Spoon #7: Harry's Burritos

This weekend Ms. Dish and I visited one of our favorite Tex-Mex restaurants: Harry's Burritos  on 71st and Columbus.

There are a few Harry's Burritos around New York, as well as their sister restaurant, Benny's Burritos.  I must be honest; despite Ms. Dish's allegations, I always had my doubts that Harry's and Benny's were related, but the website confirms it!  In fact Harry and Benny were the names of the owner's grandfather and father.  Speaking of the website, there is a pretty cool link to play "Pop-up Tortillas".  If that doesn't get you in the mood for a burrito, I don't know what to tell you!

Here we have Spoon #7:

Number 7 includes the markings "Winco Stainless 18-0", and also an "8" near the bowl.  The ever-present Winco 8!  Will we ever discover its true meaning?   

Spoon #7 appears to be part of Winco's "Regency" line:

Extra credit goes to Ms. Dish for ordering a coffee at a burrito shop and making this swap possible!

Spoon #6: The Bridge Cafe

Ms. Dish and I have a long-standing tradition that on the first snow of the year we go to The Bridge Cafe for dinner.  Now, if you live in New York City, you know that we've been seeing some funny weather this year.  We got our first snow before Halloween!  This took us all by surprise, so Ms. Dish and I have been patiently waiting for the next "first snow" to go to The Bridge.  Fortunately that day finally came on Friday as I looked out my office window and low and behold saw some honest flurries. 

The Bridge Cafe has quite a history, dating back to 1794.  It always blows me away that this place is still around, nestled under the Brooklyn Bridge and next to the South Street Seaport.  According to the history books, the building has a long history as a grocery, saloon, and brothel.  It also is a contender for the much debated title of "oldest drinking establishment in New York City".

That history is great, but the fact is it wouldn't mean all that much if the food at The Bridge just wasn't really delicious.  It is!  Every time we eat here, I leave feeling that I just had a really good home-cooked meal.  The only downfall for this particular visit was that they did not have Ms. Dish's favorite home-made key lime pie.  Maybe next year!

You will notice by the way that the picture above is far better than any of the pictures featured in this journal prior.  That's because Ms. Dish took this picture.  It was decided at once that she will be in charge of picture-taking in the future.

Here we have Spoon #6:

Number 6 is marked "Oneida", "18/10", and "New Rim". 

Searching the internet for "Oneida New Rim" brings up a link to restaurantsource.com, which features this fantastic description: 

A gently curving border reflects the simple elegance of this fine 18/10 Stainless Steel pattern. A beautiful complement for virtually any tabletop, New Rim blends continental sizing with European styling with an impressive array of pieces to create a distinctive and unique placesetting.

I picture a lone writer thinking up these descriptions a la Sienfeld's Elaine Benis writing for J. Peterman.

Speaking of Oneida, which we first encountered as the makers of Spoon #0, the New York Times featured an article about the company a few days ago.  A very interesting story featuring more tidbits about the Oneida Community, Perfectionism, and the "Oneida Flip".  The main focus of the article, however, is that despite recent difficulties, a private equity firm has recently purchased Oneida and sees long term potential.  Good news for the people of Oneida, NY and spoon-swappers the world over. 



Spoon #5: Light Horse Tavern

This weekend brought Ms. Dish and I to Jersey City, New Jersey on secret business.  While there we were recommended to dine at the Light Horse Tavern in the Paulus Hook neighborhood:

It was a Sunday afternoon, so we figured a little brunch was in order.  Light Horse did not disappoint!  Ms. Dish and I both agreed that their Huevos Rancheros were the best we'd had in New York, even if we weren't technically in New York!

The Light Horse tavern, who's name Ms. Dish and I repeatedly screwed up, calling it variations of "white horse", "light house", "white house", etc., was named after Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee III.  The menu went on to explain that Light Horse Harry was made famous during the Revolutionary War for capturing 400 British troops in a sneak attack on Paulus Hook.  Only one man was lost.

And without further ado, here is Spoon #5:

Spoon #5 is marked "Winco Stainless 18-10" and also features the mysterious "8" in a circle that we first encountered on spoon numero tres.  Number 5 looks like it fits in with Winco's "Stanford" line:

Will we ever solve the mystery of the "8" in a circle?  Perhaps someday... 



Spoon #4: Fanelli's Cafe

Five years ago my folks gave me a calendar called "Historic Bars of New York".  As the name implies it featured twelve of New York City's most famous historic bars.  Included were some of the more famous (i.e. McSorley's, P.J. Clarke's, the 21 Club), and some Ms. Dish and I had never heard of before.  Well Ms. Dish and I soon went to work exploring these various bars all throughout the city, and we found the vast majority were just as grand as the calendar implied.  Sadly, Fanelli's Cafe in SoHo was one we had not made it to until yesterday!  We honestly don't venture to SoHo all that often, but we happened to be in the neighborhood (to check out the new REI, if you must know).

We still have the old calendar, which provides a little history on Fanelli's.  Apparently the joint stayed open through prohibition by making wine and bathtub gin in a secret room behind the bar.  Fanelli himself was a boxer/promoter, which explains all the boxing memorabilia stuck on the walls.  All around it was a pretty neat bar with lots of character.  Plenty of old wood, including a built in clock, and only one T.V., which I always appreciate in any non-sports bar. 

And here we have our new Spoon #4:

A stylized "ABC" on the back marks it as a product of ABC Valueline.  A little research indicates that it's from their "Dominion" line:

Other than being pretty easy to remember, ABC apparently stands for Allied Buying Corporation.  They have the rather un-catchy slogan "Your North American Network of Independent Food Service Equipment and Supply Dealers".  The "Stainless Thailand 18CR" stamped on the back of Spoon #4 seem to attest to this spoon's no-nonsense approach.

Spoon #3: Les Halles

Before leaving town for Christmas, Ms. Dish and I decided to stop by Les Halles for dinner:

Les Halles is a darn good French restaurant, particularly given that it's way down in the Financial District on John Street.  It always seems to be packed with all sorts of people;  financial types, tourists, locals, and so on.  I can personally vouch for their specialty, the classic "Steak Frites".

We encountered Spoon #3 accompanying a cup of coffee:

Spoon #3 features the markings "Winco", "Stainless 18-10", and "8" in circle near bowl

Spoon #3 looks quite a bit like Spoon #2, but appears to be part of Winco's "Continental" family.  I suppose a "continental" spoon is more appropriate for a French restaurant like Les Halles.  Here's a picture of it with it's brothers and sisters:

Winco seems like a pretty no-nonsense restaurant supply company.  According to the website, their philosophy is "we win when our customers win".  Also of note, their distribution center is in Lodi, NJ - home of famous rock and roll band The Misfits!

I don't have any idea about this "8 in a circle" on the back - perhaps a hallmark or model number?  

Spoon #2: Cafe Mogador

Last night was very cold and rainy.  On such an evening, Ms. Dish and I decided to venture out and visit one of our favorite restaurants: Cafe Mogador, on St Mark's between 1st and Avenue A.  Unfortunately, as we were leaving, we remembered the rain but forgot to take a picture for posterity!  Here is what Cafe Mogador looks like in the sun: 

We used to come here quite a bit as they serve very delicious Moroccan and Mediterranean food.  We hadn't been for a long while, so last night we decided to brave the weather for some Hummus and Baba Ghanoush! 

It was at Cafe Mogador on this cold and rainy night that we met Spoon #2:

Spoon #2 is marked "Johnson Rose", "Stainless Steel", and "18-10" on the back.  You can tell when you're holding #2, that it is a really fine spoon.  According to the Johnson Rose catalog, this is their "Atlantis" pattern:

How do spoon companies manage to take these pictures without getting reflections?  Trade secret...

The "18-10" on the back is no secret though.  According to my old Metallurgy text, it describes the composition of the stainless steel.  The "18" is the percentage of chromium, while the "10" is the percentage of nickel.  Chromium makes the stainless steel rust-resistant, while the Nickel gives it a silver-like shine.  A "10" for nickel is really "ooh la la" stuff.

This type of stainless steel is called Austenitic.  It was invented back in 1912 by the engineers at Krupp in Essen, Germany.  That's right around the time my great-grandfather worked there! 

All this talk of stainless steel really brings me back.  I remember once in one of my Metallurgy classes our instructor told the class that if you wanted to know about the quality of a piece of flatware, all you had to do was hold a magnet up to it.  If the magnet didn't stick, you had some really nice stainless steel.  Well, I'm not sure about all that because when I put a magnet to Spoon #2 there's definitely some attraction.  I still think that #2 is a very fine spoon, though it must be handled with extreme care as it is not certified by the NSF.

By the way, extra kudos go to Ms. Dish for ordering a fish dish complete with head, tail, fins, et cetera - she reported that it was delicious!

Spoon #1: George's Coffee Shop

Our first swap went down this Saturday at George’s Coffee Shop on the corner of 164^th and Broadway.

This happens to be one of my favorite diners in the city, so I’m glad it could be our debut swap.  George is master of the grill, whipping up anything you want at lightning speed – eggs, pancakes, French toast, burgers, gyros... to see him work the grill is always a show! 

Spoon #1 is marked “Bakers & Chefs”, “Brazil”, and “736” on the back.  Also on the back is an “NSF” marking in a circle.  This is the mark of NSF International, which according to their website “helps protect you by certifying products and writing standards for food, water and consumer goods."  Now when I go to George’s I can get a delicious meal AND be assured that my spoon will not kill me!