Already two lunches to the good, I passed up an attractive steam table — I'll return for the mixed-offal curry called pachownie — but spotted a curious dessert. Vermicelli cake, like Indian payasam and similar sweets in Pakistan and Trinidad, is prepared with noodles that have been simmered in milk and sugar, and flavored with spices or extracts. This Guyanese confection, however, is cooked down to a thicker consistency, then cooled until firm enough to cut, and to carry away on an afternoon walk. Some versions incorporate raisins or currants; mine took on a pinkish cast from maraschino cherries.
Roti Paradise
21151 Jamaica Ave. (Hollis Ct. Blvd.-212th St.), Queens Village, Queens
718-776-1112
www.Facebook.com/Roti-Paradise-Restaurant-986106931598425
