Eating In Translation

Tacos El Tuzito

The mission this evening was meant to confirm intel regarding another cart, said to prepare tacos al vapor, a.k.a. tacos de canasta and tacos sudados. These are steamed ("al vapor") and traditionally held in a basket ("canasta"), where their collective warmth gives them a sweaty ("sudado") texture. That cart may have changed hands; on the evening of my visit the menu was pedestrian, the ambience, desultory.

Much more energy radiated from nearby Tacos El Tuzito, which employed an expediter to take orders from a small but continual stream of customers. The cook himself — a native of Pachuca, capital of the Mexican state of Hidalgo — is fast with a blade, notably so when replenishing his essential reserve of sliced radishes. They were a crisp accompaniment to a pair of tacos suaderos ($2), which featured chopped, griddled beef brisket.

Tacos El Tuzito
Cart stationed on the southeast corner of 45th St. at Bergenline Ave., Union City, New Jersey
Seven days, lunch through late night

Culture

Old news in Park Slope, a fresh discovery for Greenwich Village: tart, dense Greek-style yogurt with blueberries, honey, granola, and, as a breakfast special ($5), a small coffee.

Culture
60 West 8th St. (Sixth Ave.-MacDougal St.), Manhattan
646-823-9715
Also at 331 Fifth Ave. (3rd-4th Sts.), Park Slope, Brooklyn
718-499-0207
www.CultureNY.com

Yemen Restaurant

(This venue is closed.) Fatah fits right in at iftar.

Break-room toaster-oven

East Village, Manhattan

St. Ann's Italian Festival

Much mellower than many similar events; most in attendance seemed to be locals and not out-of-towners. A softball-sized arancino ($6) was doused with marinara sauce; the rice, which had grown a tad gummy, was wedded with ground beef, mozzarella, and peas, though in my rice ball these last were as rare as pearls.

Hush puppies (five for $5) were shaken, in that paper bag, with a light dose of cinnamon and sugar. These came courtesy of an Englishtown, New Jersey outfit called My Two Sons Crab Cakes; I might have ordered the namesake items, or a Savannah-style shrimp sandwich, if they hadn't sold out earlier in the day.

St. Ann's Italian Festival
In the streets surrounding the Church of St. Ann, 704 Jefferson St., Hoboken, New Jersey
www.StAnnHoboken.com/feast
(The 2013 festival was held on July 24-28)

Bay Root Meats

A Ramadan favorite in the Middle East, katayef are stuffed pancakes whose name you'll see in many spellings (more, to be sure, than for Beirut). Stuffing and cooking katayef is typically done in home kitchens, but during the fasting month pancakes are prepared en masse at local bakeries; the dozen shown here ($3.99) came from a point-of-purchase display at a grocer and butcher. That same shop supplied a basic hand-mixed filling ($7.99 per pound) of walnuts, pecans, coconut, and golden raisins.

The stuffed pancakes are crimped shut, baked or fried, and dressed with syrup and, perhaps, finely ground pistachio. This recipe, for a more elaborate version, depicts the ready-to eat pastries.

Bay Root Meats
7813 Fifth Ave. (78th-79th Sts.), Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
718-238-7900

Number, please

Wonder Bread helps build strong bodies how many ways? How many ways?

Tables Outside Masjid Aqsa

(The masjid itself has pulled up stakes, but as of 2014 the occasional vendor still sets up out front.) The ladies in attendance at the folding tables outside the mosque sell a hodgepodge of merchandise and snacks, most with West African roots.

"Cherche une femme..."

"...capable de cuisiner et nettoyer...", that is, "Seeking a woman who can cook and clean..."; details follow. More than for the tenuous connection to things culinary, this flyer is noteworthy for being written in French and posted by the sidewalk. Like the recent arrival down the block of Mama Getzner, a fabric shop based in the Goutte d'Or, in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, it's another sign of growth in Manhattan's Little West Africa.

"Cherche une femme..."
West 116th St., Manhattan

Blue Marble Ice Cream

(This venue is closed.) "The strawberry is awesome," she said. Sitting on top, in the first photo, that's a good version of maple — a flavor I seek out whenever possible every autumn — but as my server made clear, the pure, slightly sour strawberry is an ice cream for all seasons. Also shown, seeking shelter under a shade tree: a precariously perched scoop of root beer ($5).

Blue Marble Ice Cream
Various locations, many of them seasonal; see website for details
www.bluemarble icecream.com