Tsukemen at Kambi Ramen House

Not knowing where to eat, my friend and I were wandering around the East Village and we came across Kambi Ramen House on 14^th Street. It was a cold night and I could not say no to the thought of getting something warm.

And of course since it was a ramen house, my first instinct is to look for tsukemen on the menu. Yes, that’s right, I have a fondness for tsukemen for two reasons- 1) It is a different noodle soup from your typical ramen; and 2) I have been looking for a place that serves good tsukemen ever since I discovered it roughly two to three years ago. Just like ramen, tsukemen has your noodles and broth. Unlike ramen, the broth comes separate from the noodles, which are served cold. My friend calls it dipping noodles (because that is how you eat it) but I call it deconstructed ramen. One other difference is that the broth is thicker than that of ramen, allowing the noodles to get a nice coating of broth before eating.

I ordered the miso-flavored tsukemen and a bottle of beer, because… beer. I also received some sidings- chopped green onions, bamboo shoots, some brown strands that might be seaweed, half a boiled egg, a spoonful of corn and two slices of seared chashu (pork belly). The broth also came with a nice heaping of bonito (dried fish) powder for added flavor.

 

Overall, this was one of the best orders of tsukemen I have had- the sidings were a nice surprise that you use to flavor your order to your heart’s desire, the pork had a nice charred taste and, most importantly, the broth was clean, with no tiny bits of pork on the bottom that I dislike. The only drawback is that the restaurant is so far from the Philippines, but that is easily forgivable.

Lox and Bagel from the Bagelsmith

Early this year, my family and I visited my sister in New York and I was surprised to find out that my mom wanted to have bagels as our first breakfast in Brooklyn... because New York and bagels are always a good combination. Located on 189 Bedford Avenue, this is a small but cozy bagel shop that has the convenience of being open 24 hours, perfect for a late-night bagel craving or early morning hangover treat.

Interestingly enough, my traditional "last meal" for all my New York trips had always been a lox and bagel. I was not going to change that so it would be a nice thing to have one for my "first meal" this time around.

With over ten types of bagels to choose from, I got lazy (or smart depending on how you look at it) and decided on the "everything" bagel which had all their bagel toppings- sesame, garlic, poppy, onion, etc. I haven't had anything close to that in the Philippines and I like the different bits of flavors with every bite. And then we have the lox and the cream cheese. Again, contrasting to a similar order in the Philippines, I got a lot of salmon and more than enough cream cheese, probably enough for two-and-a-half more orders. Do not get me wrong, I enjoyed the whole thing- salmon, cream cheese and all.

Coming from a 20 hour flight, that was a really good welcome breakfast.