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Bellerose "In front of CVS" Halal Cart

 A view from the side of the cart (Note: these picture are from my most recent trip to the cart)

What follows is an account of my very first experience of the Bellerose Halal Cart (the one in front of CVS, not the one next to Subway).

It was a blistering cold night out on the town in Floral Park. A few hours of consuming a good amount of alcoholic beverages had left me with a sense of distant hunger. As the night drew to an end, that hunger grew exponentially.  It was 3:30 in the morning, and nothing was open anymore!  No Taco Bell, no Mickey Dee's...NOTHING!  It seemed I was 'shit out of luck.'  "Wait! What about that cart on the corner of Hillside Ave. and Little Neck?" It's only a short distance out of my way on the long trek home. "Screw it, you only live once," I thought. I began my walk up Tulip Ave., across Jericho Tpke. and headed up Little Neck with a sense of purpose.

I don't know what to think about the Halal cart; it seemed a little shady at first glance. Although I have heard good things from friends, I've never eaten from one of these carts before. It's definitely better than one of those greasy, stale Taquitos from the 7-11 across the street. The neon signs adorning the cart called to me from the distance.

The menu below the ordering window

I finally arrived and looked down at the simple menu posted on the side of the cart. The fare consisted of gyros (either chicken or lamb) and combination platters. I was greeted by the young guy working inside the cart and he gave me a few moments to decide. I decided to go ahead and try the chicken, lamb, and rice combination platter. Seemingly without pause the guy went to work and started grilling up the meats for my platter.

The smell emanating from the cart was making my stomach growl; it smelled awfully good. A mere two or three minutes later I could see the guy loading my Styrofoam container full of these great smelling ingredients. I was then asked if I wanted white sauce on my food. White sauce? Sure thing. "Hot sauce, sir?" As I was about to answer he warned me that it was very spicy. I told him to load it up.

The platter came with a drink and a hefty amount of food for a mere six dollars. I briskly began my walk home to sit down and try this new and mysterious fare. I arrived home and sat down with my drink in hand and container in front of me. The second I opened the container a vast array of smells hit my nostrils. It smelled spicy, sweet, and smokey all at once. I dug right in.

While I have had lamb and chicken separately in the past, I never ate them together in the same meal before. The two meats went great together, and neither one seemed to overpower the taste of the other. Among the pieces of meat were chunks of onion and peppers. It came with a side of fresh, crispy, and chilled lettuce. Underneath it all was a bed of very interesting rice. I never tasted anything like it before. The closest thing I could pinpoint it to would be Basmati rice that you can find in any Indian restaurant. It had a great flavor to it, with a minor kick of spiciness.

At the time, I couldn't figure out why there was lettuce included with this dish.  I now realize it's a great way to cool down your palette from the intense heat of the hot sauce. For those of you who are afraid of anything spicy, I would definitely tell the guy to hold the hot sauce. It's pretty damn spicy, even by my standards. The white sauce, however... holy shit is it good. A simple combination of mayonnaise and vinegar, the white sauce is out of this world. It combines very well with every item in this platter.

Needless to say, I could not finish all the food in my first sitting. I closed up the box and left it in my fridge to attempt it again the next day. I went to bed, drunk munchies triumphantly stomped to the curb.

THE LOVERDICT

You've all seen one of these carts, especially if you grew up in Queens, NY or have traveled around New York City. With such a large population of Arab and Mediterranean folk, these carts are in abundance all over the NY/Metro area. Since my first visit to this cart about a year or two ago, I have frequented several other carts in my quest to expand my food horizons and educate my palette.

The gyros at this cart, while not the best, are definitely a great option if your looking for a little less food; the platters are quite a good serving size. Don't be scared by the usual lack of cleanliness and barely English speaking cooks at these carts. This food is some of the best stuff out there, and from what I've seen and heard, is what the Eastern laypeople eat on an almost daily basis. Also, if you call ahead and order, you can expect to arrive and have your food already done. Just pay the man and you're set.

I have since moved away from Bellerose, but you can still find my friends and I here. It will usually happen on the weekends, in the very wee hours of the morning, smoking cigarettes and waiting for our platters to be ready.

Halal Cart
On the corner of Hillside Ave. and Little Neck Pkwy. (In front of CVS and across from 7-11)
(718) 908-4163

 The usual chef

Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza

Another day, another debate on what to get for lunch. My friend Mary stopped by after a job interview and we decided to hit the town. Westbury, New York has a plethora of restaurants and eateries as far as the eye can see. We decided to try out this new pizza place on Old Country Road called  'Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza.' Located in a large shopping center with a Barnes and Noble and a Guitar Center, the place seemed like a choice lunch destination for local business people on their lunch breaks.

Upon entering we were greeted by a gigantic juice-head of a host, his greasy spiked hair leading us to our table. The place was strangely decorated.  There was a lot of movie and music memorabilia on the walls, and several flat screen TVs tuned to ESPN. It was kind of a mish-mosh of decor.  I didn't really feel the whole Italian pizzeria vibe. However, the place smelled great.

Our waiter (I think his name was James) was friendly and helpful, guiding us through the menu and explaining the lunch specials. I noticed that the table had a nice condiment holder with a circular metal apparatus on the top. After giving the place a once over, I concluded that this was where the pizza would rest. We decided to split a small pie, half regular and half "Paul and Young Ron."  I was a little disappointed when the drinks came and they gave us a cup of ice and a 20 oz plastic bottle. No fountain drinks? WTF.

 The bar seemed nice, with large wine racks along the back wall. Would I ever want to come in here for a drink? I highly doubt it. I overheard the guys at the next table talking about how good the chicken wings are. I decided that if I were to come back here again, I'd have to try them.

Our food arrived and was placed onto the metal apparatus by a very nice looking waitress. She asked to serve us our first slice.  The meal was on. 

The small pie was actually quite large and was cut into 6 slices. My "Paul and Young Ron" consisted of meatballs, sausage, hot Italian peppers and ricotta cheese (Italian pronunciation: [riˈkotta]). My only real complaint about the pizza was not lack of flavor or greasiness, but how the peppers were presented. Anyone who has had or seen spicy Italian peppers know that they are quite large and thick. Instead of chopping up the pepper it was laid to rest atop each slice whole. Taking my first bite resulted in the pepper falling right off onto my plate.

Mary and I opted to trade slices and I tried her regular slice. The sauce was quite delicious and sweet. The cheese also tasted very fresh. I was very full after eating only 3 small slices so I decided to take home my last slice to give to my parents to try. The pizza was actually quite expensive at $16.25. My theory on price is: if I am satisfied after the meal, not too full, and not still hungry, then it was worth it. You know it was a decent meal if you're craving that cigarette after-wards, as we both definitely were.

THE LOVERDICT

Anthony's is definitely worth a shot if your in the Westbury/Carle Place area, a prime destination during this holiday shopping season (Roosevelt Field Mall, one of the East Coast's largest shopping centers,  is located here.) Although I have had pizza like this many times before (See my review on Scotto's), it was pretty damn good. I would like to try this place again at least one more time and get the chicken wings, which are also cooked in the coal oven.

Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza
137 Old Country Rd.
Carle Place, NY 11514
(516) 877-7750
anthonyscoalfiredpizza.com

Call of Duty Black Ops: FPS Amazingness

I have decided to venture away from the world of food and talk about the newest Call of Duty game. I picked it up for Playstation 3 the day it came out. I could of went to Gamestop for the midnight release, but decided that waiting in line with hundreds of nerds in the freezing cold wasn't a great idea. I went to pick up my reserve the next morning, waited in line for about 5 minutes and drove home eager to play it.

While Call of Duty has been known for its epic single player campaigns, multi-player is really where it's at. I dove right into the multi-player. While many of the features are more or less the same as in Modern Warfare 2, there are a TON of new ones to take advantage of. First off, I noticed that the level cap is now at 50 instead of 70. At the time of writing this entry, I am now level 42 with around 16 hours played. I also believe there are 15 levels of prestige now. I highly doubt I will ever spend that much time trying to prestige 15 times. I will more than likely be bored with the game after 2 or 3 prestige achievements. 

One big difference players will notice is the currency system in this game. You earn currency for completing matches and doing different things like contracts (goals you can purchase to get achievements that will earn you more currency). The only annoying thing is that currency is used on everything, from weapons, to perks, and even on designing emblems or a clan tag. I opt to save my currency up, because I feel it can be pointless to upgrade certain weapons when you will be getting a better one in the near future.

Modern Warfare 2 let players customize their player card's background and emblem. This time around there are a ton of different options to design your own unique background and emblems. For example, my friend Evan's emblem is a silhouette of a man pointing a gun at a small rabbit with a question mark above it's head. You can get very creative. While the backgrounds cannot be customized, there are a ton of different pre-made ones to choose from.

The game is set during the 1960's so expect your usual fair of M16's, AK47's and the like. The weapons are highly detailed and can be modded with several different kinds of attachments. Silencers to double ammo clips can be added to your weapons, and will provide positive and/or negative effects to your weapon. Camo can also be purchased for your guns, and now you don't have to go through the stupid headshot challenges to unlock them.  You can also apply your clan tag or emblem to your gun, which looks very cool in the game. The targeting reticles of your guns can also be fully customized.

Among the standard team death match, capture the flag, and other familiar COD game modes, Treyarch (the makers of this installment) has added several new game modes this time around. 'Wager matches' are one of them. You can bet a certain amount of your multiplayer currency to place within the top 3 players of a match. If you do, you will win extra currency. Taking inspiration from the online PC game Counterstrike, they have also included something called 'Gun Game.' Players start with the weakest pistol and a knife, and get better weapons as they rack up kills. If you get knifed, you get demoted down to the previously weaker weapon.

There are around nine different maps to play on in multi-player. There is a nuclear test sight (aptly named Nuketown), a large oil platform, and a Vietnamese jungle.  My personal favorites are Jungle and Nuketown. Jungle has a very cool design and offers players many different areas to hide in and take cover under. Nuketown is all about straight up mayhem. It is a very small map with two residential homes, split up by a street with several cars on it. You can easily get kills by simply starting a match with a grenade toss over the house in front of you.

The single player clocks in at around 6-7 hours. I actually completed the campaign yesterday and was very satisfied with it. You get to play as a special operative named "Mason" who works for the US government. Set during the 1960's, you are sent to various locations around the world such as Cuba, the USSR, and even Vietnam.

There are some very cool moments: you get to pilot a Hind attack helicopter and rain destruction down on "charlie". You also get to take off in an SR-71 Blackbird recon aircraft  and help guide a group of operatives on the ground using a infrared scope.  (For those of you who are not familiar with this plane, I have included a picture of one. The U.S. military used them for high altitude recon missions. The pilots basically wore spacesuits because they were on the very edge of our earth's atmosphere)

SR-71 Blackbird

Back again is also the very popular "Zombies" mode where players either go solo or group up with other players to defeat waves of oncoming zombies and escape their gruesome deaths.

THE LOVERDICT

I can go on and on about how awesome this game is, but I'm sure no one wants to read a 10 page review, haha. However, this game does have its flaws. The multi-player  seems to have some lag issues. I'd say between 20 and 30% of the matches I play are pretty laggy. I have also seen some graphical errors in both the single and multiplayer modes. Hopefully Treyarch will be patching these issues soon.

I highly recommend this game to any first person shooter fans out there. You can get it on PS3, Xbox 360, Wii and PC from your local electronic or video game retailer. If you have PS3 and want to add me, my PSN name is BiggsV.  See all you noobs out there.

P.S.
Sorry for the sudden influx of posts folks. Due to my move into a new home and adjusting to my new job I have been extremely busy. Expect more Loverdicts regularly and spaced out more evenly. Thank you all for waiting patiently, I hope I didn't disappoint anyone. : D

Gyro Hut

I decided to review another Greek restaurant. This time, I ventured to Gyro Hut in West Hempstead. It's located on Hempstead Tpke., right across the street from another awesome food spot, Taco King (review to come in the near future). The place is rather small, stuck in between a Dunkin' Donuts and a Real Estate office. Don't let the size fool you, its a real gem.

This was my second time visiting Gyro Hut. I went with three friends for lunch, eager to dig into some great Greek fare. I decided to order a Gyro platter, and split an appetizer of Falafel with my friend. The platter also came with a drink, so I got a raspberry Snapple. We slid some tables together, and sat down to wait for our food.  The wait was short.

My Gyro platter came with a Greek Salad, which came out almost immediately after my order was placed. The lettuce was crisp and tasted very fresh, and the feta had that perfect amount of saltiness to it. They also give you some Greek salad dressing (which seemed to consist of oil, vinegar, and onions). Next, our appetizer of Falafel came out. I'm not gonna lie...the Falafel balls looked like turds on a bed of lettuce. Not very appetizing. Once I dipped one in the hummus and popped it into my mouth, my thoughts of fecal matter dissipated. They were perfectly crunchy and absolutely amazing.

I opted to get a side of lemon potatoes with my gyro platter. Their french fries are home made, seasoned, and very delicious. However, I wanted to try the potatoes as I have never had them before. The waiter brought out my platter, and much to my dismay, there were fries on it. I had to send it back to get potatoes instead. The food actually took quite some time to come back. I worked on the Falafel appetizer in the meantime.

Once my food came back, I eagerly feasted on this amazing Greek classic. The platter had a large serving of sliced and seasoned lamb meat, several slices of pita bread, a whole potato sliced in two, and a side of tzaziki sauce. The first thing I tried was the lemon potato. It was perfectly cooked, and melted in my mouth. The sourness of the lemon complimented the starchiness of the potato nicely.

My only complaint was the lack of pita slices for the gyro meat. It was a huge serving of meat and not enough bread to put it on. When I asked for more pita bread, the waiter told me it costs extra. After spending about $15 on this meal I decided to go ahead and say no to this. I ended up just finishing the meat by eating it like a finger food.

 Falafel Appetizer (Homemade fries can be seen in background)

Gyro Platter mmmmmmmmm

THE LOVERDICT

Moderately priced, really tasty Greek classics served..... but life changing? I would have to say no. Would I recomend it? Absolutely.  However, I wouldn't make a long trip to go out and try Gyro Hut. If you live within a half hours distance, go ahead and check it out. You won't be disappointed.

Gyro Hut
461 Hempstead Tpke.
West Hempstead, NY 11552
(516) 489-8989

Cherry Valley: Heaven Between Two Slices of Bread

If you're a resident of New York, you absolutely have to try Cherry Valley at least once in your life. There are two locations: one in Queens County (Whitestone) and one in Nassau County (West Hempstead). The first time I ever tried Cherry Valley was several years ago with a co-worker of mine. We got really stoned and went to the Whitestone location. I remember we split a Beast (Chicken cutlet, bacon, swiss cheese, onion rings, on a toasted garlic hero). The Beast is one of over 100 different types of sandwiches you can get at this wonderful establishment.

The menu spans the entire deli counter (which is exceptionally large). Besides offering sandwiches, Cherry Valley is also a small convenience store/supermarket. There are many different fridges stocked with a plethora of beverages. They also have many different kinds of snacks and munchies if you are so inclined. They also deliver, but I don't live close enough to take advantage of this service.

My friend Mary and I went to the West Hempstead location before starting the day's errands. It's not in the nicest neighborhood, but during the day it's fine. Make sure to pack some heat for late night trips. 

The menu can be a little overwhelming and intimidating. Patrons can be seen staring wide-eyed and amazed by the different types of sandwiches they offer. I spent between 5 and 10 minutes deciding what I wanted. I finally composed myself and approached the counter. I opted for an "Old Navy" (Grilled roast beef, melted American cheese, brown gravy) on a toasted roll. The heroes are huge, so unless you're splitting one with a friend or got extremely wasted, I would go with a roll, which is still very filling. My friend Mary got a "Last Call" (chicken cutlets, mushrooms, brown gravy, mozzarella cheese) on a toasted garlic roll. As you can see from the pictures below, the sandwiches look amazing.

 Just a part of the massive menu

My "Old Navy" was orgasmic. The mixture of melted American cheese, warm gravy, and tender roast beef teased my taste buds to the point of explosion in my pants. I didn't get to try Mary's sandwich but from the look on her face I could tell she was happy with her choice. We shared a tin of "Screamin' Dill Pickle" Pringles. If you like pickles, I highly recommend these chips. They taste exactly like a fuckin' dill pickle!  My Pomegranate Raspberry Snapple was pleasant, with the perfect amount of bite and sweetness to it.

Look at this amazing sandwich.... LOOK AT IT!  Old Navy on a roll

Mary's Last Call on a roll

THE LOVERDICT:

I left Cherry Valley with a smile on my face, a full belly, and a cigarette in hand. All in all, the meal was very satisfying. If you're a New Yorker, go and check it out.

Cherry Valley Deli and Grill- Whitestone
12-29 150th St.
Whitestone, NY 11357
(718) 767-1937

Chery Valley Deli and Grill- West Hempstead
168 Hempstead Tpke.
West Hempstead, NY 11552
(516) 292- 3381

www.cherryvalleydeli.net

High School Reunion: An evening of awkward conversation and crap-tastic food

The title pretty much sums it up folks. I attended my 5 year high school reunion recently with my friend Pete, and decided to review it in this blog entry. The registration fee was 50 dollars.  We were promised a lovely evening of food and drink. From what I've heard, high school reunions are usually held at nice catering halls and such. Our high school hosted it in two of the gyms at the school.

We arrived by car only to find that the parking lot was full, and the valet told us to circle a few times for a spot to open up. After about 20 minutes of circling we found a spot about 5 blocks away from the school. A short walk on a crisp fall evening seemed allright, only to be ruined by my extremely uncomfortable dress shoes. I haven't worn them much, so they weren't broken in just yet. The stiff edges of the shoes kept digging into my ankles for the rest of the evening. I couldn't wait to take them off.

We entered our old high school, which hasn't changed all that much.   We were presented with name tags denoting our year of graduation.  There were several other classes in attendance (1960's to the 1980's) in addition to our class, 2005. The cocktail reception was held in the "new gym" which was fairly new when we were still in high school. Several hundred alumni, faculty, and staff were mingling with one another over drinks and finger foods. We scoped out the joint for a few minutes and decided to make a dash for the bar.

For 50 bucks, we wanted to make sure we got our fill of alcohol and food.

(Side note: When we were registering for the reunion on the school's website, there was a field for "RSVP comments." I decided to be a smart ass and write something funny. I asked if they could please stock Rolling Rock, our "group" beer of choice. Much to my surprise, everyone was drinking Rolling Rock!  For the rest of the evening people were making comments about my "beer suggestion". "Hey LoVerde, you got your wish huh?!" It kind of got old as the night went on though...)

The Old Latrobe

I didn't really indulge in the cocktail reception's food all that much. I tried a rather bland and dry chicken cordon bleu bite, and a panko encrusted shrimp tempura. Pete and I began to mingle with people we knew in high school. For the rest of the evening conversations primarily consisted of the following topics:

1) How have you been!?
2) Have you finished school?

3) Are you working? Where?

Needless to say, no one really gave a shit about any of this information but were just trying to be nice to one another. People still seemed to be very "clique-y" and were all hanging out in the same groups from back in the day. I didn't want anything to do with them back then, and I don't want anything to do with them today.

After about an hour, everyone was called into the other gym for dinner. The gym was set up with many different tables, and there were designated areas for each graduating class. For the rest of dinner, each class was called up to take a photo. Our class was the biggest in attendance, with about 70-80 people who showed up. Before dinner was served, we were all quieted down for a prayer. Not to get into religion and spirituality, but I am not a practicing Catholic anymore. It seemed like a lot of people were not either, as it was hard to keep a straight face during prayer. I tried so hard not to laugh, sorry God...

Dinner was served buffet style in the cafeteria next to the gym. The buffet consisted of the following: A Caesar salad, several different types of dinner rolls, a type of stuffed chicken, prime rib, rice, and vegetable medley. I made a plate of chicken, prime rib, rice, and vegetables. Honestly, the food flat-out sucked dick. The chicken was probably the highlight of my evening, and that's not saying much. It was stuffed with spinach and some sort of cheese. The rice had some sort of citrus hints to it, which 99% of the people I talked to complained about. I had no idea there was gravy for the prime rib, so I ate it plain. It was overcooked and flavorless.

Mehhhhhh

Stuffed chicken a la shit

After dinner we decided to drink some more and socialize. At one point Pete asked the bartender for a gin and tonic. I replied with, "Can I get one of those too?". I took a sip of my drink and almost spit it out. I asked the guy what it was and he said: "Whiskey and tonic, that's what you said you wanted right?" I gave him a weird look and walked away, quickly abandoning my drink on a random table. The strangest part of the evening had to be our drunken walk through of the school's hallways. We attempted to find our old lockers and ended up in a counselor's office, drunkenly giving a group of high school seniors advice about college.

There was talk of an "after party" somewhere on Bell Boulevard, but I was driving so I couldn't get all that fucked up. Besides, why would I want to go to Bell Blvd. with a bunch of people I have no interest in speaking to ever again? We walked back to my car and drove home with mixed feelings.

THE LOVERDICT:

I will not be attending the 10 year reunion.