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Photos: Thousands Pig Out At Choice Eats Festival, Get Sneak Peek At Emmy Squared Pizza
By
Scott Lynch
Published Mar 12, 2016
Modified Mar 12, 2016
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(Scott Lynch/Gothamist)
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By
Scott Lynch
Published Mar 12, 2016
Modified Mar 12, 2016
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Hordes of hungry people packed into the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea last night for the Village Voice's ninth annual Choice Eats festival, where more than 50 top-notch restaurants, bakeries and ice cream parlors brought tasting-sized samples of signature dishes to feed the party-goers.
There was also plenty of booze on hand—beer, wine, shots, and cocktails—and though the aisles were pretty packed at peak hours, there were only lines at a couple of stations. For the most part, attendees could step right up to any table and grab whatever they felt like eating or drinking at that moment.
The biggest news of the night was the sneak preview of the "Detroit-style" pizza from the eagerly anticipated Emmy Squared, Clinton Hill pizzeria Emily's spin-off set to open soon in Williamsburg. Not only were these rectangular mini-slices my favorite single item at Choice Eats (the crust is phenomenal, and they totally nailed the tomato sauce, too) but I predict Emmy Squared will instantly be considered among the best pizzas in all of NYC.
Emmy Squared aside, there were tons of other very good things to eat last night as well, including the Coconut Curry Laksa (which is like soup, thick with lump crab meat, from Flinders Lane; the Brooklyn Bread Lab's loaves made from Magog wheat grain, sliced and topped with sharp bitto cheese; the Long Island Fluke at the Pearl and Ash table, which came with mascarpone; and the Grilled Nueske's Bacon from Quality Eats, served with thick, raw peanut butter and jalapeño jelly.
Streets BK brought trays of intense Peri Peri Wings; Queens Comfort did a complicated (but delicious) Mac-n-Cheese with, among other things, Brussels sprout and cranberries; Obica Mozzarella Bar handed out cups of Beef Tartar with a thin slice of black truffle on top; and Esh served an excellent Slow Roasted Pork Rib, which was fatty, rich, and crusted with za'atar.
For dessert, all the ice cream at Choice Eats was great—OddFellows, Victory Garden, and Ample Hills—but the Sticky Toffee Pudding at the Sheep Station table might have been my favorite of the sweets.
The all-inclusive tickets for the event ranged in price from $59 for general admission with a Gilt coupon (which bought you three hours of food and drink) to $99 for VIP passes which, truth be told, is the way to go if you can swing it, both for the early entry, which is a whole hour before the GA rabble gets in, and for access to the lounge upstairs, which had some of the best food. Either way though, this is a well-organized event (good music too, courtesy DJ Delphine Blue) at which you will can get very full and, if you want, very tipsy to boot.
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choice eats
emmy squared
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Scott Lynch
Photojournalist, food writer, preschool receptionist. Love NYC.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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