Peep Night 09-24-2008

**Sorry only 1 pic--they gave us weird looks.**

"If you ever want to pee in front of a lot of people, this is the place for you."

Location: 177 Prince St
Time: 9pm
People: RB and myself
Feelings: Since we are big fans of Pukk, we thought we would give their sister eatery Peep a try. Is this place even a Thai restaurant? Or just another place in Soho that lures in European tourists? We started off with Taro Spring Rolls which were greasy and quite average. My Pad Thai was very sweet and simply did not taste like Pad Thai. RB's Ragu of Beef and Pappardelle reminded him of Hungarian Goulash with kick of Thai spices. But the bathroom decor was the most amusing part of the night. The bathroom walls are made out of a two way mirror overlooking the dining room, which you can look outside, but they can't see you... at least I hope so. I swear I had an eye contact with a British gentleman.

MeSoHungry Party & Ella Cafe Night 09-20-2008

"Good bye to the sun!"

Location: 949 Grand St
People: A lot of people
Feelings: JLam from MeSoHungry had a great backyard party at LockInn Bar in Williamsburg/Bushwick. While we watched the Florida vrs Tennessee game, people enjoyed JLam's Carb Casserole made of potatoes, noodles, stuffing, and a whole lot of cheese! Rusty made his famous Ham-Burger, and of course there were tons of sausages and meat.. and great music by Justice of the Unicorn.

Post party noodle: Ella Cafe 177 Bedford Ave
Feelings: My Organic Tofu Lasagna with sides of Organic Mustard Spaetzle and Sauteed Carrots were very clean and flavorful. RB had Free Rance Lamb Brochettes with sides of Ratatouille and Mashed Potatoes. The lamb was savory and wholesome, but it was a bit dry. The service was friendly and unpretentious, but there was only one waitstaff for the place on Saturday night... The poor guy was running all over.

Chanpen Lunch with Showtime Ops! 09-20-2008

**Sorry no photos!**
"Give me some mint."

Location: 761 9th Ave
People: Showtime Operations Crew
Feelings: The unpretentious staff at Chanpen Thai is extremely attentive and punctilious and gives you a good Thai lunch experience. Our Pad See Ew was fresh and light, but it was little too heavy on garlic. Dry Curry Sauce (without Coconut Milk) with mixed vegetables was a soupy goodness. Their lunch portion is small and tasty, and it was suitable for weekday midtown lunch when you have to go back to work 20 minutes later.

Rockmeisha Night 09-18-2008

"That broth was awesome, but I seriously need some water."

Location: 11 Barrow Street
Time: 7pm
People: 11 Ramen and Friends (BLee, CarlA, MGru, PMont, JereM, JNu, JLam from MeSoHungry, RB, MiK, KHash and myself)
Feelings: Rockmeisha is a small authentic Izakaya that provides Kyushu style tapas and, of course, Ramen. Food is fresh, the decor is kitschy, and the service is friendly and laid back-- so laid back to the point that half of our group did not get their water. (After salty food of goodness, they were hurting without their liquid consumption.)
They have one ramen dish: Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen. The broth was so rich yet smooth and gave many layers of flavors as if the broth was the main dish of the evening. Unfortunately, the noodle was slightly overcooked. Since the noodle was thin, we wished it would have a bit more bite. Word of the group -"Ippudo was better, but the broth here was very good."

Other Feelings: If you have a bigger group of more than six people, you need to make a reservation here with your credit card info. But this place would be more perfect for smaller groups considering the size of the place and number of waiters they have.

Post ramen dessert: Return of Batch night! 150B W 10th St
Feelings: Heavenly! We can't get enough of Batch. All fresh and delicious: Chocolate Green Tea Cupcake with Orange Marmalade filling, Carrot Salted Caramel Cupcake with cream cheese filling and Maldon Sea Salt, Mango Thai Tea Pudding,

Organic Grill 09-13-2008

"Stuffed with organic vegan food while listening to Beirut."

Location: 123 1st Ave
Time: 7pm
People: RB and myself
Feelings: This is a cozy organic vegan restaurant with exceptionally nice waiters and low key customers. RB is a carnivore, but he enjoyably overstuffed himself with his flavorful Seitan Enchiladas. My Paradise Casserole consisted of polenta, black beans and sweet potatoes, and it was creamy and gave a very interesting texture. We also got complimentary potato salad since the chef was trying out different recipes. It's always encouraging to see vegan chefs exploring different types of dishes-- that means more food options for me!

Menchanko Tei Lunch with Showtime Ops! 09-10-2008

"Are these Ramen noodles made with eggs?"

Location: 43 W 55th St
Time: 1pm
People: Showtime Operations Crew
Feelings: The noodles are made daily without eggs, the soup has no MSG, and the ramen is served in pre-heated bowls at this Japanese noodle lunch spot. Our vegetarian noodle was different from others offered at most ramen places around the city: It was healthy, light, and not excessively salty. They also offer various Japanese dishes such as Umeboshi Riceballs and Oden. So if you are not a noodle lover, you could still try this place for authentic Japanese barfood. The service was fast and friendly, so this is a perfect place to enjoy your lunch with your co workers for blissful conversations.

Thank you Midtown Lunch!

These are exciting times at Ramen and Friends. Our Hallo Berlin post was featured in one of my favorite food blogs, Midtown Lunch! Thank you Midtown Lunch!

Dosirak Night 09-07-2008

"The Greatest Loss of Flavor 2008"

Location: 30 E 13th St
Time: 7pm
People: RB and myself
Feelings: This is one of our usual Korean spots after work since we are usually too lazy to head out to K-Town. They offer very simple Korean dishes, and the atmosphere is very casual and cozy. However, this place is getting worse every time we go back. This time around, our Ban Chan was very salty with little other flavor. My Jap Chae was overcooked and tasted like it was microwaved, and RB's Kalbitang (short ribs with sliced radish and clear noodles in beef broth) was... clear, alright. It was so clear it didn't even have any flavor. What happened to you, Dosirak?

Post Noodle Dessert: Return of Dessert Truck Part Deux
Feelings: Dessert Truck successfully made us forget about Dosirak's lack of flavor. RB had Slow Cooked Apple and Cinnamon, and I tried their best seller, Chocolate Bread Pudding with Vanilla Anglaise. Apple and Cinnamon gave us a buttery experience with crisp puff pastry while Bread Pudding made my flavor palette recovered completely.

Sapporo Lunch with Showtime Ops! 09-02-2008

"Ramen + Showtime Operations = Good times"

Location: 152 W 49th St
Time: 12:30pm
People: Showtime Operations Crew
Feelings: These are quite exciting times at Ramen and Friends. SS, AP and the Gang (my lovely new co workers) arranged our first ramen outing at this midtown Japanese lunch spot. The place is cramped and crowded, and it definietely gives you that authentic hole-in-the-wall feel a la Tampopo by Juzo Itami. They even give you a check as they bring out your dish, which reminded me the way ramen restaurants run in Osaka. Listen up Ippudo, this is the way ramen places should be! My Shoyu ramen was on the slightly salty side, but this might be one of the few places where you can get decent, efficient, fast, and delicious meals at a reasonable price. And in Times Square of all places!