Here Comes the Sun
...is that a threat? ☀️
How are my homies with thicc thighs doing in this heat? I’m sending you strength and chafing relief. I was planning to hike part of the Old Croton Aqueduct this weekend (for the exercise, but also for the history!) and I’m really hoping the weather will cooperate, but it’s honestly looking pretty bleak. Please think positive thoughts for me!
I’ll also be cat sitting three sweet boys in Clinton Hill for the next couple weeks and I’m very excited for this early summer staycation and my proximity to Ft Greene Park. Please send me all of your local recs for the area! Currently on my list to try: Miss Ada, Karasu, Chef Katsu, Biddrina Gelato, Sukh, Brooklyn Curry Project.
Finally, I want to acknowledge the immense privilege that allowed me to have yesterday off for Juneteenth. I feel like Juneteenth, being a more recent Federal holiday, went on the fast track to commercialization (remember Walmart’s Juneteenth ice cream?). It feels wrong that I should have a day off work while lots of folks who Juneteenth is actually for likely did not. I don’t know that there’s a perfect solution for this, but I hope you’ll stick around til the bottom of this week’s newsletter because I’m going to use the space to highlight some of my favorite Black creators. At the very least, give them a follow. If they have Patreons or newsletters, consider subscribing and supporting their work.
Last week Beef requested breakfast for dinner for this month’s Beef Fancy Dinner so I gave him 3 options: Golden Diner, Shopsin’s, or Clinton St Baking Co. He chose Clinton St and I think he was very pleased with his decision. I already wrote about Clinton St so I won’t regale you with tales of pancakes again, but I do want to note that Beef said their latke benedict was the best he’s ever had. We got a plate of blueberry pancakes for the table and I think table pancakes should always be a thing.
On our way to Clinton St we passed Koneko Cat Cafe and decided to head there for some after dinner entertainment. The cats did not disappoint. A thing about me is, if your city has a cat cafe (or a pinball bar), I will find it. We got there at 8pm, an hour before they close, and were lucky to be able to grab a walk-in spot since they weren’t too busy. Be better than us and make a reservation if you want to visit, but it also doesn’t hurt to pop in if you’re in the area and ask if they have room for you.
Koneko, along with most cat cafes, are a way to get cats adopted. This one works with Anjellicle Cats and houses their “at-risk” kitties, which are those who are on the euthanasia list. Cats might end up on that list for many reasons, but a big one is that many rescues are simply overcrowded. So you know what they say - adopt, don’t shop.
Koneko is a surprisingly big space with three(!) levels of cats just waiting to be pet and squished and played with (don’t actually squish the cats) - there’s the ground level Upper Cattery, the basement Lower Cattery, and an outdoor Catio. Once you drop your bags, sanitize your hands, and grab some optional slippers, you have free roam of the space for 1 hour for $25pp.
Make sure you look up and look under stuff because there are cats everywhere. When we visited, there must have been about 15 or so wandering about, though more had gone into a back room to eat their dinner. It was quickly evident that an orange boy, Reggie, was the alpha cat because he kept sitting in high spots and sort of just watched everyone. The employee there said that while he’s not super friendly with his cat roommates, he loves people and oh boy Reggie, if I didn’t already have a big orange cat you would have come right home with me. The outdoor catio was a really nice space, especially on a cool evening. One little black cat simply loafed right in the middle of the catio the whole time.
I was also super impressed by how clean the space was. 15+ cats is a lot and I’ve been to some cat cafes that, simply put, smell like cat cafes. For exactly these sanitary reasons, the actual cafe space and the cats are completely separate and you can’t bring your snacks into the cats’ area. When we arrived, the cafe was closed since it was super late, but they have your usual selection of coffee, tea, and pastries. I was surprised to learn that they offer some savory snacks too including one of my favorite Japanese foods, okonomiyaki. The cafe space is a pretty decent size, too!
If you’re in the LES and need a spot to relax and kill some time, this cat cafe is a great spot. To me, there is nothing more healing than some quality cat time and that’s exactly what this place is selling (also, please adopt the cats).
Part of my actual job is sometimes arranging office activities and I had the opportunity last week to arrange a team lunch (for my team of 3 lol) so naturally I made them go to Hamburger America. Lorenzo and I actually went here for lunch the day we visited Roosevelt Island and I’ve been itching to go back. Their special burger last month was an olive burger (🤮) so I was waiting for something new to enter the rotation and George Motz fucking delivered!
But let me back up first and introduce you to Burger Scholar, George Motz. George has traveled across the US to try every regional burger imaginable (including the aforementioned olive burger, that never in my worst dreams did I imagine). In 2004 he made a documentary called Hamburger America, followed that up with various tv specials, and also founded The Food Film Festival. During the pandemic he got a big ass piece of wood and made a burger slide out of his apartment window - of course Lorenzo and I were there. Anyways, George fucking knows about burgers and as a fellow burger enthusiast, I’ve been watching his videos for far too long and was very excited to try his burgs.
Earlier this year he opened Hamburger America in the West Village and I was fucking stoked to try it. The menu always contains two classic burgers and one rotating special - the classic smash and a fried onion burger are always available. Both are excellent and offer slightly different flavor profiles. The classic smash is, well, a classic smash. It’s smushed nice and thin so you get crispy edges and is topped with mustard, diced onion, and cheese (with pickle on the side). The fried onion burger isn’t topped with fried onions as the name might imply, but instead the patty fucking envelops the onions right on the griddle. Onion stringies are smushed right into the patty as it cooks and that gets topped with just cheese. You might think these are the same thing, but they are not! The classic smash is a bit more savory and has a nice bite from the diced onions. The fried onion burger actually tastes pretty sweet from the blobs of onion throughout the patty.
So far I’ve tried two of the monthly special burgers - the butter burger and the chester special. I was very wary of the butter burger because I’m not much of a butter girlie and I thought the burger would be drippy and messy. I was actually really surprised by how tasty this one was though! Like the fried onion burger, the butter sort of just added a nice sweetness. Don’t get me wrong, there was definitely a lot of butter, but the bun managed to not get soggy and it was not so drippy that it made me mad.
On the trip with my coworkers, we each got a fried onion burger and then split the chester special (honestly, more people should just order what they want and then get an extra dish to split with the table). The chester special is not a patty melt, but it’s also not not a patty melt. It’s technically a grilled cheese with a burger in the middle and it definitely leans heavily towards the grilled cheese vibes. It’s served on a square of white bread and the bread is so goddam buttery and perfectly toasted. The toastiness is important because that crust is what’s keeping all of the cheese inside! This one was delicious, but definitely a bit heavy.
The fries at Hamburger America are fine, nothing to write home about, but worlds better than In N Out’s (sorrynotsorry). They also have some other diner classics on their menu like tuna and egg salad sandwiches that are allegedly very good. However, they also have one more menu item that I have to get whenever I’m there - a fucking egg cream! My coworker had never heard of an egg cream so I made her try it and she basically reacted as follows:
The egg cream at Hamburger America isn’t the very best I’ve had (that honor goes to S&P Lunch) but it is really good! They actually have a whole menu section dedicated to milk based drinks and I’m kind of curious what the difference between a coffee milk and just a coffee with milk is?? Someone who likes coffee try those and tell me please.
The space is actually a lot bigger than it looks from the outside and if you’re lucky you’ll be able to grab a counter seat that overlooks the griddle. George Motz himself is usually behind the grill slinging burgers and he’s just a delightful guy to talk to. There are a few tables and booths around back though if you don’t want to leave smelling like burger grease.
I hope you were all able to attend some of the Juneteenth or Pride events I posted last week 🌈
We’re experiencing a pretty serious heat wave right now, so please please please take care of yourself - wear sunscreen, drink water, hide in the shade. One of my favorite local publications, The City, published an article that details how you can also help check on neighbors that may be elderly or otherwise more susceptible to the heat.
Hamburgers in gas stations seems to be becoming a thing in NYC and of course the newest one is opening in Bushwick. Stop by Blue Hour (in the BP on Myrtle & Irving) on June 21 for their grand opening. In addition to burgers, they also have a crunchwrap, kabobs, and loco moco on the menu. And they’re Halal! The Bushwick White Castle is shaking.
The Coney Island Mermaid Parade is this Saturday! It’s one of the weirdest events in the city and I love the crazy variety of costumes that are on show. “According to Coney Island USA, the Mermaid Parade was created to achieve three goals: bring sea mythology to life for residents of Mermaid and Neptune Streets, build neighborhood pride at a time when it was low, and provide a space for New Yorkers to express themselves.” I’ve never been because I’m afraid of crowds and heat, but I always watch every single video that people post.
A new exhibit just opened at The Met - their annual P.S. Art 2024: Celebrating the Creative Spirit of NYC Kids, a juried exhibition of artwork by students from New York City public schools across all five boroughs. It features 126 works spanning mediums including painting, mixed-media, and sculpture from students as young as pre-k through 12th grade.
A couple high profile NYC spots have some fun summer popups! Rockefeller Center transformed their ice skating rink into an outdoor plaza featuring lawn games, silent discos, and movie nights. If you’re not an outside person (it me), head inside to visit the R-Cade / Barcade game room. Bryant Park has tons of fun summer programming (I’ve already mentioned their movie nights, bingo, and musical chairs events) and I just learned that they also have a huge board game selection up for grabs! Anyone can play games anytime and they also have some structured game time scheduled.
See my favorite drag queen, Svetlana Stoli, this Sunday at Pride Drag Trivia at Llama Inn! They’re offering a $40 brunch pre-fixe and it’ll cost another $10 to participate in trivia, which is honestly a fucking steal for brunch in NY. Make sure you bring some extra $$ to tip your queens!
Every week to kick off my Company All Hands, I make my employees answer whatever deranged question I can think of: controversial movie opinions, favorite conspiracy theory, most enjoyable weird food combo. This week I asked them to share their perfect sandwich only to find out that the NYT posted their 57 Sandwiches That Define NYC article moments after. The sandwich I mentioned, the Dill Party at Salty Lunch Lady’s Little Luncheonette, made the list, along with a bunch of other great ones. I do have some bones to pick with some of their choices though and I would love to hear your sandwich opinions.
A short list of my favorite Black creators that I hope you’ll support for Juneteenth (and beyond!)
@shilohinthecity - I feel like Shiloh and I are the same kind of nerd and would get along really well, so Shiloh if you’re seeing this please hit me up. She also shares local NYC stuff and recently launched walking tours. She has a Patreon with very cool perks, too!
Tammie Teclemariam - Tammie was Grub Street’s first diner-at-large (and imo the best one). She still contributes articles to Grub Street and is one of their best and most down to earth writers - a true writer (and eater) for the people!
@intersectionalenvironmentalist - This is a group of people, but they do an amazing job making sure that all of their efforts for a more sustainable future include everyone. I met one of their founders, Sabrina, a while back at a clothing swap and I wear her shirt all the time.
Arvy - I met Arvy through my beautiful friend Larissa and I can confidently say that both of them are the most magical forest fairies I have ever known. Arvy works at NYBG (and recently got promoted!) and teaches kids about all of the natural wonders of the world. She also did a fuckin Ted Talk which is absolutely worth a watch!
@aliyahovershares - Aliyah was one of the best receptionists I ever had and she’s also an amazing barista and all around wonderful human. I reach out to her anytime I have a coffee question and I really love watching her share her love of coffee with her son on her socials.
@estelles.atlier - Nia was my pottery teacher at Dirtbag Arthaus and she also recently finished up a residency in goddam France! You can find her selling her pottery all over the city at markets and popups and I promise you that anything you buy from her will be absolutely gorgeous.
Listen, it is my stereotypical obligation to report that the best sandwich is a BLT on toasted rye with American cheese and mayo from any diner, but particularly the Moriches Bay Diner if I want to lean all the way in.