N.Y. Italian sub sandwich, Thundercloud Subs

Place: Thundercloud Subs
Location: Austin, TX
Website: http://www.thundercloud.com/
Recommended by: danae
Summary: To be clear - I pretty much usually hate sandwiches. I find them dry, boring, and I hate how stuff falls out of them. And they usually get your hands dirty. However, on the flip side, some of my all-time favorite individual dishes have been sandwiches - and the N.Y. Italian sub sandwich at Thundercloud is one of those. Thundercloud subs are my all time favorite sub sandwich. Yes, better than Potbellys, in my opinion (but not by much... Potbellys is really yummy too!). For me, I think the key to the Thundercloud sub is the thunder sauce. I don't know what's in that thing... but it adds a kick of something that just makes the sandwich oh-so-tasty. The NY Italian is definitely my favorite - ever since having Blimpies in NY (another favorite), I've had a soft spot for sweet peppers.... mmmmmm! I do wish they had more bread choices, but I'm not complaining. This is one of the few sandwiches in my life that I have inhaled.

Tonkotsu (pork bone) ramen - akamaru

Place: Ippudo
Location: New York City, NYC
Website: http://www.ippudo.com/ny/
Recommended by: Eugene
Summary: Saying that Shigemi Kawahara (known as the "Ramen King") owns this place should be enough. That said I feel like this ramen falls short of its potential. The floury noodles were tasty but didn't seem like a good match for the broth. But the star, as always in really good ramen, is the broth. Tonkotsu broths almost never bad, but most are rather plain. Ippudo's broth has a subtle complexity to it. The chashu, although a minor point for me, was the best chashu I've ever had.

I'm not a big tonkotsu ramen fan, but this was totally worth the 3.5 hour journey.

Brioche French Toast - Five Points

Place: Five Points
Location: New York City, NYC
Website: http://www.fivepointsrestaurant.com
Recommended by: danae
Summary: I'm not really a french toast person. I usually find it too soggy and/or eggy. However, the brioche french toast at Five Points was by far an exception. At the time I had it, they baked the french toast in a ceramic dish in a wood oven, so the tops and sides were crispy and crunchy - and that made ALL the difference! Top it off with the fact that they also serve churros and hot chocolate during brunch, this is one of my favorite brunch spots!

Grilled Corn - Cafe Habana

Place: Cafe Habana
Location: New York City, NY
Website: http://www.cafehabana.com/
Recommended by: danae
Summary: The grilled corn here is AWESOME. AWESOME. It's grilled until slightly charred, then topped with crumbled cheese (I think it's Cotija) and sour cream? and then sprinkled with lime juice and chili pepper. Hands down the best vegetable I've ever eaten.

I've tried this recipe before to try to duplicate this dish. It's good, but the real deal is just so much better!

(Note: Photo is from Yelp)