Email Author Robert Sietsema

Awards

• 2011 - AAN AltWeekly Awards, published December 8, 2010

  "Siam I Am"

• 2011 - Association of Food Journalists Awards, published June 23, 2010

  "An Open Letter to Josh Ozersky"

• 2011 - AAN AltWeekly Awards, published June 23, 2010

  "An Open Letter to Josh Ozersky"

• 2011 - AAN AltWeekly Awards, published December 1, 2010

  "May We Interest You in Some Egg Fetus?"

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2009 Stories by Robert Sietsema

• Organ Recital: Guanciale From Dickson Farmstand Meats

  published Nov 30, 2009

  Pretty 'n pink: one pound of guanciale, waiting to be rendered and cooked with. Guanciale is the cured jowl of the hog, a fatty cut that begs to be used as the fat component of such famous Central It... More >>

• Weekend Special: Escape From Thanksgiving

  published Nov 28, 2009

  A few will admire me, but more will detest my behavior, either because they actually love the holiday, or are too chickenshit to do what I did. This year, after decades of suffering dry-breasted turk... More >>

• Pix from Ovelia, a Modern Greek Restaurant in Astoria

  published Nov 25, 2009

  The nearly unpronounceable kolokithokeftedes are fried zucchini patties served with an ouzo-laced tomato dipping sauce. This week, Counter Culture triremes into Ovelia, a modernistic boite in Astoria... More >>

• IFC's Dinner With the Band (Yawn)

  published Nov 25, 2009

  Sharon Jones of Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings peers into a big pitcher of God-knows-what. It's hard to decide whether Dinner With the Band represents the end of reality cooking shows, or the end of ... More >>

• Ovelia Psistaria's Fear of Frying

  published November 24, 2009

  Ovelia Psistaria doesn't look like other Greek restaurants in Astoria: Missing are the iced displays of fish, barnyard animals rotating on... More >>

• Some of Our Favorite Restaurant Names, Part 3

  published Nov 24, 2009

  A storefront in Murray Hill, Flushing, Queens, proclaims poultry insanity. Here we go again, offering yet another picture gallery of our favorite names for restaurants, liquor stores, coffee bars, ca... More >>

• Organ Recital: Pig Stomach at Best Fuzhou

  published Nov 24, 2009

  Pig stomach bears virtually no resemblance to its bovine counterpart. Fujianese are particularly fond of variety meats, none more so than goose intestines and pig stomach.Beef tripe is made from the ... More >>

• The Cryptic Meaning of Buddha's Hand

  published Nov 23, 2009

  Buddha's hand is gnarled and ugly, with orange fingers crooking helter skelter in several directions. The smell is almost overpowering. You dizzily try to count the fingers, feeling bewildered and woo... More >>

• I, Locavore: A First Look at Lucy's Whey in the Chelsea Market

  published Nov 23, 2009

  In line with locavoric principles, the cheese-eating public has shown a greater interest in cheeses produced in our part of the country, which means New York and New England. Of course, this is partly... More >>

• Weekend Special: Food Themes in the Art of Jeff Koons

  published Nov 22, 2009

  Sandwiches with mustard smiles and sliced olive eyes, from EasyFun-Ethereal. While we think of Jeff Koons (American artist, born 1955, York, Pennsylvania) mainly for his crass, sleek, kitschy style, ... More >>

• Vegetarian Delights of NYC: Roasted Cauliflower Sandwich at Num Pang

  published Nov 20, 2009

  Even though there's seating upstairs in the tiny shop, many would prefer to eat their sandwich al fresco. Num Pang is a sandwich shop whose purpose is to tweak the banh mi formula in unexpected dire... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  Our 10 Best Williamsburg Restaurants

  published Nov 20, 2009

  The roof garden at French bistro Juliette awaits forlornly the return of summer. The growth of Williamsburg restaurants in the last dozen years has been meteoric, and, where once there were a dozen o... More >>

• Stalking the Single White Truffle

  published Nov 19, 2009

  A couple of weeks ago, desperate for a taste of Central Italy, I bought a black summer truffle at Buon Italia, and scrambled it up with some free-range eggs. I found the taste somewhat disappointing, ... More >>

• Tomorrow: Our 10 Best Williamsburg Restaurants

  published Nov 19, 2009

  Though a newcomer to Bedford Avenue, Doner is already a hit with cost- and flavor-conscious consumers. But does it have the moxie to make Our 10 Bestr Tomorrow bright and early look for Fork in the... More >>

• Organ Recital: The Song of the Liverwurst

  published Nov 18, 2009

  Flying Pigs' Liverwurst is a solid column of variety-meat goodness. What the hell is liverwurst, anywayr Think of it as the German response to French pate.Liverwurst is a coarse textured liver sausag... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  Pix From M & T, Flushing's New Qingdao Restaurant

  published Nov 18, 2009

  "This is Chinese foodr" said an incredulous tablemate." Indeed, "sauteed pine nuts and corn" might be mistaken for American succotash. This week Counter Culture forges ahead to M & T, a Flushing rest... More >>

• Romanesco: What the Hell Is It and Why Does It Look Like It Came from the Moonr

  published Nov 17, 2009

  Not to be confused with the Spanish sauce romesco, romanesco is a very strange cultivar of common cauliflower.The botanical name is Brassica oleracea, placing it in the same species as common cauliflo... More >>

• Some Incredible Qingdao Cuisine Hits Flushing

  published November 17, 2009

  Not long ago, I found myself delighted by a restaurant in Flushing with the noncommittal name of Golden Palace, serving the cuisine of... More >>

• Vegetarian Delights of NYC: The Clean Slate at Saltie

  published Nov 17, 2009

  The "clean slate" at Saltie is one of the few sandwiches not made with focaccia. Saltie is a new sandwich shop (mainly carryout but with some counter seating) that seeks to redefine what a sandwich i... More >>

• Incredibly Cheap Eats: Meat Combinations at Newark's Ferry St. Barbecue

  published Nov 16, 2009

  Ribs and chicken struggle to escape the french fry quicksand. Love barbecue but hate paying top dollarr Jump on the PATH train, which swoops over the picturesque Meadowlands, and take a quick trip to... More >>

• The New Bone Hits the Box: Christmas Bon Appetit

  published Nov 16, 2009

  The new Bon Appetit (we call it "The Bone") hit the mailbox today, and the cover was a head-scratcher.To begin with, the cover was kinda scary, not quite as scary as the famous Gourmet "Frankenturkey... More >>

• All of the Apples Available at the Union Square Farmers' Market, 11/12/09

  published Nov 16, 2009

  This picture file is the result of a visit to the Union Square Farmers' Market on Saturday, November 12, 2009, and represents an accurate record of every apple available for sale, 30 in total. The ap... More >>

• Take That, Daily Fork!

  published Nov 13, 2009

  Our sister blog Daily Fork was recently amused to find a coffee spot with the name Bad Ass, and wondered just how bad ass it could really be. Well, right back at you Daily Fork...Kick Butt Coffee, an ... More >>

• Overlooked Places: Du6lin in the West Village (a/k/a Dublin 6)

  published Nov 13, 2009

  "Shall I go in or not," she wonders out loud. (All pictures taken in near total darkness with the Fork in the Road low-lite steadicam.) Du6lin, also known as Dublin 6, is a true gastropub, one that h... More >>

• Strange Snacks of the World: Tired of Bacon Yetr Try Bacon Breath Mints and Bacon Jelly Beans!

  published Nov 12, 2009

  No foodstuff of the last decade has been more talked about--and obsessed over--than bacon. While previous generations of food fanciers may have eaten it with eggs, laid it over burgers, and lovingly m... More >>