CookOut NYC - June 8th Edition

Governor's Island is a great place for a picnic, and a cookout. This past weekend CookOut NYC was held at Governor's Island and provided lots of food, drink, and music for attendees after the July 4th holiday. Like 5 Boro Picnyc, CookOut NYC was publicized by Food Karma Projects and had many vendors available like Jimmy's No. 43, Alobar, and Madria Sangria along with various types of beer including Six Point Brewery and Blind Tiger Ale House to name a few.

The ferry unloaded patrons of seeking to get in some NYC history, a nice bike ride without the worry of traffic (namely cabbies), take families to enjoy the graphic design museum and do workshops, or just lay back and enjoy the sights surrounding the Hudson River.

What I've enjoyed about the environment at the Food Karma events has been the laid back atmosphere. No pushing or shoving. People standing quietly in line for food. A nice camaraderie with the crowd and vendors, learning more about local vendors, and good eats all around.

Upon entering you'll be greeted by staff offering you a Whole Food's monikered beer coozy. KIND Bars and Popchips (two snacks I relish, no pun intended) gave away free goods to patrons. I was excited to see new flavors from both including the Sweet Potato Popchip and the Madagascar Vanilla Almond and Cashew & Ginger Spice KIND Bars.

On Saturday there was a kimchi eating contest for Mama O's Premium Kimchi. And Mama O's remained smack dab in the center of the green on Sunday offering samples of his goods along with spicy tacos including his spicy kimchi. For the man who won the competition (having eaten over 2 jars of the spicy blend) I hope he has health insurance. Tasting just a tad of this kimchi (containing the ghost pepper, the hottest pepper known to man) I am pretty sure it burned a hole through my esophagus to the point I couldn't properly enjoy the bulgogi within the taco. Spraying the lime didn't help. But I'm sure it's good nonetheless. There were varieties of kimchi laid out for the crowd and I think I found a new favorite with the Oi version.

Having learned some of Kheedim's secrets of making Mama O's Premium Kimchi (his mom was also at CookOut NYC!) there's a nice balance and variety in the kimchi he offers and a dedication in the way he makes it wanting to spread more knowledge about it and share his Korean heritage.

Sunday had a best burger and best hot dog contest going on between booths. Attendees could vote by writing their support on the booth's oaktag what they thought of their hot dogs and/or burgers.

Spicy was the theme of CookOut NYC it seemed. Spicy mustard at the My Friend's Mustard booth. Bison burger with caramelized onions and spicy mayo from Alobar. The spicy kimchi eating competition and tacos I mentioned earlier (which you could also have gotten extra spicy, wowza). There was also a race to the finish for the best spicy hot dog using Sabrett's Hot & Spicy hot dogs with jalapeno (spicy but not overly so that my mouth couldn't enjoy the merge of flavors). My personal fave was Rich Pinto's Catering which also happened to be the first I tried. They also offered some cold and tangy potato salad that was a great contrast to the hot hot dog. I do hope they won a nice prize.

"Wanna slap my cajun ass?" a high-spirited man at The Penthouse Boys booth asked me.

"Sure!" I responded. I received a dollop of sauce atop a piece of chicken and sausage, both seared and blackened Cajun style.

"Wanna slap my cajun ass?" he asked another patron.

The man behind me looked cautious and confused at first, after deciphering the message he agreed taking a sample of what they had to offer.

Slap My Cajun Ass sauce is noted as being "blissfully hot." But even for a wimp like me it was pretty tame. Tasty, but tame.

Of course there were pallet cleansers and items available once you were done (or at least taking a break) from meat. Brooklyn Grange was welcome with fresh from the rooftop farm with greens and vinaigarette. Meal KU (homemade meal cooperative) also had freshly made ingredients for their watermelon cucumber salad. Meal KU allows for members to post pictures of food for others to order.

On the dessert end I was very happy to see Melt Bakery there! I was introduced to Melt Bakery a couple of years ago at the Hester Street Fair. Their staple is ice cream sandwiches, but I tried their deep fried pumpkin pie made me a convert and it was the first thing I asked when I saw Julian Plyter. He said that they'll have the deep fried apple pie once a year (sad) but also informed me Melt Bakery's storefront recently opened and that they are also available at the Highline (super happy).

My friend Lesley had the classic (chocolate chip walnut cookie and vanilla ice cream) and was in love. It's a good portion for an ice cream sandwich and very tasty. Even after a few burgers and hot dogs Lesley considered getting another one. After setting my mouth on fire with spicy kimchi I was glad to enjoy the lovelet (red velvet cookie with cream cheese ice cream) to soothe my mouth and enjoy on a hot and humid day.

Other desserts available were the Van Leeuwen truck and Wooly's Shaved Ice.

CookOut NYC isn't just about lounging in the sun, but also learning about local businesses and where their items (namely condiments) are available in the NYC area. Every business wants to make a name for itself and fairs like this are the best place to start providing attendees the opportunity to try something new and potentially gain a new favorite food and restaurant in the process. I'm always glad for the chance to get to know more about the eateries in NYC and to try what they have to offer and spread the word.

Many thanks to Food Karma Projects, and Sebastian Cervantes for connecting the food blogger community with the CookOut NYC event; to Food Karma Projects founder Jimmy Carbone of Jimmy's No. 43 for hosting the press party for this event; to Jackie Gordon for keeping the tri-state food bloggers in the loop; and to Kheedim Oh for teaching us food bloggers the secrets (well, some of them) of his kimchi at the CookOut NYC press party. 

5 Boro PicNYC - May 27th Edition

The food blogger community is a great one and I really appreciate Jackie Gordon giving some of us a heads up about the upcoming 5 Boro Picnyc at Governor's Island. The event was sponsored by Jarlsberg USA, Zagat, Village Voice, Sixpoint Brewery, High River Sauces, Teen Battle Chef, Family Cook Productions, and Earth Matter.  

The southern tip of Manhattan holds a great view along with the South Street Seaport, Staten Island Ferry, and Governor's Island Ferry. This was my first time going to Governor's Island and me, my friend Lesley, and a slew of others were there specifically to enjoy the 5 Boro Picnyc during the holiday weekend. Families with bikes circled around the  island while others had strollers, men and women sported babies in Bjorns, friends arm-in-arm with tickets in hand ready to partake in many of the vendor options.

A quick ferry ride had us at Governor's Island in minutes and people herded into the main lawn--an expansive park area with white tents along the rim and NYC historical buildings in the distance--to the sound of bands tuning up and the pungent smell of meat on the grill.

Many of the sponsors for 5 Boro Picnyc offered food samples along with restaurants in NYC including Jimmy's no. 43 offering cole slaw, barbecue chicken, and flank steak with chimchurri sauce; The Fat Beagle selling some amazing goods including the best cornbread I have ever tasted (so, so sorry grandma) with honey butter along with pork sliders; Van Leeuwen had cones and sundaes not limited to pistachio and green tea; Red Hook Lobster, who I had also seen at Smorgasburg the day before, selling their mainstay lobster roll and shrimp rolls on buttery buns; Brooklyn Grange providing some necessary light fare of fresh greens and a lemon vinaigrette; Madria Sangria with a fruity and tangy sangria as a nice alternative for non-beer enthusiasts, and there was the KIND Bars stand as soon as you entered into the picnic area (just to name a few).

While a live band played attendees sampled everything there was to offer. There were many pork options as tends to be the mainstay when it comes to barbecue but there was also barbecue chicken, lamb sausages, potato salad, and salad. The Jarlsberg tent had grilled cheese with pork and one by Josetth Gordon composed of kale and caramelized onions. The kale jarlsberg sandwich was by far my favorite and a line worth standing in multiple times. I also took to Josetth's juice, a cucumber - ginger refresher that had a great natural sweetness to it reminding me of sweet tea, but good for you!

This was one of the more calm and least rowdy picnics I've experienced in NYC during a holiday weekend. Even with alcohol present and available for free for a period of time the crowd was chill, the lines moved swiftly, and it was a mellow event overall. Kids and infants were present, whole families camped out in near bands and in the shade while sending persons from their party to go on this line and that. My friend Lesley and I manned various sides of the Jarlsberg tent for freshly cut cheese with figs and crackers or for grilled cheese ooey gooey to the touch. Making the rounds we sipped on sangria or beer and took in the reduced humidity of the day and the smooth sounds from the front that were just the right decibel not to hurt your ears but for you to enjoy the music as well as hear your friend during a conversation.

As with events like Choice Eats and the IACP Culinary Expo I'm always eager to be introduced to more food options in the community. One of the best finds for me was Brooklyn Grange and learning that there's a farm on an NYC rooftop here in Queens as well as a couple in Brooklyn as well seeking to "improve overall quality of life" in the city. As mentioned The Fat Beagle's cornbread was a revelation and Lesley couldn't stop talking about it (still can't if you visit her Facebook page) and Madria Sangria's is a nice option if you just want sangria in a bottle without having to purchase the juice and the wine separately. Josetth's food was also a great introduction to her website and cookbook and Jarlsberg is going to become my new go-to cheese. I made sure to wear the Jarlsberg t-shirt from the press event and was happy to advertise their logo "Go Jarlsberg or Go Naked." I heartily agree with this statement.

Roaming Governor's Island and taking some pictures of the NYC skyline, enjoying the graphic design show at the museum on site, and taking in the cool breeze from the Hudson was a great capper as Lesley and I exited 5 Boro Picnyc and headed home with full bellies, lots to discuss in terms of new food options, and an overall lightness in our demeanor from an event that was a pleasant way to enter Memorial Day. Governor's Island was an ideal place for this venue. The lawn area was big enough that I never felt overwhelmed by the growing crowd nor did I feel like there was no space for me as an attendee. I'd encourage more people to attend next year and in coming years. Just come, enjoy the food and music and ambiance, and relax and enjoy aspects of the 5 Boroughs on a lovely island.

Special thanks to Food Karma Projects for giving us food bloggers the opportunity to attend and review this event and again thanks to Jackie for getting us in touch with Food Karma.