NBA Free Agency 2010

I haven't blogged as much about sports on this blog, but i'm back. I used to cover the NBA Draft for rotowire.com/yahoo/espn/nba.com and it was the shit! Fantasy Sports anyone? I was a beat writer covering NBA/NFL/MLB too but I just got too busy and only watch NBA/NFL now. There has been a lot of speculation about where all the free agents are going so I'm breakin' down here where I think they SHOULD go and also where I think they WILL go.

'Bron 'Bron
SHOULD GO: New Jersey/BK Nets. I think the biggest flaw in the Nets' pitch is that Bron's gonna have to play in Jersey for the next 2 years. But, looking at the roster, this is a great fit for Lebron. Of all the teams with cap space available, Brook Lopez is the best big man that Bron can play with. A lot of people are assuming Bosh is going to go wherever James goes and that he's the best big for Lebron, but I disagree. Lopez is a defensive force who can play any top center straight up. Bosh is a weak on-ball defender and doesn't rebound like Lopez. The Nets also have a 2nd tier point guard in Devin Harris who could make the all-star team any given year. The problem with the Nets is that they don't have a knock-down shooter who can space the floor. Unless they can add that piece, they'd have some issues. As a stealth option, the Rockets just re-upped Yao Ming and they wouldn't be a bad fit either. Of course, with Yao, health is always a concern and Scola is a restricted free agent, but if healthy, Yao is the most offensively dominant center in the NBA, he knocks down his free throws, and does a good job on the glass. Houston also has a ton of knock down shooters in Kevin Martin, Aaron Brooks, Shane Battier, and a great perimeter defender in Ariza. They would have to do a sign and trade so you probably lose a few of those pieces, but there are plenty of shooters. But, it seems Cleveland is taking a stance that they won't do a sign and trade.... could be a smoke screen though.

WILL GO: Knicks. I just have a gut feeling this is going to happen. Lebron loves NY. Yes, the Nets have Jay-Z, they will have BK, but 2 years in Jersey could ruin anyone's life. The problem with the Knicks is that they have no depth to surround Lebron with if they sign 2 max free agents. But, I disagree. Why sign 2 max guys? You don't need that with Lebron. Gallinari is the shooter you need. David Lee, re-sign the guy at about half the max, he cleans the glass, can pick/pop, and you get consistent effort every night. Marcin Gortat is being shopped by the Magic and he'd be a great fit with Lebron too. I think the press has it all wrong with trying to pair Lebron with another superstar like Bosh. If you're a GM, I think the best bet is to put Lebron with a PG who's a lights out shooter and doesn't need the ball, SG who is a strong perimeter defender/shooter, PF who can pick/pop/rebound, and a defensive minded center who doesn't shoot free throws like Dwight Howard. You don't need a do-it-all guy like Bosh alongside Lebron. I'd also like to see Lebron get some opportunities to work on his post-game, but with Bosh, they'd occupy similar space since Bosh also likes to face-up, play on the wing, etc. He's not a true low-post bang em up dude. Not having delonte west around to fuck his mom probably helps too.

Wade
SHOULD: Miami. The franchise is dedicated to him, they cleared space to sign 2 other max free agents and there's really no reason to leave. I'm sure chi-town is interesting cause its hometown but he's not a great fit with Derek Rose. I haven't given up on Michael Beasley either. Move him to the bench, let him be the 6th man and continue to develop on the defensive end. I'm not as quick as most observers to give up on players. Beasley is a tweener, but he'll find a role in the NBA if he gets his attitude right. The only issue with the Heat is that they need a point guard who doesn't need the ball. In this free agent class, I love Steve Blake for the Heat.

WILL GO: Miami.

Bosh
SHOULD GO: Chicago. Hands down, this is the biggest no brainer to me. It doesn't matter what Lebron does. Bosh doesn't need to chase Lebron. Go play with Derek Rose alongside a guy like Noah who will do the dirty work and doesn't need the ball. Bosh/Rose pick and pop would be unstoppable and Bosh won't be asked to carry the load defensively. If they get Bosh, they need a shooter and I think Joe Johnson is a great fit here. If I were the Bulls, I wouldn't even go after Lebron. You don't win by assembling the most stars. You win by putting together pieces that fit.

WILL GO: If Lebron goes to New York, I think Bosh will follow. I don't think he'll regret it, but I don't think its the best fit for him. I think Bosh/Lebron/Gallinari puts you in the hunt, but good teams do it as a team. Will they have enough depth? Don't be surprised if Bosh goes to the Rockets either in a sign-trade. They have a lot of shooters who can spread the floor and a dominant center so he can play PF.

Joe Johnson
SHOULD GO: CHICAGO. As mentioned above, Joe Johnson can spread the floor and knock down shots. He's a legit #1 option on offense, but in the playoffs, when he has to matchup with other #1s for 7 games, he's not going to win his match-up every night and that's not what you want for max dollars. He is a better version of Rashard Lewis, but giving him max dollars is a mistake. He should come at a 20% discount. Johnson is a wing player and if he has a point like Rose who's responsible for penetrating/distributing and a big guy like Bosh getting buckets in the post, Johnson can do what he does best on the perimeter and base-line.

WILL GO: KNICKS. If the Knicks strikeout going for Lebron and Wade, they'll be the only ones that I think are desperate enough to throw max dollars at Johnson besides Atlanta. I have a feeling Joe's gonna go for the money. Lebron, Wade, Nowitzki, these guys need to worry about their legacy. There is no Joe Johnson legacy, just Joe Johnson money. The clippers got money, but why would you give Joe Johnson paper when Eric Gordon is basically the same player.

Amare Stoudemire
SHOULD GO: Rockets. They'll give him the money he wants. He'll fit in the offense, he won't be asked to stand around on the low-block and he'll be able to roam which plays to his strengths. The Rockets also have more pieces than New Jersey. Additionally, he can play off the ball on defense and get stats blocking from the weak-side. Miami is a player but I don't think he wants to play center.

WILL GO: I want to say Rockets, but I have a feeling he may fall into New Jersey if they don't get any of the above players. Again, Brook Lopez has his back there. Devin Harris is a nice sidekick and Amare will be the man there. Will they give him max dollars? I don't know. I think the Rockets are more likely to give him the cash because they have to convince him to do a sign-trade, but if its not the rockets, I say Nets.

Dirk Nowitzki
SHOULD GO: Miami. I don't think Dirk wants to go play with a bunch of young guys in Chicago. Not every one likes Noah and there's probably still some hesitation with how young Rose is. Wade is a proven vet who has a ring. Rose is the truth but I just think there's still a bridge he needs to cross as a star in the conference finals/finals/etc. Dirk and Wade would be a sick combo. Neither is a big ego guy. Dirk's a huge Hasselbeck fan so he likes layin out on the beach steez.

WILL GO: Tough call. Its hard to see Dirk leave Dallas, but if he's serious about winning a championship, why would he opt out? And if he is serious, its not going to happen in Dallas. But, I think Mark Cuban will chain himself to Dirk a la Jeff Van Gundy if he tries to bounce.

Paul Pierce
SHOULD GO: Rockets. This team would be perfect for Pierce. He loves to play inside-out, on the wing, and he wants to be the man. Yao doesn't mind deferring, nor does Aaron Brooks. Brooks is Rondo-Lite, Martin is a Ray Allen clone, Yao got the post on lock.

WILL GO: Chicago. He isn't going to cost a max contract. He would show those young kids how to win and they would be legit contenders, especially they could probably also get Bosh. It would be scary if Pierce goes to Chicago with Bosh. I like Pierce more than Johnson because he mother fuckin gets buckets! He aint a shook one like Johnson.

There are obviously other free agents but..... really, what's the use in predicting when it all revolves around these guys.

A yelp review I actually like.....

 Cecille C. from Yelp! thanks! reviews like this make it worth it:

This is a place I will try to avoid because eating while terribly missing beloved ones is not healthy for digestion.

Probably because of the neat warm family photos hung on the wall, and the bottles of Maotai on the table as decorations, I have already missed my home when sitting in this place waiting for my food. When the pork belly bao came, I thought it was a little fatty. But the first bite made me totally sentimental. I once thought this kind of flavor of the pork I could only find at my grandparents' place. When I was little and visited my grandparents on weekends, my grandpa would always cook dishes like this for me and he himself would always be chop-sticking too many pieces to my bowl. I couldn't imagine I'd reconnect to this kind of flavor again after so many years and 10 thousands miles away from home.

Even though the baos at this place are food from Taiwan and we never eat this combination of the wraps, pickled vege and peanut in north China, the flavors of the meat conquered me. Both the beef and pork are good. My friend liked the beef better but the pork is my favorite. I feel like with the help of a slow cooker and some condiments from Chinatown, the beef is not impossible to make at home, or at least you can buy the same from some places in Flushing. But the pork is not duplicable. The home-made flavor is just too penetrating.

This is a place you will get ripped off but can hardly complain. They are not expensive for nothing. One flavor is enough.

Frank Bruni on the Restaurant Scene

From Food and Wine

There was an article in Food and Wine.com that interviewed Frank Bruni


"On changes in the restaurant scene since he stopped being a critic. (Or how Keith McNally is Hugh Jackman.)
So much of what is opening now reflects that moment one-and-a-half years ago when the economy was at an absolute nadir. Except for stealth, feel-good stories like Torrisi, it’s all big openings from well-known names. When you’re mounting a play, it’s hard to get investors if you don’t have a proven star. I think we’re seeing that now. If you can’t put on your marquee David Chang (or let’s say Nathan Lane) or Keith McNally (maybe Hugh Jackman), it lessens the chances that you can open for business.
It almost makes me wonder and worry that the NYC restaurant scene will become concentrated in just a few people. I worry about what happens to the George Mendeses of the world. He’s a talented chef with a great resume and no built-in audience. We need restaurants like his Aldea  now."

 I see what Bruni is saying and he's right. He also mentions Torrisi which I love. And, I hope they take this as a compliment cause it is. But there's no "secret" to what they do. Their food is just dope straight forward shit that someone put everything they have into. I've always said, if you are genuine and work hard, your food tastes good... when I opened Baohaus, I saw this article in Entrepreneur Magazine:


"Restaurateurs have learned that stripping away the layers of white linen and battalions of waiters leaves them with something that people actually appreciate: A restaurant that's putting its money and effort into what's on the plate.

Consumer psychology and spending habits always mimic the economy. And the restaurant industry is a sensitive barometer of how consumers feel about things. People may be willing to plunk down hard-earned cash for something great to eat, but they sure as hell don't want to feel guilty about it, or pay for any fancy trappings. Make the experience less about the show and more about the food. And charge a reasonable price."

When I read this, I had already decided to open a bare bones restaurant because I really don't know anything else. I don't carve swans with turnips or make dragons with carrots. This article gave me a lot of confidence knowing I didn't have to make food orgami to make a buck. Our food is all about keepin' it real. For anyone else opening their own spot for the first time, its hard to find people to talk to and bounce ideas off of so this article meant a lot. Whenever a friend tried to shit on my dreams by talking about how many people fail or how off my idea was, I sent them a link to the article.

People are dicks. They say to your face they are happy for you, that its cool you left your job, but then you hear from someone else they're laughing at you cause you left the law to sell buns... Those people aren't your friends and you remember that shit. And whenever you get a chance, you send them articles about how well you're doing. Yes, I do this. Not because its classy, but because I might be the only person that gets angrier when stoned. I got rejected from mad colleges in high school, had letters that guidance counselors wrote my parents saying I was a fuck up, and its still on my wall at the parents' crib.

On the other side, you got friends that come out of the woodwork to support. For instance, I got a buddy, Will Davidson. I rarely got to hang out with Will outside of school, but this mother fucker came almost once a week as soon as I opened Baohaus. Brought his family, friends, anyone and every one. Shit like that means a lot. Melissa, Jerry, and Steve bought us a lucky cat. Simon worked for free the first week. Baer bought corn chowder the first day when we did chicken soup haha. Stella bought a tip jar. George took all the photos. Lia wandered around all day waiting to buy buns Christmas Eve. It takes a village.

Unless you've spent significant time eating shit working in a restaurant, you just don't know what it takes. The concept/recipe/location is only part of it. Even with Baohaus, my set up initially was meant for a quiet, neighborhood place with a communal table, wifi, hot tea, etc. We grew out of it fast, my brothers all came up to NY to help, and we just adjusted on the fly. But, I'd be dead in the water if I didn't have two restaurant kids that were ready to fly up next day and throw down. I got lucky. So, in a way, both Bruni and Entrepreneur are right. You kinda need it all. Its always a good time to open a restaurant, but its never easy.

It doesn't take a "superstar" to open a restaurant, it takes a village. It got cut in editing, but during my Ultimate Recipe Showdown taping, they asked me what I'd do with the 25k grand prize if I won. I kinda laughed. Some people are like, "I'm gonna open a restaurant!" or "I'm gonna save the world!" I'm like, dude, 25k? really? Rome wasn't built with 25k. Nor was any restaurant. On top of the money, you need operators. Emery owns/operates Xiao Ye and Matt got investors, but I'm saving everything in between for the book haha. Yall know I hate titles so I don't have one. I'm Emery's brother. That's it. Now, if you have someone like McNally, who not only knows how to operate consistently, created a signature style, and the press likes him, well, that's mother fuckin blue magic. People like that just don't come around. You pay him what he wants. For us, it isn't one person, its family.

I think its cool Bruni cares still... The scene is getting taken over by a few big guns and you get bored of the food. He's a critic so he's gotta look out for the culture. But, for those Chefs/Restauranteurs, they earned it. If you don't like it, open your own. But otherwise, you can't say shit to them. There are a lot of restaurants that I think are over hyped, but if you get money, I respect the hustle cause this shit isn't an accident. Fatty Crab/Fatty Cue, not an accident. A Korean joint named Chop Suey... maybe? People don't just put a name on a restaurant and then dope food magically appears.

Opening Baohaus, I knew the odds were against me cause I had roughly 30k and if we didn't turn a profit week one, I was done. But, I think that's a good thing. When you open a joint, you gotta just Ride or Die. If you aren't willing to put in those hours, attention to detail, you're simply going to fail. A lot of people come to me with ideas now, but I tell them, is this the only thing you want to do right now? Are you going to give up your friends, family, hobbies for the next year? If not, do something else. Its like joining a cult. And its not glamorous. You stand around all day in crocs, you listen to assholes complain you have white employees serving Asian food, you get home at 3 am, you put some tinactin on your feet, and you do it again tomorrow. It fucking sucks unless you love it. Like birds that swallow ...

Restaurants are a man v. himself battle. I like it because I go in every day, I check the food, I check ticket times, if it's off, I bug out, I call Emery, I call Evan, we fight, then we figure out who put too much soy sauce in the braise. If you measure yourself against your competition, you'll lose. You compete with yourself and your food will be dope. I know when we have off days at Baohaus. And for real we have like 6 items, we shouldn't have any off days!?!?! Imagine a full sit-down like Xiao Ye.

I order delivery to my house all the time just to check quality. Its a constant battle and luckily we got dope kids at the shop that give a fuck too. If the flavor's off, Kate calls us all hours of the day. If the crazy lady upstairs tries to hit me with plates during service, V will tell the old bag lady to stop frontin. When people make racist comments about our staff, Asa pulls a treatise out of his back pocket and sets them straight. It takes a mother fucking village. Its not about superstars, its not about investors, its not about the economy, its about people who love what they do and care that you do better than the day before every single day. You can't learn about restaurants from a critic, a book, a magazine, or a mentor. it takes all of them! You gotta push yourself. And in the face of it all, there's always someone like Artichoke or Cheeky Sandwiches that succeeds without any of that shit people tell you they need. Cook food, get money, make babies.

Happy Birthday Steve

It was a good birthday for Steve... I made him mantou bread pudding v2. New and improved jump-off.

AND the dips made a new trailer for him.....

Dericious Foods

Delicious Vinyl, meet, XY... He loves Dericious Foods haha. I love Delicious Vinyl so we did a parody for fun. Come get them funky cold medinas @ the bar..... 

Studio Booth

Yesterday we had JBless aka Uncle Jesse's new album, another member of the Ft. Greene crew is doin his thang too. If you around the city this summer, you're probably gonna run into the homie, Dustin Ross, who rocks the Studio Booth. He takes directs partygoers, takes photos, projects em, prints the photos on site and really freaks the shit out. If you click on the Studio Booth link above, you can go check out the galleries from all his events. The photo above is from the Reed + Rude event at Puma Social Club this weekend. Shit was tight!

Yessss, with the help of J-6s, my ass got up..... a little haha. 

stuntin

New Playlist from DDPESH

One of our readers hooked it up with a dope playlist. We'll have it @ baohaus later this week. Def lemme know if you got a playlist too!

It's Mine (Featuring NaS) - Mobb Deep 

Soul Food - Goodie Mob 

Electric Relaxation - A Tribe Called Quest 

Eple - Röyksopp 

Definition - Black Star 

7 Days ft. Mos Def (DJ Premier Remix) - Craig David 

Remind Me  Röyksopp 

Kilometer (A-Trak Remix) - Sébastien Tellier 

36th & ghost - ddpesh 

Yesterday, Today - Murs 

Two Dope Boyz (In A Cadillac) - Outkast 

Lookin For Ya (Ft. Andre 3000 & Sleepy Brown - Outkast 

U.S.A. (Aiight Then) - Mobb Deep 

Once In A Lifetime Groove -  New Edition 

Step Into A World (Rapture's Delight) - Krs-One 

Queen Bitch (Featuring Lil Kim) -  Lil' Kim 

Synthia - FM Belfast 

Reservoir Dogs - Armand Van Helden 

They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y) - Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth 

Dark Skin Girls - Del tha Funkee Homosapien 

Jazz Thing (Video Mix) -  Gang Starr 

Leave House - Caribou 

Wassup Wassup (ddpesh Remix) -  Diplo 

Freestyle -  Black Moon 

Nasty Feel (ddpesh Rework) -  MGMT vs Notorious B.I.G. vs Justice vs. ddpesh

Cult Logic -  Miike Snow 

Rock The House (ft Del) Gorillaz 

Me & My Sneakers - A-Trak feat. Lupe Fiasco 

Welcome To The World of The Plastic Beach - Gorillaz 

Work - Gang Starr 

You Know My Steez (Remix) - Gang Starr 

Mental Stamina - Jeru The Damaja 

Get Money -  Junior M.A.F.I.A. 

No Diggity (Soulwax remix) - Soulwax 

Diplo Rhythm ft. Sandra Melody - Diplo 

Rikki - Mylo 

Cruisin' In The ATL (Interlude) - Outkast 

Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik - Outkast 

So Fresh,So Clean - Outkast 

Nasty Boy - The Notorious B.I.G. 

Recognize - The Lox 

Two Takes It Featuring Carmen Castro - Mr. Oizo 

Can't Nobody Hold Me Down - Mase 

Ghetto Jiggy - Lost Boyz 

Doin' It -  LL Cool J 

Momma's Boy (ddpesh Remix) - Chromeo 

Two Turntables & A Mic - Black Moon 

Luck Of Lucien - A Tribe Called Quest 

Take It In Blood - NaS 

Street Dreams -  NaS 

Skills - Gang Starr 

I Don't Want to be A Player - Big Pun 

Paid in Full - Eric B. & Rakim 

Flava In Ya Ear - Craig Mack 

Foxy's Bells - Foxy Brown 

Ill Na Na (Featuring Method Man) - Foxy Brown 

Get Me Home (Featuring Blackstreet) - Foxy Brown 

(Holy Matrimony) Letter To The Firm - Foxy Brown 

I'll Be (Featuring Jay Z) - Foxy Brown 

Getting The Sniffles On A Flight -  Aziz Ansari 

Vibrationz - Javelin 

Tough - Technotronic 

Party and Bullshit (Ratatat remix) - Notorious B.I.G. 

Flute Loop - The Beastie Boys 

O the Books - The Beatnuts 

Stone Crazy - The Beatnuts 

Guns are Drawn - The Roots 

Uncle Jesse's Back!

Mad famous people said shit about it, peep:

"This is music for our movement. Seasunz and J.Bless are putting the culture back in agriculture."

- Van Jones, Co-Founder of Ella Baker Center; Founder, Green For All; Former White House Advisor on Green Jobs

"Heat! The whole album is nuts... that Fugees 2010 with hot lyrics... fresh soulful organic vibe that is refreshing and inspiring. I salute the words, the flow, the music and the message..." 

 - stic.man of dead prez 

  

"Our generation needs our Harry Belefonte's. Our movement needs the voice of today's artivists - I'm giving a big shout out to my brother Seasunz and Earth Amplified." 

- Reverend Yearwood, President of the Hip-Hop Caucus

 

"Earth Amplified is the green anthem for our times."

- Alli Chagi-Starr, Co-Founder, Art in Action; Senior Engagement Strategist, Green For All

Ok, so maybe they're not famous, but Bless didn't pay them to say all those nice thangs. 

DOWNLOAD HERE

The album features Stic.man of dead prez, Killah Priest, Zumbi of Zion I, and other peoples

Get Ur Tix Now! Ultimate Sandwich Showdown

Hosted by Fat Florence..... Peep the details here

Should be fun, but you already know all we do is win......

Birdhaus

COME GET SOME

Reed + Rude

I'ma be here Friday. Leave a comment if u wanna come thru!

Gravy!

Errybody loves Gravy! Its a food letter from the Southern Foodways Alliance. You may have seen them on Bizarre Foods, they also host the Big Apple BBQ event I believe. I'm going down to Mississippi in October to do a Catfish fry for them! If time permits, I'm also going to do gator tail. Should be crunk.

We got a nice spread in the magazine! You can download the pdf here! Interview was about how I've been influenced by Southern Foodways.

Pavel hooked up our press window. No more trying to tape laminated photos to the wall anymore. 

Cat wanted a photo-op by it before she moves on to xiao ye....

Kate wanted to hide haha

New Review Of Xiao Ye

New review from Rebecca Marx @ the voice

Joe Di Stefano @ Serious Eats from Friday for those that missed it

New Playlist: The Dips is Back

The Dips is Back Playlist.  69 songs 4.5 hours.

Some Dipset, Nas/Marley, Pac Div (by request, that new mixtape is a heat rock, "broccoli" is my SHIT), my favorite part of the playlist is the block of southern funk. I put some of my favorite dirty south tracks all time (85 South, Butta, Dro in the Wind, Fly Away, and Poppa's Got a Brand New Bag). Cool Breeze and youngbleed are the most slept on southern MCs. If you came up in the field mid-90s, you had to have their albums. Finished up the playlist with a lil set of Keith Murray/Def Squad. As far as new music goes, had that new J Cole, Pac Div, Dipset, Vado, Pill, Jeezy, TI, and Wocka Flocka. Shouts to the homie Spec Boogie, threw "Bed Stuy" on the playlist too.

Keep lettin me know what yall wanna hear....


Monster Music  - Juelz Santana
Blow the Whistle - Too $hort
Show Out (Up North Remix) -  Jim Jones & Cam'ron
Ur Killin' Me - Cam'ron & Vado
As We Enter - Nas And Damian Marley
Nah Mean - Nas And Damian Marley
Off The Hook - Beatnuts f. Big Pun
911 Emergency - Gucci Mane
Biscuits  - Ghostface Killah ft. Trife
Mayor - Pac Div
2 Guns Up - D Block
Higher - J. Cole
Games People Play - Jadakiss
Renaissance Man - Jay Electronica
Drive Slow - Kanye West
Always Strapped - Birdman ft. Lil Wayne
Nike Boots - Wale
Hard - Rhianna ft. Jeezy
My Dick - Mickey Avalon
All I Do Is Win - DJ Khaled (ft. Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, Rick Ross & T-Pain)
99 Problems - Jay-Z/Mouse
O Lets Do It - Wocka Flocka Flame
Homicide -    Cam'ron
Wet Wipes - Cam'ron
Watch For the Hook - Cool Breeze f. Outkast & Goodie Mob
85 South - Youngbloodz ft. Big Boi
Butta  - Cool Breeze
Dro in the Wind - Trick Daddy ft. C-Lo
Lil Poppa Got A Brand New Bag - Youngbleed
Bourbans and Cadillacs - Master P 
Hootie Hoo - Outkast
Fly Away - Goodie Mobb
Elevators  - Outkast
Georgia  - Ludacris & Field Mob
Still Tippin' (Remix) - Mike Jones feat. G-Unit, Slim Thug & Paul Wall
Ghostrider - Young Bleed
Somebody Like Me  - Silk The Shocker & Mya
Everybody Wanna Ball - UGK
Hustlers Muzik  -  Lil Wayne
Keys Open Doors  - The Clipse
Popular Demand (Popeyes) - The Clipse
I am Dame Dash  - Dame Dash Ft Cam'Ron & Jim Jones)
Bonafide Hustler - Young Buck ft. 50 Cent
Baby By Me - 50 Cent ft. Neyo
Beamer, Benz Or Bentley  -  Lloyd Banks & Juelz Santana
Say Aah - Trey Songz
Power (feat. Dwele)  -  Kanye West
Put On -  Young Jeezy ft. Kanye West
Spazz Out  - T.I. ft. DJ Drama
Underdog - Donnis
We The Champs (Duke vs. Carolina) - Pac Div
Broccoli - Pac Div
Birds (ft. Pill) -  Pac Div
On Da Korner  -  Pill
Slow Motion - Juvenile ft. Soulja Slim
The Most Beautifullest Thing in this World - Keith Murray
My Style (incredible) - Keith Murray
Full Cooperation -  Def Squad
Me and My Crazy World  -  Lost Boyz
Beast From the East  - Lost Boyz ft. Canibus/Redman
Crush On You  -  Lil Kim ft. Junior Mafia
That Oprah  - Swizz Beatz
The Coolest  - Lupe Fiasco
Bed Stuy - Spec Boogie
Guns Of Brooklyn - Santogold
Best of me -  Jay Z feat Mya

THE DIPS IS BACK

The summer just got better. shouts to missinfo.tv . yall dont even know. Fuck what ya heard, the dips is back. BONG.

fyi, the best tweets to follow are dipset birds on twitter like madipset. shit is too funny.

Opening Date

Lots of people have been asking. We are waiting to hear back from the liquor authority on our temporary license. If we get it, we'll open 5 days after. Could be any day now. Sorry for the delay. I want to eat the food too. Until then, see u at baohaus.

Xiao Ye Menu FINAL

word aaappp. all items final. names final. whew.... took forever.

STOP LAPPIN'S ANTI-FOOD CART LAW!

http://midtownlunch.com/2010/06/08/city-council-to-introduce-first-anti-food-truck-law/

look, i'm watching the celtics/lakers game. no time to post photos but I just came across this. i'm a day late but if anyone has info on whether the law is going into effect, etc. lemme know! this shit is mad fucked up, but what's even more fucked up is that i'm going to go back to watching the game instead of researching futher LOL. some brothas just got they priorities straight. NBA #1

http://streetvendor.org/

bong

and yea, seems like its a law favoring brick and mortar restaurants and property owners. its never actually what the politicians say they are protecting that they're protecting. she says this law is about following parking laws. but it really is using parking laws to prey on food cart vendors and support brick and mortar businesses that compete. who knows, developers probably don't want trucks competing with their tenants either! as a brick and mortar owner, i say fuck this shit. if someone wants to park a truck in front of my restaurant, do it. they'll bring me customers, i'll bring them customers, just don't block my sign and we're all good. no one is going to eat the same shit every day, but if there are a bunch of dope businesses together, more people will come more frequently. people that hate are just scurred cause their shit is wack.

its hilarious how people want to pick at little guys like food vendors with bullshit laws wasting our time like this but then they're scurred to fix big oil. FUCKING PUSSIES.

Tiny's is Back!

Tiny's is back!!!! When I opened baohaus, the first two people in the neighborhood to welcome us were Dave from Neighburrito and Dewey from WD-50. Now, Dave has brought back Tiny's and we're all really happy. It wasn't the same without Tiny's on the corner. Me and Schiller's got lonely haha. So, go support them over there! 

Robster Craws and mo!

Been a minute since we put up new food photos. Recently, I've focused less on new dishes and more on just writing out the recipes for everything at Xiao Ye. BUT, after making hainan chicken one night, I used the stock, put some lobsters in it and made this: ROBSTER CRAWS haha.

I boil lobster in chicken stock with some seasoning/herbs and then serve like Hainan Chicken. If you like New England Lobster Bakes, you'll like this a lot. Very fresh taste with the ginger and scallion. We also dredge the lobster through a special seasoning oil I make instead of butter before serving. The natural flavor of the lobster is intact.

I also use the entire lobster by taking the guts, the juices, and making Robster Rice. I have never had anything like it. Not anything like risotto, but perhaps a little like making pasta with uni. The lobster guts have a similar consistency and essence that I really like.

I been gettin silly crunk developing the drink list for Xiao Ye. Our list revolves around our infused liquor recipes. We'll be infusing moutai, shochu, glutinous rice wines, etc. It's been a dope summer so far for new bars so we're gonna keep it goin. I live on Orchard/Canal so just in my area, we've gotten Mezcal and Painkiller recently. Painkiller is the shit. Tiki drinks have always been my favorite and I used to go out to Zombie Hut in BK. There's also that place in Willy-B with sand everywhere and seafood that has tiki drinks. Dope place, I just don't do williamsburgh.

BUT, with painkiller open, I've been going like once a week. I love it. They use fresh fruit and you can really taste the difference. And the playlists there are almost as good as Baohaus haha. For real, they had a southern crunk playlist last weekend bumpin UGK, youngbleed, TI, goodie mobb, etc. Much respect.

I will put the whole drink list on the blog later, but here's some stuff we've done so far

Johnnie Walker Bubble Tea - Johnnie, milk tea, boba

Chinee Shop - jamaican ginger beer, jasmine tea, dark rum, light rum

Moutai infused with Pineapple

June Playlist at Baohaus

We are going to have bi-monthly playlists at Baohaus and Xiao Ye. I made this first one and it's on at baohaus this week. If you wanna get down, hit us with your playlist and we'll check it out! Its gonna be a hot mother fuckin summer. I'm glad that people dropped heat rocks the last week cause I've been upset hearin' that its the summer of Drake. BUT, lookin at his singles and what every one else came with, I think that kid is gonna disappoint. As funny as it is to say, I think Banks set it off a couple months ago with Bimmer, Benz, Bentley, then Joell had Nissan, Honda, Chevy... Fat Joe had HAHA, then Young Jeezy really laid it down with Lose My Mind. I'm at bonchon friday night and boom, T.I. drops a mixtape. COOKIES! But before I even finish listenin to that KAN-mofuckin-YEEZY comes with Power and shut it down. Throw in MIA's lil diss track and I'm ready to hotbox baohaus with Asa this weekend haha.

With the list its a lil old, a lil new, and somethin for kids haha. We're not really tryin to break records and shit so its not meant to have all the new shit... More like playlists for a house party. As you'll see, i like to hear songs back to back from same artist..

Baohaus June - Eddie's List

1) Black Keys - Strange Times

2) Black Moon - I Got Cha Opin

3) Black moon - Shit Iz Real

4) Consequence - The GOod, The Bad, The Ugly

5) Cool Kids - Gold and a Pager

6) Cool Kids - 88

7) Danger Doom - Sofa King

8) Danger Doom - Space Ho's

9) Danger Mouse ft. Jemini - Ghetto Pop Life

10) Gwen Stefani - Luxurious

11) Gucci Mane - Lemonade

12) Kanye - Power

13) Big Boi - Shutterbug

14) Chromeo - Destination Overdrive

15) Chromeo - You're So Gangsta

16) Diplo - Put That Pussy On Me

17) Birdman - Stuntin Like My Daddy

18) Diplomats - Dipset Anthem

19) Diplomats - This is What I Do

20) Gucci Mane ft. Cam'ron - Stupid Wild

21) Banks, Juelz, FABO - Bimmer, Benz or Bentley

22) Fabolous - Brooklyn

23) Fat Joe - Ha Ha

24) Fat Joe - Lean Back 

25) Ghostface - The Champ

26) Ghostface - Tony Sigel

27) Jay-Z - Hello Brooklyn

28) Jay-Z - Success

29) Black Keys - I Got Mine

30) MF Doom - Rhymes Like Dimes

31) Mobb Deep - Drink Away the Pain

32) Nas - Affirmative Action

33) Nas - Street Dreams

34) Joell Ortiz - Brooklyn Ghetto Child

35) Kanye - Diamonds 

26) Lupe - Hip Hop Saved My Life

27) Lupe - Paris, Tokyo

28) MIA ft. Wale - Boyz

29) Dipset - Get Em Girls

30) TI - Big Shit Poppin

31) TI - You Know What it is

32) Jeezy - Crazy World

33) Jeezy - Vacation

34) Jeezy - Lose My Mind

35) R. Kelly - Ignition (for the kids)

Employee of Last Month

POW! and we back a month late. Now i know what its like to miss a period. I forgot to do employee of the month last month, but i'm makin up for it now. Vic came to baohaus from our ad looking for people who were WEB Dubois meets Heavy D and the boys (thanks dice raw). Not since Kate did we get a cover letter like Vic's:

To My Future Employers:

  

  I am a City College student  studying film, who at this moment is slacking off from school "trying to find myself". I am a huge dork, but I have a mean right hook.  Not only do I wish that I could birth Questlove's babies (that man is GENIUS), I wish I had could have the Roots follow me around and just play live music for me all day. I'm Cuban and Jordanian, so all your food is the equivalent of a wet dream. I'm also a mean baker (Purple Rain Shortcakes, with chocolate sauce. Just think about it.) and I dug your take on Twinkies. I plan on hosting my own slacker cooking show. Even though I have mentioned the word 'slacker"  I am hard worker and  terribly reliable, and I'm always on time. Plus, I have experience in food service, so I can handle all the rowdy customers without catching a case. I split my time between Harlem and the Bronx, but i would definitely relocate, if I got this job.

 

Hope to hear from you soon!

 

-Victoria

BOSS! That is how you mother fucking write a cover letter. Victoria, you the employee of last month. Pour some Apple Sidra out fo yoself or we can go get bluies at Apollo.

Chillin out.....

Afghan goo-goo just aint gettin it done these days. I need to chill but the heat got me buggin... Some people go to Church, but I go to Shopsin's... Recently, I've just had a lot of difficulty not responding to people who leave anonymous comments whether its on my blog, on yelp, etc. I don't get it. If you're going to say something, put your name on it. I do!

Kenny gave me some good advice that went something like this: "Go for the pussy, stop messin with the tits." LOL. He's been around a lot longer than me and he always has good advice. I do feel like I got drawn into a lot of sideshow shit like being blocked by an choi, haters on yelp, chairman bao, etc. And, at least for the short term, I'm going to do my best to ignore this shit and focus on my food. For anyone else looking to open a restaurant, I would say just be ready for negative things that you yourself didn't even seek out. The shit just finds you, but its cool. I aint mad. I'm gonna chill out and just have fun cooking. The recipes for xiao ye are all done, gonna cook for my homies before game 1 of the finals tomorrow so I'll have some photos of that.

I think a lot of people have the wrong perception about us. We're all just kids and a lot of the times, we are immature. I wake up, play ball, eat and then head in to check the restaurant. After that, who knows what happens. We don't know how to handle everything that's been going on so we just say what we think and it hasn't always been good for us. I'm 28, Emery's 25, Evan's 22, there isn't a class or book or person who can tell you how to do this nor would we want that. We like to figure this out ourselves, but I think we forget that everything on the internet is there for people to see. We're really just being ourselves writing funny menus, doing goofy promotions, but people see it as some premeditated ploy. I wish people would get to know us and see that we're really just a random family. I mean, I'm an accident baby. The Huangs don't really plan shit. So... for the time being, i'm going to chill and if yall want to help, just remind me of this post haha.

That said... we're goin back to cali




Props to Raf aka The Prince of BK for planning this trip to Cali..... For the record, its not a throwdown. I'm just gonna cook. If you like pork, come see me.