Mercadito Cantina: This is newest advance in the expanding Mercadito empire; besides the original Alphabet City Mercadito there’s also Mercadito Grove. This one is not far from the original, on Avenue B, and packs a lot of Mexican fixings into a dainty space that stays open ‘til 1 a.m. The main action here is at the make your own taco bar, where heavy rollers can choose from eight guacamoles and ten salsas, all made from......

The folks at Porkchop Express have an informative Q&A session with Cesar Fuentes, the Executive Director of the Red Hook Food Vendors Committee. As enthusiasts await the opening of the new ballfield stands, the good news is that all the same vendors will be returning with their Latin culinary delights. The bad news is that not all of them may get it together in time to return for this season, and the new operating costs......

There’s been a lot of snarky ink spilled about how fast the ill-fated BarFry transformed into Cabrito. As is the case with many restaurants that fall under the scrutiny of bloggers, this new Mexican spot helmed by Dave Schuttenberg, whose pedigree includes stints at Fatty Crab and Craft, has already had the viability of its concept questioned. Blogger blathering aside, an initial visit shows Cabrito to be a high-end homage to a broad swath of......

Three people were shot inside a popular Mexican restaurant in Brooklyn ast night. The incident occurred around 9:30PM at Tacos 2004 Viva Mexico restaurant; the victims were taken to Lutheran Medical center, where one was pronounced dead (the other two are in stable condition). Apparently two groups had been "exchang[ing] angry words" when one man took out a gun and fired. The restaurant was packed, and one witness said, "There were at least five or......

Since we don't get out to Red Hook Ballfields that much, taquerias are always squarely in the sights of our foodar. The Queens nabes of Corona and Elmhurst almost never fail when it comes to fulfilling a taco craving. So when we walked by a brand new spot called La Casa Del Idolo, Gothamist immediately made a note to come back and sample its fare, particularly since they seemed especially proud of their barbacoa......

This week in the Times, Bruni goes to Harry Cipriani in the Sherry-Netherland Hotel, awards the restaurant no stars. Finds “service so confused and food so undistinguished it wouldn’t pass muster at half the cost.” Says prices at the restaurant ridiculous. The restaurant was last reviewed in 1991, when Bryan Miller gave it two stars. The one positive? “The people-watching is nonpareil." Peter Meehan visits Fifth Avenue in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, for tacos. Likes Epocas......

September 27: Joy of Sake Talk about joy -- over 300 sakes will be poured at the largest sake tasting in the United States, coming our way tonight. Over 100 of them are generally not available outside Japan and about 150 are silver and gold award winners in the National Sake Appraisal that takes place each year. Never fear, there will be appetizers to soak it all up, from the likes of Bao Noodles, Bond......

Lately we've had tacos on the brain, particularly those that involve organ meats and creepy crawlies some folks consider to be Fear Factor fare. Given our taste for the bizarre, it may be hard believe that there are times when we crave nothing more than a simple pork or beef tongue taco. Last night at about 1:30 a.m., we found ourselves in such a mood. As luck would have it we also found ourselves......

You nominated your favorites and now the finalists have been revealed: - NY Dosas, at West 4th Street near Sullivan Street, South side of Washington Square Park; - Kwik Meal, on 6th Avenue and 45th Street; - Super Tacos, on 96th Street and Broadway (we've been waiting for this one to hit the list); - King Falafel and Schwarma, at 30th Street and Broadway in Queens; and - Veronica’s Kitchen on Front Street and......

Market Table -- Mike Price, formerly of the Mermaid Inn has partnered with the Little Owl's Joey Campanaro and Gabriel Stulman, moved into the former Shopsins space and created a market/restaurant where, among other things, they'll be selling the kick-ass pork chops served at the Little Owl so you can attempt to re-create them at home. The market portion is in the soft-opening stage, and the restaurant is due to open the week of September......

August 11: Organic Harvest Celebration at Stone Ridge Orchard Stone Ridge Orchard, the farm behind the Organic Schmorganic blog, is celebrating its inaugural harvest from its fifteen acres of certified organic farmland. Take a trip to the country for some food and drink, right from the farm. 6 to 9 PM at 300 Springtown Road New Paltz. RSVP to Amy Johansson by email or by calling 845-249-3440. August 13: Regional Mexican Dinner at Mercadito This......

August 4: Winemaking Demo - Bottling Learn about the wine bottling process as students bottle, cork, capsule and label their 2006 and 2005 California wine in this final step. Stop by for a free demo and tour of the Piazza Brothers School of Winemaking, and taste the 2006 wines. 10:00 - 3:00, 690 Gulf Avenue, Staten Island, 732-299-8812. August 6: Regional Mexican Dinner at Mercadito Mercadito brings back their four-course regional Mexican dinners every Monday......

As we mentioned earlier this week, the vendors who set up shop at the Red Hook ballfields may be at risk for losing their permit. According to the New York Times, the vendors have operated for years under a series of temporary use permits, but now they will have to place a formal bid with the city in order to remain in the space. But the vendors are not guaranteed to win this bid, so......

While that whiff of fried food is as indelible to the aura of Coney Island as the roller coaster, sometimes you just don’t want hot dogs, fried clams, onions rings, or elephant ears. The only fresh fruit option we’d ever found were from the nice ladies that stroll around with the cut up mangoes on a stick. But there are only so many of those things you can suck back before the real hunger pangs......

Bourdain takes the food network to task yet again, this time for its Food Network Awards that aired last night. In his post on Ruhlman, he shows sympathy for the poor pimped out Food Network talent and the comments are well on their way to the century mark.We could hardly believe it when we read it over the weekend, but the FDA's “point man on E. coli” does not believe prewashed and bagged leafy greens......

March 29: Best Cellars University at Pair of 8's Pair of 8's owner Ron Didner and new Chef Matthew Hamilton (formerly of Prune, Uovo, and Zuni Cafe, pictured at right) pair up with Best Cellars to host the first of this monthly series starting with Wine 101. Wine will be paired with five courses. $70 for a single class and $65 for two or more classes, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. Call 212-362-8730 to register. 568......

Sunday’s are great for food walks as long as the weather holds out for you. So do a bit of research, grab a partner and hop a subway to one of the following destinations: Sunset Park: Head out on the N/R train to the mid 40’s on 5th avenue. From there walk towards the 60’s and explore all of the Mexican restaurants that line the avenue and stretch onto the side streets. Tacos, horchata,......

One morning Gothamist woke up with dreams of walking into the sunset with a taco in one hand and a Corona in the other. Thank goodness for friends who organize fabulously economical taco crawls, and doubly so for the welcoming dive bars of Sunset Park, a neighborhood still scant of those Williamsburg Hipsters and Park Slope yuppies. Take the N/R to 59th street in Brooklyn and follow this route for an afternoon of sure-fire......

Ah, Cinco de Mayo. We finally learned the backstory this year. Apparently, several decades after Mexico gained independence from Spain, France sent 6,000 of its soldiers to invade Mexico in 1862. On May 5th of that year, 2,000 ill-equiped but passionate Mexican citizens defeated the French army. Every year, on May 5th, it has been traditional to honor those brave fighters by partaking in a night of music, tequila and authentic Mexican cuisine, and we......

Perpetually on the lookout for New York's best honky tonk (who isn't?) and craving tex mex, Gothamist headed to Murray Hill's Rodeo Bar last night, fully prepared for a hoe down. Kitschy decor of bulls' horns, old Texan roadsigns, and lanterns made of antlers line the spacious brick walls. Nightly, at 10, there is live honky tonk music in the back room hosting local and touring country/western bands like The Moonlighters, or last night,......

Street Fair Tacos...

It's unclear why the Snack Dragon Taco Shack even has a listing on Menupages, because there's not much of a menu, per se. They sell four types of "California-Mexican/New York Style Tacos": Carne Asada, Chicken Verde, Quinoa Pilaf & Bean (vegetarian), and Carnitas. But if you're only going to do one thing -- do it well. And Snack Dragon does. We stopped by one afternoon after a fantastic brunch at the Clinton Street Baking Company,......

Because there are so many ways to celebrate, we can hardly decide what to do! If you're sick and tired of the same old "sinker" matzo balls and dried-out brisket that you've had every year since you were six, convince the family to come join you for one of the Passover menus being offered throughout the city. New York Magazine rounds up a few, including Coco Pazzo, where chef Mark Strausman is preparing a......

Any restaurant whose URL reads greatbiscuits.com is worthy of review and Gothamist is happy to report that the Clinton Street Baking Co. does, in fact, have great biscuits. A plate of five buttermilk mini biscuits, served in lieu of rolls at the start of the meal is part of the rave-reviewed Lower East Side locale’s recently expanded dinner menu. Adding to a repertoire of breakfast, lunch, brunch and custom baking, Gothamist sat down with three......

Gothamist just returned from a mini-vacation in San Francisco. Naturally, we spent a great deal of our time eating. And why not? San Francisco is home of a unique food phenomenon that is virtually impossible to find here in New York -- the authentic taqueria. Yes we have Mexican food here, but many of the more Mexican (rather than Tex-Mex) restaurants in New York are high-end, and therefore do not qualify in our quest for......

That is Gothamist's favorite line from this morning's National Weather Service forecast discussion. We'll try not to sound like a broken record, but as long as the front hangs out in our 'hood, and as long as tropical moisture streams our way, we don't have much choice in the matter. Expect a lot of rain today through Sunday. A record 4.10 inches of rain fell at JFK yesterday afternoon with lesser, but still impresive,......