I'm on a
Bon Chon strike. I've seriously been gorging myself on Korean fried chicken for like 8 months, soooooooo I comprised a list of restaurants I plan to force myself to try. The first of what hopefully will be many was
Zengo. I get all of my restaurant recommendations from my
Thrillist newsletter, because they always introduce me to places with interesting menus...and because I'm too lazy to look anywhere else.
They mentioned that
Zengo had Nuevo Latino cuisine, a mix of Latin American and Asian delicacies. I figured since I love both of those types of foods, I'd probably love them together.
When Ali and I first arrived one Saturday night around 9pm, we were told it would be a 20 minute wait. It was actually an hour-long wait and probably would've been longer if we hadn't complained to the bartender. We were then given booth seating meant for at least five people, so that made up for the neglect. Prior to being seated we got drinks at the upstairs bar. I'd recommend going up there. If you love architecture and interior design, you'll be in awe of the above-view of the hanging wooden beams and spiral chandelier. It's like a permanent art installation.
Once we were seated near the windows, I saw the intricate designs of the window gates. The decor seemed very Asian-inspired.
After realizing that the bar bill doesn't carryover onto the meal bill, I skimmed the menu for food I normally eat (pork, beef, and pasta). I never eat chicken or fish outside, because I already eat chicken at home every night and I'm afraid of food poisoning when it comes to seafood. I also try to stray away from $20 salads (because they're not very filling or flavorful), burgers (because nobody can top
Five Guys), sandwiches (because nobody can top
Subways or
Chopt), and anything with spicy sauces (because downing five glasses of water is sort of a killjoy).
So after skipping over Churrasco (since I've never really liked it), lamb (because I can't remember if I like it and I didn't want to find out for $31), tofu (because yuck), and all the seafood, I settled on Braised Beef Short Ribs ($28).
And I'm so glad I did. It was de-licious! However, I read the words ribs and thought,
That's totally edible. I decided to skip reading the meal description so that I wouldn't talk myself out of it. Had I read it though I would've known that it contained oaxaca cheese potato puree, shiitake (a Japanese mushroom), huitlacoche (an edible corn fungus), and dragon sauce. Dragon sauce. As in spicy. The tender beef and smooth mashed potatoes just melted on my tongue, cradling it in pillowy waves...and then assaulting it like a fire-breathing dragon. It's delicious, like I said, but probably far more enjoyable if you like spicy food.
Ali ordered the Achiote-Masala Grilled Chicken ($21) with black bean dal and mango salsa. I thought it was kind of bland, but she really enjoyed it. All in all, I'd recommend this restaurant if you love an array of Latin and Asian food. I probably won't eat there again because $28 is pretty pricey for a meal that's too hot for me to finish, but they have several other interesting-sounding offerings: Torched Wagyu Beef, Volcano (seared salmon, red crab, sesame-chipotle aioli), Mango Eel Roll, Thai Coconut Chicken Soup, Tuna Tataki (involved grilled watermelon), and even a Build Your Own Bento Box option. It sounds like one of those restaurants you only hear about on the Food Network. So if you have every series from the channel TiVOed, get off your couch and get to
Zengo.
622 3rd Ave. | at 40th St | New York, NY
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