Eating In Translation

85 Chinese Restaurant

Years ago in Guangzhou, I chanced upon an outdoor restaurant where almost everyone was working on a plateful of noodles. First formed into thin sheets, the noodles had been rolled into rods and then cut into pieces. They were served only with soy sauce and sesame seeds; the main appeal was in the relative firmness of the noodles, once rolled.

The rolls in this rendition — called to my attention thanks to the typically exhaustive scouting of Chowhound regular Chandavki — were not as snug as in Guangzhou, but the layered noodles still offered a very pleasing chewiness. The counterman referred to these noodles as chee cheong fun, a name that I had wrongly lumped together with cheong fun. Unless you speak Cantonese, you may do better with the menu's English name, steam rice rolls ($6.50). These were stir-fried with vegetables, mushrooms, and soy sauce; a tempting-sounding alternative is topped with beef stew.

85 Chinese Restaurant
85 Chrystie St. (Grand-Hester Sts.), Manhattan
212-680-0118

Divya Jyoti Association Diwali Nagar

A celebration of Diwali Nagar is much like many other Diwali melas, but with pholourie. That is, Diwali Nagar is associated with Trinidad and Tobago, one of several Caribbean countries with a large Hindu population of Indian descent. These deep-fried balls of seasoned split-pea dough were squeezed off and cooked on the spot (compare zeppole). Most of the fare, however, had been prepared in advance and was pedestrian, if plentiful and inexpensive.

Also shown: a hawan, "sacrifices made into the fire [that] get transformed as offerings to the respective divine deities," on this occasion the Hindu goddess Lakshmi. This fire ritual preceded the festivities; cultural exhibitions and stage performances reportedly continued well into the evening.

Divya Jyoti Association Diwali Nagar
Arya Spiritual Center, 104-20 133rd St. (Liberty Ave.-105th Ave.), Richmond Hill, Queens
www.DiwaliMotorcade.com
(The 2013 celebration was held on October 26)

Esquites vendor

Prepared "con todo," or "with everything," one common style of esquites (ess-Key-taze, $3) fills a cup with sauteed kernels of corn, a slather of mayo, a substantial layer of grated salty cheese, a squeeze of lime juice, and a dusting of chili powder. At this streetside operation, the corn is ladled from one of two orange insulated tubs; the other tub holds a "spicy" version, the proprietor called it.

Judging by the cups of other customers, this runnier, greener version (epazote may get credit for the color) is meant to be served without toppings. It doesn't have much more of a kick than the classic version, though in fairness that first spoonful also entailed an accidental snootful of chili powder. Mixing all the ingredients of that fully loaded (and tastier) cup is a less perilous approach, but you'll need to partially excavate your esquites before your spoon has room to maneuver.

Update: Lesley Tellez of The Mija Chronicles observes that the second cup contains not esquites but a chileatole. Like most atoles it has a cornmeal base; pureed chiles are the other defining ingredient. Some chileatoles include chocolate and sugar, and can be (relatively) sweet, but the cupful shown here is one of many savory varieties, employing the corn kernels that the esquites vendor would already have on hand.

Esquites vendor
54th St. west of Fifth Ave., Sunset Park, Brooklyn
Weekends only

Lower East Side Pickle Day

Ex-cucumbers are only a starting point.

Flying Fox

Medlars must be bletted. That is, this curious fruit, picked when firm from a small decorative tree, must be allowed to ripen to the point of seeming decay, over the course of several weeks, when the skin has browned and wrinkled and the flesh can be scooped out with a spoon. More on this as things soften up.

King Manor Museum Fall Festival

I didn't stay to sample the beef saunders, the pot-pie-like product being inspected here, or the chicken stew; on a cool autumn day at an open hearth, both needed more cooking time. Fifteen minutes at the festival was just enough to run an apple through the grinder in preparation for cider pressing, and to try tiny samples of rock candy, pickled onion, and bread pudding. Hand-churned butter, too, thanks to nearby Elmhurst Dairy, which kick-started a labor-intensive process with a donation of heavy cream.

King Manor Museum Fall Festival
Rufus King Park, 153rd St. at Jamaica Ave., Jamaica, Queens
www.KingManor.org/events /fall%20festival%202013%20flyer.pdf
(The 2013 festival was held on October 26)

Fatty 'Cue

(This venue is closed.) Even on a brunch menu that sports a "fatty lumberjack" and a "mensch plate," the P.D.C. pancake ($21) is without peer. This "homage to Au Pied de Cochon" falls in step with standard practice at that Montreal restaurant by crowning the dish with seared foie gras. Yes, you'll find a buckwheat pancake at the bottom, but it's almost entirely buried under bacon, cheddar, potato confit, maple eggs (Montrealers, it seems, fancy cooking the syrup into the scramble itself), and the foie gras, all subject to a "maple drench." It's rather relentless. Think back to those old-time lumberjack contests that featured a two-man bucksaw, and split this one with a friend.

Also shown: biscuits and gravy ($14), whose fermented sausage, combined with the eggs, may not be to everyone's taste; a sample of latke waffles; coffee.

Fatty 'Cue
50 Carmine St. (Bleecker-Bedford Sts.), Manhattan
212-529-5050

Hometown Bar-B-Que

Apart from somewhat soupy smoked pit beans (small side, $4), the textures in this DIY BBQ sampler were great. The ample meat on the baby back ribs (half-rack, $15), for example, didn't fall off the bone but came free readily with a light pull, while the brisket had a dramatically craggy crust (shown in the second photo below, $25 per pound) that safeguarded its tender flesh. But the brisket was underseasoned; once I'd swabbed a piece in Hometown's "sticky sauce," I didn't want to do without.

Best over all was the smoked lamb belly ($24 per pound); even this could have used a touch of salt. Unfortunately, I arrived at the very tail end of sandwich time (weekend lunch only), so Hometown's lamb belly banh mi will have to keep.

Hometown Bar-B-Que
454 Van Brunt St. (at Reed St.), Red Hook, Brooklyn
347-294-4644
www.HometownBarBQue.com
Closed Monday

King's Kitchen

Bo zai fan with preserved duck ($6.95) seemed undercooked, despite the 25 minutes we waited. The rice at the bottom of the claypot wasn't crisp enough, and the (very bony) duck didn't give the rice much flavor. In contrast with A-Wah but in common with many restaurants that serve similar casseroles, the ideal soy sauce — a thick, sweet concoction mixed at the table into the rice and toppings — was absent.

The only condiments at hand were a thin soy sauce, another thin sauce meant for cheong fun, and a pasty mixture (second photo) that our server called "hot sauce." A creation of the Guangzhou-born chef, this condiment suggested preserved vegetables or even a mild belanchan rather than hot chilies. Though of no service to the bo zai fan, it added an interesting accent to our BBQ-meat trio of soy sauce chicken, roast pork, and crispy pork ($5.25). My dining buddy insists on a return visit, if only for this "sauce."

King's Kitchen
5223 Eighth Ave. (at 53rd St.), Sunset Park, Brooklyn
718-853-1288

Cafe Boulis

(This venue is closed.) This snug bakery-cafe takes great pride in its "famous loukoumades," deep-fried pastries that are a staple of Greek church fairs. Sometime loukoumades are shaped into balls, sometimes (as at Cafe Boulis) into dainty rings; inevitably they're soaked in syrup or honey.

Karydopita ($3) gets a similar soaking, but to different effect. The syrup settles, leaving the upper reaches of this walnut cake merely moist and the top surface almost crunchy. Even in bites without a walnut, you get a nice variety of textures.

Cafe Boulis
30-15 31st Ave. (30th-31st Sts.), Astoria, Queens
718-806-1014
www.CafeBoulis.com