The taping of the showdown took place last night at the LES bar The Delancey and both deli’s brought crowds and energy to cheer for their teams. I of course, was on Team 2nd Ave Deli, proudly wearing my t-shirt. There were six tasters (including the Village Voice food critic, a linebacker from the Jets, and long time customers of each prospective deli) and an appearance by Times Square’s Naked Cowboy! I can’t tell you who won this showdown of course, but stay tuned for the episode which will air this Spring!

Here are some pics of the activities:

The Naked Cowboy sang a little opening ceremony deli tune.

The 2nd Ave Deli t-shirt, complete with a listing of its delicacies.

Camera crew.

The cheering crowd!

Team 2nd Ave representing.

Katz’s fans, with a sign of the famous line from When Harry Met Sally (filmed at Katz’s of course).

To the left, 2nd Ave Deli owner Jack Lebwohl, and to the right is Katz’s owner Alan Dell.

Pastrami A (2nd Ave)

Pastrami B (Katz’s)

And there I am, with Food Wars host Camille Ford

The episode will air sometime in April, stay tuned for details and the WINNER!

Ingredients:

Penne or Pennette pasta
5 cloves garlic
16 oz of crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar
2 handfuls of fresh spinach
1/2 cup of sun dried tomatoes
1/4 cup of pine nuts
Parmesan

In a sauce pan, saute garlic in olive oil. Add crushed tomatoes and sugar. Cook on low heat for 15 minutes (instant Pomodoro sauce).

Dice up sun-dried tomatoes.

Make sure to wash your spinach thoroughly! Chop spinach, add sun-dried tomatoes, and saute in 1 tbsp olive oil for about 2 minutes. The spinach will wilt/shrink instantly.

In another hot pan, toast pine nuts for 2 minutes until they slightly brown (do NOT use oil, the pine nuts have their own natural oils).

Combine Pomodoro sauce, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, and pine nuts with your cooked penne.

Toss all ingredients together, top with Parm, and enjoy!

For example, when in the mood to splurge, there’s always the Fleurburger 5000, available at Fleur De Lys Restaurant in Las Vegas for a measly $5,000. 5k gets you a juicy Kobe beef patty topped with foie gras and black truffles which is served on a brioche truffle bun and garnished with a rich truffle sauce (and served with a fancy bottle of wine).

Even more ridiculous than the most expensive burger is the fact that in Israel, burgers are more popular than hummus and falafel. I swear. In Tel Aviv, there are 75 restaurants listed under the category of hamburgers, on Israeli Menupages. That is 75 burger joints to the 28 falafel spots, and 71 hummus restaurants. Crazy, eh? And I’m not talking Burger Kings….

If you find yourself in Tel Aviv, sick of falafel, check out my top 5 picks for burgers:

1. Agadir
2. Moses
3. Burgers Bar
4. Black Bar n Burger
5. White Hall

And if you can’t afford $5,000 burger or jump on a flight across the world, then PLEASE, make my favorite hamburger recipe, below!

Ingredients:

1 lb of ground beef
1 lb of ground lean turkey
1 onion, chopped,
1/4 soy sauce
1 tbsp black pepper
1 packet of dry onion soup mix

These taste great on the grill, or on broil in your oven for 15-20 minutes.

This pic of the sliders on a platter reminds me of Jughead from Archie comics eating hamburgers for some reason. Wasn’t he always daydreaming about a pile of burgers from Pop’s Soda Shop? Food for thought!

Margarita with lime and pineapple juice.

Complimentary tortillas and accoutrement.

Enchiladas with Oxaca cheese and tomatillo sauce.

Beer battered Mahi Mahi tacos with chipotle aioli.

For starters, the buffet dining hall is insane!! Check out those larger than life flower pot robots and the crazy chandeliers (which are everywhere in the hotel, by the way).

Gazpacho station!

Yogurt parfaits and pink grapefruits with mint.

Breads galore.

Waffles and french toast.

D-I-Y granola.

Croissant heaven.

No indulgent breakfast would be complete without pancakes…(and crepes)

Eggs and tots.

Desserts at breakfast? Why not?

First plate is mine. Can we say “carbs”? Bagel, lox, and cream cheese, gazpacho, yogurt parfait, hashbrowns, pain au chocolat, waffles, and a roll. These hash browns were awesome. They were like little latke balls but crispier and buttery.

Brother’s plate is trying to be healthy with the scrambled egg whites and fruit. But I see your salmon eggs Benedict covered in hollandaise. You can’t hide from me.

Sister’s plate is modeling waffles, pancakes, scrambled eggs, salmon eggs Bendict, hash browns, and more bread.

Please cast your voice and tell me who’s plate you would have liked to eat the most and why.

P.S. Of course we stashed all the croissants and rolls in our bags when we left like old ladies. Gotta get your money’s worth at an all you can eat buffet!