Paloma Veloz

The Lower East side is one of the most interesting and exciting places in The City.  I’m saying nothing new when I tell you there’s always great food and just about every cuisine you can possibly think about.

Luckily some great meals in the neighborhood are also within a reasonable price, so you can be satisfied without hurting your pocket.  On my recent visit I was able to try three different cuisines: Italian, Venezuelan and Mexican all just within a few blocks from each other.  

I started things off with a visit to The Essex Street Market, which has a variety of local shops.  I decided to have a Arancini Bros. rice balls.  You can choose from several rice balls with different fillings, including some sweet ones such as a the nutella ball.  I’m a big fan of rice, so the idea of rice balls is right up my ally.  I have to say they are pretty good, This is a great appetizer to get ready to enjoy some more great food. 

After The Essex Street Market we made a stop by the Lowline Lab, which is an exhibit showing the plans for an underground park that would be illuminated with solar technology.  I’m excited for project and look forward to an inviting space full of nature to escape  the sometimes brutal NYC weather.  Bring it, Lowline! You can learn more and donate to this project here.  

We spent enough time at the Lowline to work an appetite and right across the street was the solution to that at Patacon Pisao. Forget bread, because when it comes to Patacon, green plantains are the protagonist.  This dish is basically a sandwich made of plantains as the bread. If you haven’t had one I suggest you run to get one, especially if like me you’re a plantain lover. 

My photo does no justice to this deliciousness.  This baby above is the patacon Cubano which comes with roasted pork, ham cheese and their special sauce.  I think splitting is ideal, because the size is no joke, though my boyfriend would say otherwise.

As the nigh started to fall the mood called for some spiciness and Tequila, so we ended up at Empellon al Pastor.  I have heard so many times there is no good Mexican food in NYC, but places like Empellon are proof that the city has come a long way.  We are no California, but we sure have some places that are worth writing home on your blog about.

These tacos were so tasty and juicy.  We paired our tacos with Centenario Reposado, which is a nice and smooth tequila that I highly recommend.  I promise you my judgement wasn’t impaired by this great tequila.  These were awesome tacos.

If you thought we were done, you thought wrong. We went back to Venezuelan cuisine, this time to try another national dish, the arepa.  The next stop was at Arepa Factory where they can assemble one from their menu or you can choose to build your own. 

Arepa Factory was actually supposed to be our one and only stop we were going to make at the Lower East Side, but this trip ended up like a trip to a Target Store — with more than the one thing we were planning to buy.  It was certainly worth it, though. The arepa we had was the Pabellon which comes with shredded beef, black beans, sweet plantains (see a theme here?) and guayanes cheese.

The night could not be over without dessert so we headed for to Milk Bar.  To no surprise there was a line outside of the shop.  I’m not a big fan of waiting in lines for anything that is not an absolute necessity, but we were already there.. AND it was a warm night.  I’m glad we did the waiting, because I was able to have a crack pie, which is as addictive as its name suggests. The salty-sweet pie on cookie crust is their bestseller and I can see why.  It’s so good and rich, but I will keep this to a once a year indulgence.  

And with that we called it a night.  From plantains to sugar delight, the Lower East Side is a spot you can find it all.

What are some of your favorite spots in the neighborhood? Please share it on the comments below.

Hasta pronto,

Paloma