A Taste Of Sheepshead Bay – The Food: The Bite
THE BITE: Of all the columns I write each year, this one has to be my favorite. This is the column where I break my silence on what’s happening behind the scenes of Brooklyn’s greatest food fest, A Taste Of Sheepshead Bay!
First off – GO BUY YOUR TICKETS. Online ticket sales end very soon, so don’t delay. Yes folks, I want you to save some money and buy your tickets on line. Tickets online are $25, a savings of $10 from purchasing them at the door. Once you’ve bought your tickets, you can then use the $10 you saved on libations at the event. Or just give it to me, no one’s getting rich working at Sheepshead Bites, y’know.
Now, why should you attend A Taste of Sheepshead Bay? Well, apart from all the good food you’ll be eating, it gives you a chance to come out and support the local businesses of our community. You won’t find any restaurant chains or corporate shills pushing their food here. All of our participants are small, local, business owners who are working hard to make Sheepshead Bay and the surrounding neighborhood a great place to live. Some have been here for generations, some are just opening their doors. It doesn’t matter; they are our neighbors and one of the great creeds of Brooklyn has always been, “We take care of our own.”
So, without further ado, let’s take a look at who’s coming and some of the food we’ll all be enjoying…
First up, is our sponsor il Fornetto. Once again, Brooklyn’s premier waterfront Italian restaurant is taking the lead and sponsoring A Taste of Sheepshead Bay 2012. Last year, you’ll remember the outstanding braised lamb over truffle-mashed potatoes that they served. This year, they’ll be tempting your taste buds with Caprino Salad – baby arugula, toasted pistachio nuts, fresh goat cheese with raspberry vinaigrette; Pollo Farcito – breast of chicken stuffed with asparagus, red bell pepper, Swiss cheese in a Madeira wine sauce; and a Nutella Cheese Cake – Creamy Italian cheese cake with a chocolate hazelnut spread.
While we couldn’t implement all of your suggestions this year, one voice, the voice of my wife, Mrs. The Bite, was heard. We’ve asked for more desserts from our participants and many have responded.
Some of the folks who will be bringing desserts exclusively include Kingsborough Community College’s Culinary School, under the guidance of Thomas Smyth and Naxielly Dominguez; Brooklyn’s legendary and multi-generational T & D Bakery will dazzle with stuffed on-site canolis, pastries and other desserts, JoMart Chocolates‘ outstanding hand-made chocolates, created by the son of a son of a candy maker, Michael Rogak; Liege waffles, Key Lime pie and pumpkin frozen yogurt from Arbuz, and baklava from The Turkish Cultural Center of Brooklyn.
Other foods that we’ll be sampling include, world class sushi from the famous Chef Kevin of Sushi MiKasa; Bosnia and Herzegovina’s national dish, Ćevapi from newcomer Cevabdzinica Sarajevo II; and Chayhana Salom, who is celebrating their grand opening with an appearance at A Taste of Sheepshead Bay, will be bringing plov, sachichuk Salad (onion, tomato, hot pepper), hamir-hasip and another special vegetable salad, among other things.
Now, not every restaurant has shared what they will be bringing, but I still have a few more tidbits to tell.
Wheeler’s will be bringing their legendary Buffalo wings, along with one of our publisher’s favorites, steamed mussels. Anthony’s Place will be bringing stuffed mushrooms, chicken marsala, and one of my favorites, a dish specially created for last year’s event, corona clams. Nargis, will honor us with salad Tashkent – boiled meat, green radish, scallion and boiled eggs in a creamy dressing, which they tell me is one of their biggest sellers, samsas, which were such a hit last year that they made the press, manti and a dessert called chak-chak.
Tete-A-Tete Cafe will throw down with their “tasty mouthfuls” of Buffalo wings, penne ala vodka and mini burgers. Chop Stix will grace us with some of Chef George Wong’s award-winning (and White House-gracing) fruit and vegetable carvings while dishing out Peking duck, fried and steamed dumplings and all sorts of noodles. Jimmy’s Famous Heros will be dishing out, well, their famous heros, and Masal Cafe will be bringing Turkish manti and flat pies.
And there will be more. Much, much more.
I still haven’t told you about Maria’s, Bassett’s Catering, Anatolian Gyro or New Cats Cafe. Not to mention that the restaurants like to surprise us with more dishes on the day of.
Did I tell you about the home made wine? Well, you’ll have to find out about that by yourself.
Don’t miss out on the biggest food event this side of the East River. Come celebrate New York City’s original food mecca, Sheepshead Bay, at A Taste of Sheepshead Bay.
The Bite is Sheepshead Bites’ weekly column where we explore the foodstuffs of Sheepshead Bay. Each week we check out a different offering from one of the many restaurants, delis, food carts, bakeries, butchers, fish mongers, or grocers in our neighborhood. If it’s edible, we’ll take a bite.