Sweet Nick's is Savory

Sizzlenuts here. FYI, this entry is going to read a bit differently from past and future posts (i.e., fewer jokes, more non-jokes) for reasons that will become obvious below.

Last night Chittlins and I, with our frequent co-eater Chlodnik, set out to Howard Street, a main drag in the African and Caribbean neighborhood of Roger's Park. We had picked Le Conakry for cuisine from French Guinea, a country on the west coast of Africa. I am a big fan of food that was borne from French colonialism, e.g., Banh Mi, and was quite interested in trying this style. However, Le Conakry was closed. Not clear why as it was Friday at 7 pm, but regardless, this makes consecutive GCL trips where we ate not at the intended restaurant, oh well.

However, right in front of where we parked, and right across the street from Le Conakry is Sweet Nick's Caribbean (741 Howard St). It's Haitian food. It was empty besides staff and a TV turned to coverage of the earthquake. We were unsure about going in; we didn't want to disturb them. We did decide to enter. I figured that if they just wanted to be alone with their family, they wouldn't be open.

Sitting down, we didn't know exactly how to behave. In case you don't know, Chittlins and I are very immature, but were quite aware that displaying any of our usual revelry could be considered anything from inconsiderate to grounds for being removed from the restaurant. Chittlins asked the server if she had spoken to her family, and she replied there were still some people that they couldn't reach. Shortly after, they changed the channel to Nickelodeon which we took as a cue that we could relax and enjoy ourselves. Thus, Chittlins retrieved his Trader Joe beer.

Chlodnik is a pescetarian most of the time, and Chittlins was in the mood for fish, and thus, both were disappointed when it was revealed there was no seafood besides the conch stew. Chlodnik broke her general dietary rule and got the stewed chicken. I ordered the conch stew, and Chittlins the fried pork. All came with plantains (not the sweet variety, which was nice as a change up for me) and some sort of rice and beans guy. In sum, while all the dishes were very solid, none were transcendent. The conch stew offset the fishiness of the conch with the spices of the broth quite well. The chicken stew was probably the best of the three. The chicken moist and tender, and the broth flavorful. The pork came with an spicy oily dipping sauce to give it some moisture. I am not the biggest fan of fried pork, too dry for me, but Chittlins explained that for a Cholo such as himself, it was just the way he liked it. The rice and red bean gravy portions were huge (I ate the leftovers for a hungover lazy guy breakfast). The gravy has a very pleasant and soft taste and texture.

As a final note, throughout the meal, the channels were flipped around, often landing on the news. Watching the staff watch the pictures of their country in ruins, not knowing if any of their loved ones were among the rubble, well, that was intense, to say the least.

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Chittlins sidenote: I enjoyed my meal far more than Sizzlenuts apparently - even sans the tilapia creole. Perhaps Sizzlenuts is too demanding. Should I ask him to connect me with his former fiancee to ask her if that has been a chronic relationship sabotaging trait of his?

Sizzlenuts response: Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed this food a lot. It just wasn't a top tier food experience. For something to be top tier, when I am eating it I have to have at least one moment of thinking "I could eat this everyday" or even better "why does other food even exist?" Now, these are just "in the moment" responses, as evidence by my having had them several times with a variety of foods. But still, during the experience, I think "this is the best there is" at least once. This is true for me to categorize all kinds sensory experiences as top tier, e.g., music, orgasms, etc. I did not think that during this food. Finally, my absolute love of my ex's food is actually what allowed the relationship to last as long as it did (and was most likely the impetus for it to begin with).