College Cooking

Everyone who has graduated from a dorm room without a kitchen to a dorm room with a kitchen has probably received a cheesy book with this title from an equally cheesy aunt or uncle. It probably has recipes like "cheese quesadilla" which instructs the "chef" to dump shredded cheese on a tortilla and heat it up for a few minutes on the stove (don't laugh, I sustained myself on these junior year). Either way I like to think that I have risen above that, at least slightly and by this I mean sometimes I buy fancier cheese than shredded cheddar and occasionally I venture to Whole Foods for "trendier" ingredients. Here are the three things I go for when I find myself hopelessly wandering the isles of Modern Food.

-"Fancy" cheese. Save the cheddar for the caf and go for goat cheese, feta, gorgonzola or blue. The latter two taste fantastic with a little balsamic vinegar and roasted onions and garlic on top of pasta and all of them also make a great salad garnish. It's well known that cheese makes everything taste better, but fancy cheese makes everything taste gourmet.

-Avocados. It's a shame they're so expensive because I would eat these babies all day every day. Whip up some guac, put them on top of scrambled eggs or just eat them straight out of the shell! Sometimes I can't even believe they're good for you.

-Hummus. Sometimes I have to stop myself from filling my shopping cart with dips alone, but hummus always wins out in the end. With so many varieties to choose from I always find myself going for something garlic involved. What to dip? The sky is the limit, pita chips, carrots, peppers, tortillas and your face.

Clearly I'm no Emeril and I'm also not very imaginative, but I am not longer making quesadillas for every meal so I guess that is a success.

When You'd Rather Not Face the Caf...

Chris has some more suggestions for off-campus dining! Check out his post below and his sports blog, Cavnaughty's Sport's Blog.

Don’t like rat poop in your food? Here are some good off campus places to eat.

Given what has happened with Fordham’s food service in the past weeks, I have not been on campus to eat at all and have relied solely on off campus dining. Here are some good places to grab food if you’re not into the whole contaminated food thing.

Tino’s Deli- Located on Arthur Ave., this is by far my favorite place to eat off campus. They have amazing sandwiches and great homemade Italian food. Whether it’s homemade, brick oven pizza, or just some stuffed shells, this is by far the best deli off campus. Everything is priced appropriately, ranging anywhere from $6 for an order of stuffed shells, to $7 for a hero. I go here almost every day and the quality of the food is always consistently good.

Bellini’s Pizza- Probably one of the Fordham area’s best-kept secrets. Located on Hughes Ave, a block over from Mugz’s and Ziggy’s, Bellini’s definitely knows how to make good pizza. My personal favorite is their buffalo chicken pizza (which is 100x better than the caf’s buffalo chicken pizza). If heat isn’t your thing, they have baked ziti pizza, BBQ chicken pizza, Philly cheese-steak pizza, or just the classic cheese pizza. They also have incredible garlic knots and penne vodka. Although it can get pricey compared to other pizza shops such as Pugsley’s and University, Bellini’s is definitely a place to go if you want a great slice of pizza.

These are my two favorite places to eat off campus which I think everyone should visit. Some other great off campus eateries are: Simon’s Deli, Planet Wings (great for ordering in), Sake II (large portions of Japanese food for a low price), and Full Moon Pizza.

Pizza Wars

One day when my Australian friend Lauren and I were ascending the stairs from the D train I remarked on how delicious it smelled. Lauren, agreeing with me, asked “What is it?” I almost didn’t believe her. As someone who has grown up in the NYC area, I cannot imagine not recognizing the smell of freshly cooked pizza. (PS If anyone has ever had pizza from the place by the D on Fordham Rd., let me know! I’ve been wanting to check it out). Lauren, on the other hand, has not had the lifelong privilege of enjoying delicious, greasy NYC pizza her whole life. Luckily, she consumed plenty during her trip to New York.

It’s a given that New York has great pizza. Lucky for us Belmont-dwellers, Arthur Avenue has the best pizza, and plenty of it. Everyone has allegiances, but personally, I think it’s next to impossible to pick a favorite. Below I’ve reviewed the Belmont area’s best slices.

Pugsley’s

It’s a given that every Fordham student has visited Pugsley’s a million times. Whether it’s for Global Outreach sponsored Eat Ups (pay $10 and eat all the pizza, pasta and salad that you want? I’ll take it), late night snack or quick lunch break, Pugsley’s is pretty much always full of Fordham students. With an eclectic décor (moldy La-Z-Boys, dead plants, a huge gong and burnt bread), and even more eclectic staff (everyone has at least seen someone perform late night karaoke with the owner, Sal), Pugsley’s is a Fordham staple.

But onto the pizza. I have to be honest, I wasn’t always a huge Pugsley’s fan, preferring slices from other establishments in the area, but sometime in the past year I’ve become a convert. A Pugsley’s slice is extra greasy (in a good way), flavorful and always hits the spot. My favorite tip is ordering a side of ranch for dip. I know it sounds gross, but trust me, you’ll never look back.

590 E 191st St., Bronx, NY 10458

University Pizza

Unlike most people whose first experience with Bronx pizza was Pugsley’s, my first slice in the Bronx came from University. Maybe I’m a little biased, but in my opinion, University Pizza is totally underrated. The inside is pretty no nonsense but the pizza is out of this world. They offer plenty of specialty slices (most people swear by the buffalo chicken slice), but I believe the true test of a pizza joint is their ability to create a perfect plain slice and University does just that. Always hot and cheesy, I can never resist a slice from University Pizza.

574 E Fordham Rd., Bronx, NY

Tony and Tina’s

My friends and I went through a phase when we were obsessed with Tony and Tina’s. Maybe it had to do with its proximity to Fordham’s drinking establishments, but more so because the slices are huge, the service is fast, and the crust is delicious. I’m not one to focus on pizza crust alone, but the crust on Tony and Tina’s pizza is too good not to mention. Besides that, the staff takes the cake for best employees at a Fordham-area pizza place. Tony (not his real name) always says “hi” to my roommate and I on the street and calls us out for not coming in as often as we used to (which is impossible, because the late-night hours of Tony and Tinas are no longer). Regardless, I try to get a slice from Tony and Tina’s as often as I can because it brings back good memories and I always like visiting my friend “Tony.”

2483 Arthur Ave., Bronx, NY 10458

Bellini’s

I haven’t been to Bellini’s enough to truly judge their pizza, but what I can say is that the vegetable slice that I got a few weeks ago was out of this world. A newcomer to the Fordham pizza scene, Bellini’s is definitely already up there with the big-guys. They have tons of specialty slices (I hear the penne vodka slice is great) and a cute little atmosphere.

625 East 189^th St., Bronx, NY 10458

Full Moon Pizza

Full Moon has a solid fan base that claim their slices are the biggest and tastiest. Always packed with tourists and Fordham students alike, Full Moon is a pretty big deal on Arthur Avenue. I’m embarrassed to admit that I’ve only had Full Moon twice. Of course it was delicious, but what I remember most is that both times I was served one plain slice on two plates because the slice was so big. Very impressive, delicious and filling.

600 East 187th St., Bronx, NY 10458

The Ultimate Dining Marketplace is Finally Living Up to Its Name!

When I think about the Marketplace a few things come to mind: wilted lettuce, weird meat dishes involving olives and cold, stale pizza. When I was living on campus and forced to go to the cafeteria everyday I spent a lot of nights eating bland pasta, loading up on tons of frozen yogurt and complaining. Thankfully, I live off campus now and can enjoy culinary delights from my own kitchen AKA Whole Foods burritos and lots of Annie's Mac and Cheese. Regardless, I have found myself missing the caf in the past few weeks as my senior friends and I have been reminiscing about all the time we spent "people-watching" (read: gossiping) and just overrall being carefree freshmen and sophomores with nowhere better to be.

After taking a trip down memory lane, my friend Erin and I decided to take Lauren, our Australian friend, to experience the Ultimate Dining Marketplace. Imagine my surprise when I discovered not only a burger bar stocked with a wide variety of breads, rolls, wraps and cheeses (blue cheese is my favorite!) but also a take-out area (no more stealing greasy grilled cheeses for a late night study session only to find them hard as a rock hours later). The vegetarian station has a million more options and baked potatoes are always available with a ton of garnishing options. I'm not going to lie, I was not only impressed but jealous of all of the people that get to eat there every day.

Maybe I'm just impressed because I haven't been there in a year and everything seemed new and exciting. Maybe it's because the novelty of having my own kitchen has worn off and I can better appreciate the luxury of a wide variety of prepared food and someone to clean my dishes. Whatever the reason, I thoroughly enjoyed my pilgrimage to the Ultimate Dining Marketplace. The only downfall: We barely knew anyone to gossip about.