Stand-Outs at Queens Tech Bash – Arrogant Swine, Bear, Ice and Vice

Last week, Meg and I attended the Queens Tech Bash, a fabulous event at MOMA PS1, which was organized by the Coalition for Queens. Holding a mission to “foster the Queens tech ecosystem,” I learned a great deal about the amazing tech companies springing up right in LIC and about the talented people behind them.

Loving the creative setting of this event, which was held in the MOMA PS1 performance dome, I was happy to see a few of Queens’ culinary influencers there—serving up delicious food and drink to the participants and honorees. Amongst them were hogmaster, Tyson Ho of the Arrogant Swine; Natasha and Alex of Bear Restaurant; Lisa and Alex of LIC Market; Paul and Ken of Ice and Vice as well as the awesome guys behind the Korilla BBQ truck.

I enjoyed everything I ate that night, and appreciated the diversity in cuisine. 

Arrogant Swine – Indulging in whole hog BBQ just about a month ago at my friend Adam’s pig soiree, I couldn’t wait to do it all over again with Tyson’s version. The beauty of Tyson’s offering is that he makes use of the whole hog and mixes all the different cuts into one plate. The result is a rich, moist plate of pork goodness that just coats your insides with love.

Bear – Since the amazing press Bear has been getting lately (Chef Natasha was featured on Food Network’s Chopped, the NY Daily News, Village Voice, Edible Queens, the Fancy Food Show and more!), it was fun to see these guys in action. Offering a little bite of Ukrainian flavor, Chef Natasha composed a pretty plate of deviled eggs, cured meat and a toasted dark bread cracker.

LIC Market – Loving the healthy spin Lisa and Alex brought with their heirloom radish salad, it was nice to see some local freshness on a plate. Thinly sliced, colorful pieces of radish adorned each plate and were bound together with a creamy, smoked trout dressing.

Korilla BBQ – Really excited to find out these guys were here, I immediately went to find the truck and get myself a Korean taco. Since I’ve already had several meat variations of this dish, I opted for the spicy tofu instead and wasn’t sorry. The tofu held its own and was strongly supported by the spicy hot sauce, crunchy veggies such as carrots, cilantro and squash. It was the most substantial plate of the night and made me pleasantly full.

Ice and Vice – We couldn’t resist capping the night off with something sweet and moseyed on over to the Ice and Vice cart, which is a charming little push cart filled with creamy goodness. Featuring three ice cream flavors, including the pumpkin seed, Coffeed, and goat cheese ice cream, I tried a sampling of each one. The goat cheese and the Coffeed were my faves (in that order), the former having a little bit of tang but not in an overpowering way.

We had a great time at this event, and it was awesome to see the many talented people of LIC collaborating and celebrating each other. I look forward to supporting the Coalition for Queens and its tech community efforts in the future. A big congrats to all the honorees that night including Elias Roman from Songza, Marleen Vogelaar from Shapeways, and Dion Ridley from CreativeWorx.

Lunchin' with Korilla BBQ at the IMS Summit

I was at the IMS summit last week for work, which was a tad underwhelming, so I didn't have high hopes when it came for lunchtime.  However, I must say that I was more than pleasantly surprised when I found out that Korilla BBQ was in my future that day.  That's right...everyone at the conference had the opportunity to get the Korean BBQ specialty of their dreams from this fabulous truck.  I instantly fell in love.

The Concept:
Started by Edward "3D" Song, a Columbia graduate who just couldn't face the corporate world, the Korilla BBQ truck was born.  Wanting to spread the amazingness of Korean BBQ cuisine with others, and to also break the perception that this cuisine is only for carnivores, "3D" started his first truck with three other cohorts.

Since then, they're all over the NYC map (and even Jersey), as well as doing private events such as the one from last week.  I really loved the idea behind this, as it added a level of coolness to the event.  It was fun watching the guys behind the truck's window, having a good time and serving up some amazing, piping hot Korean yums.  All I can say is that it was a great intro, and I'll certainly be back for more.

Food:
Lucky for us, we got to choose whatever we wanted on their menu, so I went for the Chosun bowl.  First you pick a protein such as the ribeye (bulgogi), pulled pork, chicken thighs, or tofu; then you go for the rice (they even have bacon, kimchi fried rice!), and then additional fixins such as kimchi, slaw, cucumber, etc.

I got the bulgogi, as I typically love this tender, marinated beef that's oh so flavorful.  Korilla's was even better than others I've had - it was incredibly easy to break down, no knife required.  Pairing this with the bacon, kimchi fried rice and a topping of mild tomato salsa, crunchy slaw and cucumber, was a hearty, smoky combination.  The smokiness came from the Korean BBQ sauce they put on top, that was slightly sweet, and a little tangy.  The differing textures were just fabulous and the whole thing made for a colorful and a very exciting lunch.  While I could imagine eating these ingredients in burrito form, I much rather enjoyed seeing it all shine in front of me inside a bowl.  Who'd want all that beauty to be hidden inside a flour wrap?!

Service and Cost:
Amazed at how quickly each order got expedited, the line moved quickly and it was fun watching the guys serving everyone.  It's clear that they enjoy what they do, each with a big smile on their face, cracking some jokes along the way too.

Prices range between $7-$8/serving, depending on whether you get a taco set, a burrito or the bowl I just mentioned.

3 Mmmms

Korilla BBQ - truck locations