Results tagged “vonsingh”

New York Magazine shows some love to one of Gothamist's local favorites, Pio Maya, a teeny taqueria housed in the space that was briefly Von Singh's. The article gives props to their tasty tacos, and also rightfully highlights their roast chickens, which are flavorful, juicy, and pretty damn reasonable. You can't beat the quarter chicken with a choice of sides (we tend to get the rice & red beans) for $5.50, and if you ask nicely, they'll bring out some of their special hot sauce, which is fruit-based and packed with quite a bit of heat, but not too much that the flavor doesn't shine through. And did we mention they deliver?

Our good friend and neighbor Augie gave us the scoop on Pio Maya, the new taqueria set to open in a few weeks in the space that was, for a short while, Von Singh's. Run by a former Otto employee and his brother, Pio Maya will be serving up traditional Mexican food and promises to serve up some fiery salsa for Augie and any others brave enough for the challenge. We're definitely looking forward to having a new taqueria in the 'hood -- lord knows New York could use some.

June 23: PJ Wine Spanish Wine Festival

After noticing their snazzy new sign and poking our head in the night before it opened, we had to stop back at Von Singh's on it's opening night for a test run. Yes, they were a bit nervous and a little overeager to please, but then again, it was their very first night, and the two sisters who run the place were running their very first restaurant. Amar Aujla was an equity trader for five years, and decided she was done working for other people. Along with her sister Sandy and some business partners on the West coast, they came up with the idea of a fast, but healthy Indian restaurant. One of their West coast partners was working with a number of programmers from India who were constantly frustrated with the lack of decent quick food nearby, and thus Von Singh's was born. "Von" is Dutch, meaning of or from, and "Singh" is a very common Indian last name; it symbolizes the melding of East and West, which is evident throughout their menu. Although you will see the words "paneer" and "chutney," most of the menu uses Western terms, even when describing Indian dishes -- "veggie fritters" rather than "pakora" for example.

We noticed this sign walking down 8th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues in the Village the other day and were perplexed. Fresh food nirvana? On this block? You've got to be kidding. There isn't anything resembling "fresh food" or "nirvana" on that stretch of 8th Street (well, with the possible exception of Gray's Papaya, depending upon how you feel about hot dogs). But last night, we saw some activity inside. Peering in, we saw a clean, small brightly colored cafe, and one of the women inside unlocked the door to let us in. We were immediately engulfed with the aroma of curry and cardamom -- it smelled delightful. They're officially opening today, serving a menu of Indian flatbread sandwiches, and we'll be stopping by later to check it out. Full report next week.