Troy Night Out, plus: El Mariachi

I guess I need to do some back-tracking today. On Friday night I took my out of town guests to Troy Night Out. I am ashamed to say that this was my first time going as well. I have always avoided Troy, as people never seem to say anything good about it. We had a great time. The weather was perfect and we all thought that Troy was beautiful (at least that part). The community turn out was impressive as people ambled down the streets poking in galleries and antique stores, bars and restaurants. There was an outdoor vendor selling schwarma, chicken & beef, cut right off the spit. Packed into a fluffy pita (the kind you never find in markets) smeared with tsatsiki sauce, lettuce, and tomato, onion, the smokey meat was delicious and a perfect appetizer to start our adventure.

One gallery in particular which stood out amongst the others was Kismet, located on Fourth street. The four person band playing white noise in the front of the gallery set the tone for a very unussual but exciting gallery scene. It was obviously the most popular place in all of Troy night as people billowed in and out, and swarmed the inside. An intense mix of art from artists from opposite ends of the universe dotted the walls. I won't attempt to be so presumptious as to describe the art so just go and see for yourself, there is bound to be something you'll love and something you'll hate. To me that just means good art. To top all of that of was this table which flanked one wall filled with beverages and exotic dumplings and other tasty niblets which all seemed to have a Far Eastern/Asian influence. Somebody's been in the kitchen cooking up some good finger food for this gallery. The food created a nice touch and a damn good incentive to hang around and look at art. Also, home-made sangria and dollar tap pints were available. Not your average gallery by far. I was very impressed with Troy Night Out and will go again before summer's out. It is nice to see people get together to support a community. It was something I haven't seen in a long time.

As for dinner, my friends were hell-bent on going more casual than intended, now that we were stuffed with dumplings and schwarma. We had once taken them to El Mariachi years before and they loved it, so back we went. Although my friends are from a major metropolitan city, they claim that El Mariachi rules in authenticity and flavor, which is unmatched where they live. I tend to go to the Washington Avenue location and having never had a bad meal there, that's where we stay.

My ultimate favorite are the soft tacos. Cheap and awesome, you order them by the piece,they can satiate any size appetite. They come in all the obvious flavors: beef, chicken, two kinds of pork, but the best are the more exotic meats. The lamb is quite different. You can taste that you are eating a different meat. It is slightly salty and shredded, studed with fresh onions and herbs which help bring out a wondeful gamey flaver that I can't get enough of. On advise of the owner I ordered his favorite soft taco which is the beef tongue. I was very hesitant, as I have never had tongue that I liked, but it was awesome! I new favorite for sure. Little tender chunks of char-grilled tongue meat looked like grilled liver but tasted sweet and nutty, almost like the consistency and taste of frois gras. I know you all probably think I'm crazy but for a few bucks you should try it for yourselves. Friend 1 ordered carnitas, his all-time favorite, and he swears this is the best place he has every had them. Carnitas are basically pork chunks boiled down with seasoning and water until just the fat and pork remain. After this you continue to cook the chunks until they brown from their own fat. The meat is so tasty, fork tender, and beautifully crisped. They serve it with tortilla. Friend 2 ordered papas con chorizo for the table, which is another stellar dish. Basically fried potatoes with chorizo sausages. However, the chorizo meat has been taken out of the casing and fried down to a tiny crumble. It coats the potatoes nicely and makes for a dish everyone seems to love. The margarita's are great but if you like straight tequila, this is the place, with well over 25 select tequila's to choose from. Ask your waiter to reccomend a good repasado or anejo (on-yay-ho). It will be served in a small brandy snifter and will taste like you are sipping a fine brandy. This will shatter your perceptions of tequila. Mariachi is one of my family's staple restaurants as it is afordable and delivers a great product.

All in all a great night.