Eating In Translation

Name This Eatery

That's not much of a smile — not by her standards — emerging from this rougher-than-usual representation. Can you name this eatery? (Please post your answer in the comments.)

Radish

(This venue is closed.) The olive oil flavor of this cake itself ($3) was not as pronounced as in the like item at Saltie; candied orange carried the day.

Radish
158 Bedford Ave. (North 8th-North 9th Sts.), Williamsburg, Brooklyn
718-782-2744
www.RadishNYC.com

Pooja coconuts

Though often sold side-by-side with husked, pale green coconuts meant for human consumption, these — sighted the day before the annual Phagwah (Holi) celebration — are fit for the gods. In Hinduism, "pooja" denotes a variety of offerings made to various deities or to distinguished (mortal) guests. The coconut, whose shape suggests the human head, is symbolic of selflessness and devotion, and, when opened, of the breaking of the ego. A tuft of coir, or coconut fiber, is traditionally retained on top; I don't know why.

Pooja coconuts
Richmond Hill, Queens

La Esquina del Camaron Mexicano

This Mexican-style seafood cocktail of shrimp, octopus, and squid (small, $5) was soaked in clam juice, tomato juice, and a half-lime squeezed a la minute, garnished with cilantro, raw onion, and hot sauce, and crowned with avocado. Like many customers, even before I crossed to the shady side of the street, I didn't wait to dig in.

Note: At the time of my visit this street vendor was doing business under the awning of Elmhurst's Glober Market (sic), across from Clement Clarke Moore Homestead Park and its ample seating. Reportedly he's since moved to Roosevelt Ave., where there's much more walk-by traffic, to be sure, but standing room only.

La Esquina del Camaron Mexicano
Roosevelt Ave. at 80th, Elmhurst, Queens
Saturday and Sunday, 11:30-3:30

Curley's

Beat cop pit stop, 24/7 source for short orders and vending-machine cigarettes. Less notable for chow ($9.95 meatloaf special, including chicken soup, mashed potatoes, mixed veggies, rice pudding) than for a battle over eminent domain. The fence that had been making it "even haader to get in for paaking" has since come down.

Curley's
62 West Park Pl. (Summer St.-Washington Blvd.), Stamford, Connecticut
203-348-2020

Cameo Bowling

There was a time I was fond of soggy fries and squirt-bottle ketchup, the sort one might have scarfed at the Cameo Bowling Lanes, or perhaps it was the Cameo Bowling Alley, and washed down with fountain-dispensed Coca-Cola. Reportedly this establishment stood at the southwest corner of Continental Ave. and Austin St.

There's a second layer of signage as well (click on the close-up photo for a still larger view), offering not just "candy" and "soda" but "hot meals," too. It seems to have promoted an even older business. Can any Eating In Translation reader fill in more details?

Cameo Bowling
Seen from the Manhattan-bound LIRR platform, Forest Hills, Queens

Araliya

(This venue is closed.) I don't know how the ash banana got its name, which apparently applies to multiple varieties used more for cooking than for eating out of hand. At this Sri Lankan restaurant, the cultivar in question was an unripe turban banana, from Colombia. The sticker on the fruit, which the chef herself kindly fetched from the kitchen, also gave the name burro banana.

In this curry ($5.99), the texture suggested firmish scalloped potatoes; the seasonings included onion, curry leaves, and rampe. That greenish item is also known as bai teuy, said the chef; screwpine and pandan are common synonyms that may belong to related species.

Araliya will soon be serving an Indian buffet at lunchtime on weekdays and a Sri Lankan buffet on weekends. The start date is uncertain; best to call ahead if you'd like to be sure.

Araliya
159-23 Hillside Ave. (Parsons Blvd.-160th St.), Jamaica, Queens
718-297-1900

Name This Truck

Think of the windows as eyes and the door handle as a (teeny) nose, and — particularly if you're feeling blue — the smile falls right into place. Can you name this truck? (Please post your answer in the comments.)

Hajir Biryani

(This venue is closed. As of 2013 an apparently unrelated business called Dhaka Hajir Biryani does business on these premises. The menu is very different, though the namesake biryani is still on offer.) Whether you heed the restaurant menu (with an "r") or the awning (without), "hajir" denotes a biryani with a storied history. In Dhaka, the proprietor's home city, a generations-old eatery also goes by this name; it sidesteps any spelling issues by famously dispensing with signage and menus entirely.

I'm unclear exactly how the eponymous spice-scented biryani ($5.99) differs from other such rice-based dishes, except that the goat meat within is meant to be super-tender. Indeed, it slid off the bones with barely more than a touch.

Hajir Biryani
170-16 Hillside Ave. (170th-171st Sts.), Jamaica, Queens
718-880-1282
www.sites.google.com/site/hajirbiryani

El Quetzal

(This venue is closed.) Dulces tipicos: pera, camote, yuca, higo.

This pear, sweet potato, yucca, and fig ($3.50) were not candied to the same sticky extent as the fruits previously encountered at Panaderia Coatzingo. At that Mexican bakery, however, dulces tipicos have made only rare appearances; at the two Guatemalan groceries called El Quetzal, plastic four-packs were stacked en masse. Contents vary; I spotted apple, too, and perhaps pineapple.

Also shown: a grainy atol de platano (small, $1).

El Quetzal
160-06 Hillside Ave. (160th-161st Sts.), Jamaica, Queens
718-759-8574