Pinche Taqueria

9/21/2008

Soho: 227 Mott St (and Spring St) - (212) 625-0090

Price: Cheap Eats

Rating (1-10): 6

Pinche Taqueria is a fun spot to drop in and grab some cheap eats done well and light. It's casual and kind of hipster New Yorky but not in an annoying way. Prices are very fair and for around $10, you can grab a filling meal, and hang out in the small eating area or just outside (if weather is nice) and enjoy the SoHo scene.

The menu is pleasantly varied selection of tacos, burritos, salads, and other fixins - with fish, pork (braised and grilled), beef, shrimp, chicken - and the food comes out quick. It's mostly good but it's not a homerun. The braised pork taco (carnitas) has a porky flavor although tougher than most things braised. The chicken (pollo asado) had char flavor but a bit on the rubbery side and the fish taco (pescado), a deep fried piece of fish, is soft and tasty, especially with a squeeze of lime. The tacos are served with crispy onions, cilantro, a pleasantly unadorned guac, and a side of green or red salsa. (If you can get extra salsa, I'd recommend giving it an extra douse for extra flavor.) What's nice is that, thanks to the toppings, these tacos have a light, fresh feeling, even the deep fried fish. For what is essentially street food, it's comfortably above average in quality, taste and healthiness.

If you're looking for a quick and affordable bite or if you got a hankerin' for some Mexican food, I'd recommend popping in on Pinche Taqueria. Chances are, you'll at least think it's worth the ~$10 you spend.

Soho Park

5/7/2008
SoHo: 62 Prince (and Lafayette) - (212) 219-2129
Price Range: Cheap Eats
Rating (1-10): 3

Soho Park is a nice place to grab some beers after work or before a dinner. But only get food if the weather and your company is good, and you don't really care about the quality of the meal; on a nice night, the open air design offers atmosphere, breeziness, and people-watching that allows you to enjoy the experience and ignore the food quality.

The restaurant is situated in SoHo along a popular thoroughfare and it's a converted garage so it can open up to the outside better than most traditional restaurants. The food isn't good - I had a bratwurst sandwhich that would take second to any brat casually cooked on a summer grill - but it's also pretty cheap, with most things under $15. Still, in this price range, there are a number of other outdoor-ish/backyard summer eateries, most notably Shake Shack.

Also forgettable at Soho Park are the cocktails which, at $10, are overpriced. I had a mojito that was disappointing in size and alcohol content, and other ones that I saw seemed to be the same. It's NYC so you get NYC prices but it's also expected you get NYC creativity or quality - both were lacking.

So what's this place good for? Beers. They're normally priced and when the weather is nice, the atmosphere is great - so with the two together, it ends up being a good deal.