Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Trendspotting, Food Halls: Gotham West Market, New York, NY

Food halls are my new favorite trend.  A collection of counters/mini restaurants under one roof with communal seating is an ideal setting for any food lover.  It's an opportunity for a new concept to be tested or a food truck to take a stab at brick and mortar with low overhead.  I think of it as a calmer Smorgasburg. Whatever you call it, I love it.

The Meatpacking District now has Gansevoort Market, Battery Park City has Hudson Eats and Hell's Kitchen has Gotham West Market.  We chose Gotham West for two reasons, its proximity to the Intrepid, and the Ivan Ramen Slurp Shop.

JB is a ramen fiend, so this was a must visit.  Profiled last year in the New York Times, Ivan Orkin is Ivan Ramen.  A New Yorker, turned resident of Japan, learned to love ramen while in Japan and brought it back home.  He has since opened his flagship, Ivan Ramen, but the Slurp Shop was his first foray in the US.  The menu is simple, a few ramens, a few rice bowls, salads and drinks.  That's it.

For $12, JB loved his Tokyo Shoyu Ramen with its rye noodles and pork belly. Slurp he did indeed.  I preferred the slow cooked pork donburi.  Also $12, this rice bowl was spicy thanks to some salted plum wasabi and sweet with roasted tomatoes.

The boys, not Japanese fans, were able to find their favorites at Genuine Roadside.  The Super, Double Stack Burger was perfect for sharing.  To make it kid-friendly, we removed the cheese and special sauce.  Little D took all the pickles for himself.  McDonalds style fries completed the meal.

Had the lines not been so long, I also would have tried a taco or two at Choza Taqueria.  And JB was ogling the Blue Bottle Coffee.  Want tapas? Try El Comado.  Fancy a sandwich? Court Street Grocers can fulfill that request.  Cannibal meets your charcuterie and beer needs.  And Jeni's ice cream for dessert.

Take a group, let everyone pick their favorites and convene at the common tables.  Spend 30 minutes there or the whole afternoon.

Until our next Berger,
KLB

Gotham West Market
600 11th Avenue
New York, NY
212.582.7940
gothamwestmarket.com


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