Tag Archive: NewsFeed

  1. Turkish Taste: Part 2

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    The second segment in a series of reactions and reflections to Istanbul cuisine and culture collected over spring break tour with the Yale a cappella group The New Blue.

    One of the great tragedies in the life of a foodie is dealing with a food allergy. The debility gets particularly awkward when dealing with people who don’t speak English: whether drunkenly stammering “NO…NUTS” to confused waiters on late-night Chinese food runs or awkwardly dissecting everything on my plate while traveling in search for the elusive pecan, walnut or almond, the limitation can be a bit annoying. Not to mention the whole anaphylactic shock/possibility of death thing. (more…)

  2. Wenzels and other … aphrodisiacs?

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    Friday’s front page featured a profile of Eric Wenzel ’04 and his better-known namesake, the Wenzel sub. While the dramatic back-story of the late-night classic was certainly interesting, the most relevant part of the article didn’t appear until the penultimate paragraph. (more…)

  3. Turkish Taste: Part 1

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    The first in a series of reactions and reflections to Istanbul cuisine collected over spring break on tour with the Yale a cappella group The New Blue.

    When I departed for JFK at the start of break, I left behind the remnants of many a late-night take-out order. I had pretty much sampled the full variety of New Haven delivery options in that last week before break — pizza for the history midterm, Indian for the fellowship application, Chinese for the English paper, etc. The diversity in my trash bag (and on my coffee table, I’ll admit it) was a testament to my addiction to campusfoods.com. I thought I had consumed it all. But delivery hummus? After buying several humongous loaves of bread for about a dollar a pop, New Blue returned to the hostile with a hankering for the local condiment. We asked the guy at the desk where the closest market was, but he only hit his cell phone speed dial and told us he would take care of it. Ten minutes later we had four tins of stuff that makes the sandwich bar specialty look like puréed cardboard. Beat that, Dominos.

    Hilary Faxon

  4. Skip the Club: The Classier Side of New Haven

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    Not really digging the New Haven club scene, but want to go out and enjoy a drink with friends at a classy joint? Try Nikkita’s, Kudeta, Bottega Lounge, Fosters, Geronimo’s, and/or Soul de Cuba.

    Soul De Cuba:

    I was first introduced to Soul de Cuba by a good friend of mine that I met while working on the Ned Lamont Campaign. Her significant other at the time was good friends with the owner(s) of this eclectic restaurant. At first we would just go there after hours and have some impromptu meals and drinks. However, I soon started going to Soul De Cuba on a much more regular basis during their normal business hours; there was something about this Spanish/African atmosphere that kept drawing me to it. Whenever I have friends visiting from out of town, I try to make sure that I take them to this spot at least once and I am constantly referring co-workers, friends, and other Yale students to this place. (more…)

  5. Berkeley Dining Hall Opens Its (Other) Doors

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    While students may have spent their spring break laying out the beach towel, Berkeley Dining Hall management received new orders for layout.Orders came from the Master’s Office to rearrange the Berkeley dining hall, placing the front desk in the center of the room. Students on their way towards the dining hall won’t walk through the entire Berkeley common room before swiping in. The furniture in the common room was also rearranged to create smaller groups. I’ve heard a few logical explanations for the change from bewildered students. Could it be to prevent the sly from sneaking in without swiping? Or is this an effort to eliminate the nightly back up in the line to the dining hall? (more…)

  6. The Backstory: Review of Central Steakhouse

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    Faithful blog readers deserve to know the truth: As much as I try to cover for it in the article, I think it’s pretty obvious that I forgot to order steak when I was reviewing Central Steakhouse. It was not a strategic decision — it just didn’t occur to me or the person I was eating with. To make myself seem slightly less idiotic, I’m going to blame this oversight on the fact that I haven’t been eating meat in restaurants for very long (I recently stopped keeping kosher). Anyway, sorry to my readers, and sorry to Central Steakhouse. I’m sure the steak is great, at least judging by the rest of my dinner. It was actually the best meal I’ve had in a long time — including my first ever crab cakes (another thing I purposely neglect to mention in the article), unbelievable homemade pasta, and more …

    Sarah Wolf

  7. 50s diner and Indian dinner? Better than Bollywood.

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    When I told my friends that I had just had the best meal of my month in a beat up 50s diner down Chapel Street they were expecting a burger and fries, not tandoori chicken and samosas. Their reactions to the revelation weren’t too enthusiastic. Who can blame them? The last major time the style of one of America’s capitalist classics fused with Indian culture we had the birth of Bollywood.

    (more…)

  8. Top 10: Underrated

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    If they went to high school, they would have been the kids sitting ignored and alone in the cafeteria who actually had awesome secret lives where they were in rock bands and had hot girlfriends. Okay, maybe those kids didn’t exist, but these coffee shops and restaurants do.

    10. Booktrader

    This bookstore-slash-coffee shop is undeniably excellent, though its underrated-ness depends on who you ask.

    For everyone who isn’t an Art major but isn’t embarrassed to look like one, take a few extra steps up Chapel for a literary-themed sandwich and some of that pleasure reading you haven’t had time for since the summer.

    9. The Whole Enchilada

    Now for part one of many upcoming plugs for what’s known as the Arts District, that area of Whitney Avenue and Audobon Street mysteriously devoid of Yalies except the occasional hungry TDer. Next time you’re at Docuprint, make the trip worthwhile: Stop next door at the mysteriously ignored Whole Enchilada for some very tasty, healthy, reasonably priced Mexican food.

    (more…)

  9. Gettin all up in my grilled vegetables

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    My mom took me out to lunch at Claire’s recently, selected based on proximity and because my mom is a vegetarian. To be honest, it wasn’t my first choice. I haven’t had great experiences there in the past — some bland soups, and occasionally ridiculously slow service — though it’s never been terrible either. But I figured it was worth another shot, especially if I stuck with what I know Claire’s does best — baked goods. So I ordered a cup of green tea and a grilled vegetable sandwich, since at least I’d be guaranteed some of that wonderful marshmallowy bread.

    It was the right choice for entirely unexpected reasons. The bread was soft and buttery as usual, but it barely registered in comparison to the tangy sun-dried tomato and feta spread and the lightly crisped vegetables heaped on top. The sandwich was served open-face with a large ratio of veggies to bread, which made it almost more like a salad with two enormous and delicious croutons underneath it. The whole experience completely defied my expectations, and was a welcome break from the dining hall’s vegetable options of raw or oil-soaked.

    Maybe I can convince my mom to pick me up for spring break…

    Sarah Wolf

  10. Culinary Characters: Part 1

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    1: The Uncertain Epicure

    Goes well with: A dash of distraction and a pinch of curiosity. A hangover.

    You’ve seen this nervous-looking boy agonizing over the Sunday brunch options like they were summer internship applications while most of his contemporaries mindlessly devour the pancakes and powdered eggs. Or maybe that waffling by the waffle iron is just a symptom of last night’s festivities.

    2: The Determined Dieter

    Goes well with: Water and designer jeans.

    Good news for Yale: by using three meal swipes to purchase exactly one apple and half a cup of Special K, Self-Conscious Sally has helped the institution turn quite a profit. Often seen frequenting the salad bar, these man and women observe the careful rules of healthy eating. At least until the midnight buttery run.

    Part 3: Captain Crammer

    Goes well with: Payne Whitney Gymnasium.

    Sure, the guy has more bagels than the Silfka Center and at least two and a half chickens on his tray, but who’s going to blame him? Unlike the rest of us atrophied library nerds, this man works it off. Enough carbohydrates to wipe out a Manhattan deli and a small family of sustainable farmers — use that as motivation the next time you want to skip the treadmill.

    Hilary Faxon

  11. Coffee Tales, Part 1: The Publick Cup

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    A new name apparently means new high school students working behind the counter. A few days ago, a friend ordered a mocha latte from an eager-eyed boy in a newsboy hat and tie-dyed T-shirt.

    “Oh, we don’t serve those anymore,” he said.

    “What?” said my friend, incredulous.

    “Just kidding!” said the young barista. “I like to say that to scare people!”

    Later he serenaded his customers with tunes from his iPod, cranking the song “All Star” up to full blast.“I thought you would like that!” he yelled from the counter to the people doing homework on the other side of the store. “You guys like Smashmouth?”

    “Yeah,” a few people cheered weakly. He proceeded to play the rest of the album.

    —Sarah Wolf