Zlata Praha

Let's cut to the chase:

Zlata Praha is incredible. You should go there everyday (unless you are a vegetarian- there is no place for you here!).

It is a Czech & Slovak (my people!) restaurant in Astoria.

The decor is completely ridiculous and kitschy in the best way.

(I need to know who this guy is!)

(the bar, deer head and hoofs and lace curtains)

(the lovely city)

(farm implements, ethnic dress and dolla dolla bills!)

They have a $6.95 lunch special, I think it is the best deal for food in all of New York. You get your choice of soup, entree, coffee or tea and dessert. Your food will be delicious and your entree will be huge.

(Kielbasa, potatoes and some serious sauerkraut.)

They have a backyard garden which smells delicious since it is next to Opa Opa Greek Bakery.

They serve ice cold Czech Pilsners in humongous mugs for $6.

(check out the pint glass of water for scale...!)

Today we had Kielbasa and Sauerbraten. I had never tasted Sauerbraten, and it was basically tender pork swimming in this tangy, creamy sauce- it was a totally new flavor experience for me and I liked it! Also in this dish are two giant "dumplings" which are maybe the best thing ever... basically a sort of spongy, soft bread... it's insane. I usually get an extra plate of these to soak up all of my extra soup and sauces.

(that's a lotta sauce!!)

The Kielbasa is always delicious- it's hard to go to Zlata Praha and not order it...

The dessert is a simple crepe with apricot preserves inside and powdered sugar. It's small, and adds just the right amount of sweetness after your ginormous meat-filled meal.

(wash it down with some coffee)

This place is so fun to go to! The food is fantastic and rich and huge! Once you eat at Zlata Praha, you will want to come back again and again and again...

ZLATA PRAHA RESTAURANT
28-48 31st STREET
ASTORIA, NY 11102
Phone: (718) 721-6422

http://www.zlatapraha.cc/main.htm

Salt & Fat

This Spring my roommate texted me a picture of the Salt & Fat sign before it opened and I was pretty much pumped.

How could this go wrong? And more importantly, how many different ways can it go right?

Check it out:

Opened just a few months ago by actually-known-chef (something different for Queens) Daniel Yi, this restaurant seriously lives up to its name. Each table gets a bag of popcorn that has been freshly popped in bacon fat. popped in bacon fat. popped in bacon fat. 

it was amazing. 

We decided to stay in the Salt and Fat theme and get Butternuts Porkslap Pale Ale ($5) to sip.

(slap it)

They offer several "small plates" which really aren't all that small in the end. My bf and I were both starving upon entry, and we were perfectly full from 4 dishes. We started with Lobster salad ($9) which was pretty good ( I am a bad judge of this because I don't really like cold lobster....). The light, citrus-y salad part of it was nice.

Then they brought out Short Rib Buns ($8) which were little heavenly baos with tender short ribs, pickled cucumber and apricot mustard. The actual bao itself was also awesome. 

(hard-to-see Short Rib Buns!)

Next came the Scallops ($10) and I nearly died. I am embarrassed to admit this, but I had never had scallops before......! I am not a fan of oysters and clams and somehow scallops got caught up in the mix. But I have had a sneaking suspicion lately that I might love them. Anyway....

I literally had a serious out-of-body experience while eating these. Scallops RULE! And these scallops were particularly perfect and served with tangy beet salad and the most delicious carrot puree. The only downside was that the shape of the dish made it difficult for me to get every morsel of carrot puree off of it without looking like a crazy person. (which I did anyway.)

(omfg Crack & Cheese lit by candlelight)

The grand finale is probably their most famous dish, the "Crack" & Cheese ($9) which is completely ridiculous. I mean, fried potato gnocchi with Bechamel cheese sauce and big chunks of bacon. It's crazy. It was amazing.

But really, nothing could compare to the scallops!! They should really put the scallops IN the Crack & Cheese (which we suggested to the waitress, who thought we were weird).

After dinner we received complementary Korean yogurt drinks. It was kind of hilarious.

(hmmmmm... sugar-y Korean yogurt)

I don't really plan on going here all that often, mostly cause the meal's a little heavy and it gets pretty pricy when you want to eat everything on the menu... but it is definitely the place in the hood to take someone (or yourself, ain't no shame) for a special occasion!

Salt and Fat

41-16 Queens Boulevard

Sunnyside, NY 11104

(718) 433-3702

saltandfatny.com

Hours: Tues-Sun 6pm-11pm