Stolovaya - Gurus of Pelmeni

Following a lead from a credible source (a nice Russian lady), I headed way south to Avenue U in Brooklyn to seek ultimate pelmeni.  Pelmenyi are Soviet-style meat or veg-stuffed dumplings, swimming in soup or huddling on a plate.

Tacos El Idolo Truck - When you're hungry for ear

By the popularity of the word "taco" in the online dating profile handles I've picked through (NYCtaco72 seeks the One), I know that most people love tacos.  Except that they're sometimes greasy and fried-shelled...I love them too.

Kam Hing Coffee Shop - The 75¢ store

After a decent if not superduper dim sum in Chinatown at Pings, I started looking around for a local coffee to wash it down, and maybe get a small dessert.

Kam Hing, on Baxter Street, looked like the kind of sketchy hidey-hole I write about...so I took the plunge.

Cheburechnaya - Kosher kebabs from a faraway land

The name of this restaurant rolls off the tongue like a curse snarled by a doll-faced Russian girl into her cell phone.  "Che-bur-ETCH-nee-ya!"  For some reason, this image pleases me.

Cheburechnaya is a Bukharian kosher restaurant.  I had no idea where Bukhara was, but I learned that it's an area of Uzbekistan - formerly populated with Jews who have come to Queens in order to bring us their delicacies.

Food Gallery 32 - Your indecision will be tested

In the underbelly food world, 32nd Street between 5th and 6th is a richly crusted log that reveals treasures every time you flip it over.  Aside from the many Korean grills on this block (I have my favorites) there are other rarer types of restaurant to check out.

I chose one that looked authentic and offered many Asian possibilities, called Food Gallery 32.

Kung Fu Tea - Caffeine of 1000 kicks

When you're done picking the cilantro from your teeth after Vietnamese in East Chinatown (see Cong Ly review), and you want something brewed to wash it down, what do you do?  There's no reputable Grumpy/Stumpy hipster cafes nearby...and Starbucks would be an ignominious end to your adventures.  So you stay in character and go somewhere like Kung Fu Tea.

Cong Ly - Vietnamese for the iron stomached

When I was 23 and serving as a wide-eyed, unemployed juror in Manhattan's downtown courthouses, we the jury found lunch every day at a Vietnamese restaurant called Nha Trang on Baxter St.  It was my first Vietnamese...and taught me to love the healthy combos of rice noodles, cilantro, lemongrass, chili, and grilled meats that seem to define the stuff.

Since then, I keep chasing the dream by trying to find better and better authentic Vietnamese places.

My Vietnamese laundromat manager - who looks like he might keep a mogwai under the counter  - told me to try Cong Ly on Hester St.  Said it was better than Nha Trang and Nam Son - my other Chinatown favorite.  With a big caveat, he was right!