vindaloo is a fun word but i can't think of any puns right now.

Okay, so, I refuse to allow Sweet Potato Friends to become one of those things that never was. I had a pretty good dinner last night, so I guess I will talk about that.




Northeast Kingdom is a really nice and cozy restaurant around the corner from me in Bushwick, Brooklyn. I don't go there very often because 1) it is more expensive than I'd like, and 2) usually when I'm home I just like to collapse on the couch or cook a nice meal. But last night was date night, and we had to leave the borough anyway, so Northeast Kingdom it was (it is conveniently located right next to the Jefferson stop on the L.) Also, they recently introduced their Winter 2008 menu, and I wanted to try one of the new dishes.

Regrettably, I don't have pictures of anything (edit: this was an oversight-I definitely have a shitty photo from my camera phone), so I can't show you how awesome-looking the garlic oven-fries were. They came out on a plate, and there were about 8 huge steak fries. Like, fork and knife fries. Like we ate them with a fork and a knife. It was awesome. Unfortunately, they didn't taste as awesome as they looked. They were under-seasoned, and I didn't really taste the garlic. But since I've never had such huge fries, I don't have any other huge fries to compare them to. And as soon as I sprinkled on some salt, pepper, and ketchup, everything was fine.

As an entree, I ordered the vegetable vindaloo with paneer, basmati rice, and mango chutney. It came out in a shallow bowl, with the vindaloo served over the rice. The mango chutney came in a separate little bowl. The vindaloo base itself was very, very good. It was the perfect combination of savory, spicy, and sweet. The vegetables were delicious as well; the carrots and potatoes chunky but not unmanageable. Also, there were pearl onions. Full pearl onions. SOoooOOOooo exciting. I tried a little bit of the chutney, but didn't really find it necessary or welcome. But then again I'm not a chutney person, so who cares what I think.

Only one huge complaint about my entree: the paneer. I don't know why, but it was some of the driest, most tasteless paneer I have ever had. Seriously, like, even Amy's frozen Indian meals - better paneer. This is one of those moments where I wish I knew more about food so that I could make informed insults. Paneer fanatics - speak up.

Everything else was very nice, though. Lots of cold water, large beer selection, and Patrick's entree was a little bit amazing. He had the Ploughman's Salad which is basically a plate full of pregnant woman food. Romaine lettuce, grafton cheddar, branston pickle and house-pickled beets. It also came with two slices of bread topped with very longggggggggg thin slices of butter, which blew my mind.

So all in all, I think the ol' NEK is a little too expensive for me, but I will definitely check back as soon as their menu changes again. Or as soon as I work up the balls to eat a vegetarian reuben (I AM SO SCARED.)

(SPFers? Fuck y'all... someone follow my lead fast. WE CANNOT FAIL.)

I almost forgot! My mmm rating is.... mmmmmmmmmmmm.