Pork chops at La Caridad 78
There's a restaurant on 78th street in the Upper West Side that's not like any that I've seen before. It claims to be a Cuban-Chinese restaurant. La Caridad 78 - Comida China y Criolla is its name. A little investigation on the internets revealed that during the period between 1840-1850, Chinese workers were shipped to Cuba to work on sugar plantations. And then when Cuba's government changed to a communist style of government, many of the Chinese in Cuba fled, and some came to the U.S. I'm not sure if this means that La Caridad is carrying on a tradition of the cultural marriage that began over a century ago, or whether it's just a place that serves up Latin food along with Chinese food.
I used to walk by it all the time and dismiss it as a random diner because when you peer into the restaurant from the sidewalk, the interiors would suggest that it's a diner that hasn't updated its decor in 20+ years. The restaurant is actually well known to my surprise. Sam Sifton thinks so and Ed Levine told NYMag that he gets their take-out.
So I gave it a try. The fried pork chops are on the lunch special menu. It cost somewhere around $7.50 but this happened a while back and I didn't write down the price. No matter though, because once you get your platter, you realize that it's probably heavier than some small dogs. The pork chops seem to be unbreaded and deep fried until golden. They're meatier than the pork chops you might get in Chinatown, but the style is very similar. Still, the meat needed the assistance of hot sauce to really take it over the top.
The pork chop platter comes with rice and beans where as if you went to eat pork chops in Chinatown it would come with white rice and pork sauce. I grew up on pork sauce so that has a special place in my heart. But beans really bust your gut and provides a sensation that pork sauce cannot. Namely, a sensation that's audible to others around you within a few hours... Try it in the elevator, it's fantastic.
La Caridad 78 is not a fusion restaurant and I don't think anyone would confuse it as an Asian-Latin fusion wannabe. I feel like there could be exciting marriages between Asian and Latin cuisine. And not just slapping some Asian style meat on a taco or burrito, I mean actual fusion of flavors. I'm still waiting to see that done well, but in the meantime I'm happy just stuffing my face with pork chops and rice and beans.
La Caridad 78
2199 Broadway.
New York, NY 10024
212-874-2780
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Taiwanese pork sauce with stir fried cabbage = same auditory response as beans :)
That said, I'm still waiting for the day that Mexican food and Chinese food come together in a glorious marriage of pork sauce + diced Taiwanese pork chop with black beans and cheese in a burrito. I do want to try that platter though. How much was it?
Nicholas
January 12, 2011 7:55 pm
Are you still uptown in Morningside Heights/Harlem?
Try the Chinese style squid ink fried rice from Flor De Mayo on Bway & 100th. The menu is also mainly Cuban-Chinese, but they serve some Peruvian dishes too.
Evan
January 12, 2011 10:11 pm
On a totally unrelated note... I'm going to Taipei for 4-5 days soon. Any MUST-DO's or MUST-EATS? I know you and/or Nicholas have an opinion on that...
FN
January 13, 2011 6:55 am
@Nicholas,
haha, yea sometimes Taiwanese food does that to me too. You know, that kind of burrito does sound good to me too. I just wonder if there's ever going to be true marriage of flavors instead of just ingredients.
@Evan,
Oh thanks for the rec! I have to check that out if it's on Bway and 100. It's not that far away at all.
@FN,
Totally ask Nicholas. I haven't been back to the motherland in almost two decades. haha
Danny
January 13, 2011 10:13 am
Flor De Mayo has two 'separate' menus for Peruvian and Chinese, but why order from both sides. :)
http://flordemayo.com/
kim
January 13, 2011 2:53 pm
@kim,
Ahhh, see, two different menus! It's hard to do a fusion of flavors... I still really want to try that place though!
Danny
January 13, 2011 3:29 pm
there's a popular Peruvian dish called "lomo saltado," which is basically beef stirfry served over french fries. I'm not sure if it's really fusion but it's interesting. I saw it a lot in Peru and you can definitely find it in NY.
Ang
January 13, 2011 11:46 pm