Foodie Backpack Rappers

Bourdain dropped a heat rock this morning. I loved this quote: 

"The biggest problem I have with this "foodie"-ism is the lack of a sense of humor. You know? Those foodies who don't have a sense of humor and who are angry or proprietary about their choices. That's less fun. People who collect dining experiences like butterfly collectors rather than enthusiasts. But I think anyone who's genuinely taking pleasure in food -- and not just food in a vacuum -- is something that a lot of foodies miss. If you're using food to fill up an empty spot in your soul or your social life [laughs] and you're collecting these experiences so you can bludgeon people with them online, then clearly there's something distorted there."

If I go out, I'm just tryin to wild out and have a four loko night. Its funny that people go to restaurants to test them for yelp or their blogs. You're not even getting paid for this! I enjoy eating at popeye's just as much as I do eating chicken at blue ribbon. I'm not at popeye's with an abacus trying to figure out whether popeye's is penny for penny the better chicken. I mean, I'll compromise.... bring the camera, leave the abacus... It's a lot like backpack rap fans in the 90s. I know I compared the food scene in general to streetwear a few months back, but some of these more militant foodies are def like bootcamp click fans lol.

BCC is the shit. I still listen to Hurricane Starang on the regular. But every one knew that one militant white kid in school, who's parents were hippies, and he ended up in fatigues listenin to OGC tellin people Shawty Lo funds Terrorism. Full disclosure, at one point I tried to convince my Social Studies teacher to do a week on Dead Prez cause shit is "bigger than hip hop", but come on son....just bounce, bounce, bounce! 

Fantasy Squad: Cytherea's Ark

Drafted my first fantasy squad of the year yesterday.... Cytherea's Ark

QB: Donovan McNabb
WR: Greg Jennings
WR: Santana Moss
RB: Rashard Mendenhall
RB: Steven Jackson
TE: Zach Miller
WR/RB: Beanie Wells
BN: C.J. Spiller
BN: Braylon Edwards
BN: Clinton Portis
BN: Steve Breaston
BN: Chad Henne
BN: Jason Campbell

K: David Akers
DEF: Washington

Yes, the kid is a Skins/Wolverines fan so I had to get all my homies. But I took em at the right spots. I think Beanie Wells as UTIL is a big get. Jennings is value, TDs are flukey for receivers so to get him with the last pick of the 3rd round was dope. I had 12th pick. Zach Miller, he's going to be a top 5 tight end now that someone can actually get him the ball. Campbell is no miracle worker, but he found Cooley for years. I have the best 1-2 punch at RB in our league so as long as one of my bench WRs comes through, I got this sewed up..... I think between the 3 QBs I got, one is gonna put up numbers. Henne is gonna get a big bump with Marshall and Campbell is gonna get to throw a lot downfield with a line that can finally protect him.

Grubstreet Got it Twisted

Can a brother show a lil independent blog some love? haha. In my post 2 days ago, I was sayin that the blog which got my mind right was that goofy Han and Diana jumpoff but if you read Grubstreet they make like its all about the name critic (all good, misunderstanding). The Han and Diana blog is mad half baked and cracked me up. 2 shawties with cameras lettin off stray shots. But, I thought of all the reviews, they hit it dead on.

The problem with Xiao Ye in my mind isn't that the food wasn't good. If you read Gael's blog, she is mad "insatiable" as the blog says so no one's getting perfect reviews. She's hilarious. I just started reading it over the weekend after poontang gate lol. I was happy with her review as well as metromix. But the reason I changed isn't because some people like or didn't like the fried chicken. Its a philosophical change.

I did my takes on Taiwanese classics and my mom's homemade dishes at Xiao Ye the last few weeks. For instance, I tuck minced mushrooms into my pork on rice, I use sichuan peppercorns and agave nectar in the General Poke-Her-Face Head on Shrimp, Peanut Butter in the beef noodle soup. But my innovations aren't meant to change the taste of the classics. The goal was to keep a lot of the original flavors intact but to get there by different means and have a slight twist on the accent flavors. At a certain point though, you gotta listen to the people. Our customers came wanting an original expericne, they want that Aladdin "whole new world" shit LOL. I think our drinks, music, and space fulfill that expectation but the menu.... needed work.

I've never been the type to let customers run me over just cause they pay the bills. But when enough genuine people who care about what I'm doing tell me they're underwhelmed, I listen. My mom came and loved the food too but just like bron's mom told him to get his in Miami, my mom said no need to sit around making 100 year old recipes and adding peanut butter to it. The reason baohaus is dope is because there's a unique flavor profile and consistency while still maintaining the integrity of a Taiwanese Gua Bao. At Dericious, I'm gonna create an original flavor profile as well. I'm not really thinking about it, I"m just cooking what I like and it'll happen. Most of the menu is the result of getting dumb toasted and shopping at my corner bodega for groceries. If I can figure out a way to braise meat with Four Loko I should win Player of the Year. I'm just sayin......

Dericious NYC

What it is? We started serving the new items tonight. Above: Gochujang Grilled Cheese - pullman toast, gochujang remixed, carmelized scallions, ham (like mo-fuckin bodega ham, no crazy shit from a butcher wearing jorts), and mozarella cheese.

Dad's Ketchup Fried Rice - ground beef, ketchup, oil poached chilis/onions/garlic, sunny side up egg

You already know... Cheeto Fried Chicken - brined in buttermilk, fried with cheeto crumbs, served with chili orange marmalade. SALUTE. Anything else would be uncivilized.

Cheeto Fried Chicken and other dericious foods

Cheeto Fried Chicken, Gochujang Grilled Cheese, and Ketchup Fried Rice available tomorrow at Xiao Ye.... get some. We'll have specials all week.

Why are we doing it? Well, I really liked this blog post. The criticism was helpful and spot on. Gael Greene and Metromix also gave really fair reviews. I think I just handcuffed myself with the concept and menu at xiao ye. I mean, let's be real "xiao ye" who the hell can pronounce that? And instead of blaming people for having the wrong expectations coming in, I feel like I am in no-man's land and that's my bad. I tried too hard to stay true to original flavors while adding my innovations and tweaks, but they weren't loud enough nor refined enough. If I wanted to be nuanced, I should have taken a more fine dining approach with isolated flavors, but if I was going to be innovative and over the top, I shouldn't pussy foot around. I gotta go hard in the paint WAKA... "caitlin that's my mother fuckin n*kka!" lol

So the kid is back... Starting tomorrow, I will be doing a special each night. We are underfunded at XY, but what's new? I can't shut the place down and institute a new menu, but I will add new items each week and by the middle of september, the menu will be revamped and we'll re-launch. It's not Taiwanese, it's not American, it's mother fucking Dericious. Here's a taste of what we have on deck the next few days.

The theme for Fall is ABC Diner food (american born chinese). It ain't fine dining, but I like foam parties so don't hurt me Wiley haha. I love that video of Dufresne defending foam, he's dead on. I hate when people attack one aspect without understanding the whole. Anyway, this is what's coming up ....

Cheeto Fried Chicken
Grilled Cheese with mozarella and gochujang
Ketchup Fried Rice w/ ground beef and Sunny Side Up Egg
Fried Tofu and Honey Ham Hock Toasted Mantou Sandwich
Scotch Bonnet Sloppy Joe's
Griddled Corn with Unagi Sauce
Chopped Broccoli and Cheddar w/ Peppercorn Oil
Soy Caramel Mantou Bread Pudding