was hurrying to an appointment and couldn't stop to investigate. If you try Corn in Cup before I do, please post a comment for your fellow readers.

"Corn in Cup"
40th St. south of Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, Queens

Lucy's Whey

Would Berkshire Blue be wasted on a burger? I asked.

"Hot food, groceries"

This corner market is a stranger to me; I present this photo only for the cameo appearance.

"Hot food, groceries"
Hanging outside Chelsea Organic
170 Seventh Ave. (at 20th St.)

Sweet Arayssi

Incredibly cheap sweets: mishmishya (three for a dollar), dried-apricot paste rolled over and around pistachio.

Sweet Arayssi
7216 Fifth Ave. (72nd-73rd Sts.), Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
718-745-2115

Fairway Café and Steakhouse

Compared with the smashed-flat style of the Shake Shack several blocks away, Fairway's burger was heftier and much more loosy-juicy. On the other hand, Fairway's bun wasn't toasted — mine was marred by a fender-bender, too — and the shoestring fries weren't crisp enough. But where the Shack's cheeseburger is American-only, Fairway offers five varieties, including the blue cheese shown here. (Burger with fries, $7.50 at lunch, plus a buck per topping; $12 at dinner, two toppings and fries included.) They're such different animals it's hard to pit the two burgers head to head, though I intend to try.

Fairway Café and Steakhouse
2127 Broadway (74th-75th Sts.), second floor, accessible by steep stairs or crowded, cranky elevator
212-994-9555
www.FairwayMarket.com/restaurant.html

Name This Café

The hanging sign by the side entrance ennobles this corner bar-restaurant. Despite its proximity to FIT, the fashion sensibility is comfortably blue-collar, and the first word that comes to mind may be "dive" and not "dine," but the pub food looks better with every beer. Can you name this café? (Please post your answer in the comments.)

Lovecraft's Providence Home to Insect Chef

My article on entomophagy proponent Dave Gracer appeared in the July/August 2009 issue of Looking Glass magazine. The recipe and its photo are from sources unknown; the other photos are by yours truly. My post on Providence's Blue Elephant restaurant — one of the few U.S. restaurants to make wide use of insects in the kitchen, according to Gracer — includes additional photos. I'm sorry to write that it has since closed.

Pho Saigon No. 1

(This venue is closed.) New business at this location, with a new menu? Signs point to yes.

Battambang Market II

Battambang's proprietors, and the bulk of the videotape library, hail from Cambodia, but most of the edible offerings have their roots in Thailand or elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

Pine nuts

If not at the market, ideally you'll gather yours from a more generous species than the Eastern white pine.