The Ridge Tastes Good (Take 2)

Today I made one of the wisest investments of my relatively short life. I proudly supported St.Patrick's parish by attending their annual event, A Taste of the Ridge. For a meager $12, I helped keep the Church going and was able to gorge myself on the fare of 39 restaurants from around the neighborhood. With the amount of diverse, local gourmets present, I was pleased at how much I got for the price.

Given the quality and variety of the food, it's no surprise that the place was packed. Names like Lai Yuen, 101 and Arirang can draw a crowd. There was still plenty of good food to go around though, even if some had to eat it while standing.

The head count didn't do anything to prevent me from trying as many of the foods available as I could. With so many popular vendors in attendance, I was positive that my favorite dishes would come from the big names. I was surprised to find that the most memorable chow didn't come from among the usual suspects. Rather, they were unexpected delights from two particular stalls I almost overlooked.

Naomi and Jennifer represented their home based company Krazy Lady Cheesecakes. I've had a lot of cheesecakes before, but these were exquisite. The samples, small circles with fresh fruit toppings, were soft but firm enough to provide the perfect amount of resistance against chewing and tasted exceptional. Their selection was wide, featuring the staples strawberry and blueberry, but included the lesser sought after flavors like pumpkin. These easily constituted the best dessert available, effortlessly competing with the Court Street outsider Monteleone's Bakery. Regrettably, these ladies don't have a shop. Instead, they take orders via phone (718-685-9996) and e-mail. They are all business however and will take your orders with all the same seriousness.

When I go to a restaurant, I typically look toward the flavors most associated with it. That's why when I visit my favorite eateries, I usually don't order the buffalo wings. Tom Casatelli from The Kettle Black and his Jameson wings have convinced me to reconsider that stance. This chicken flies right off the plate. Hickory flavoring and a just above mild level of spiciness combine to make a wing you could eat in the summer without issue. While Tom didn't bring anything but two sets of wings with him, that's all he needed. I'll be visiting Kettle Black for the first time as soon as I get the chance. Their selection of wings is diverse, but I know which one I'll be ordering ahead of time.

While I do praise these two for their exceptional offerings, I caution anyone who attends against not making the effort to try as much food as possible. While the task of sampling anywhere from 10-15 different sets of penne can be daunting, it's not unrewarding. There wasn't a single plate at A Taste of the Ridge that I wouldn't have finished. Additionally, even if there's a bit of overlap or a particular dish isn't suited to a person's interest, the assortment makes it easy to just move on. I would regret it if I had skipped over Sofia's just because I already stopped by Pipin's Pub.

The people were friendly and happy. That might have had something to do with the amount of food they were consuming, but that doesn't matter. At the event, I saw nothing but laughter and eating. The staff, despite gouging the price of water ($1 for 8oz bottles) was helpful and eager to assist. Even the volunteer servers were all smiles.

Besides having to pay a little too much for the beverages, there isn't much to complain about. The parish knows their stuff. There's no speeches or lengthy lines to stand in. They don't stand between anyone and satisfying the hunger they came to abate. My biggest gripe is simply that I will have to wait another year before I can stroll by and enjoy the entire thing again.

Originally posted on April 25th, 2010