>chebureki чебуреки and samcy самсы

(Moved from Feb 6, 2009)

This kosher Uzbek restaurant in Rego Park doesn't really want you to know its name. Why else would they call it CHEBURECHNAYA (ЧЕБУРЕЧНАЯ)? "You speak our language, or else..."

This mouthful could be a test to see if we can handle their macabre menu. Yes, to see if we are indeed serious about veal feet soup ("hash", хаш) and lamb testicles (бараньи яички). Unfazed, we just might ponder lamb heart (баранье сердце) or veal heart (телячье сердце). Can we stomach fried beef brains (жаренные говяжьи мозги)? Wash all that down with some Tarhun (Тархун) flavored with woodruff? Or we might prefer a bit of Dushes (Дюшес)?
It's not as scary as it first seems, and it's good to find out that lagman ("ramen"/"拉麺", лагман) and morkovcha (морковка) are as reassuring as hot pea soup (гороховый суп) and borscht (борщ).(Their menu doesn't seem to like the letter "u"; pumpkin is sometimes spelled "pampkin" and mushroom becomes "mashroom".)Assorted dumplings, chebureki (чебуреки) and samcy (самсы) "dough products", are filled with meat, vegetables, potatoes or ... ribs.Time to open a bottle or two of Zhigulevskoe (Жигулевское) beer or Borxhomi (Боржоми), and partake of trubochki (трубочки), kholodets (холодец), achikchuk (ачикчук) , matbuha (матбуха, or Hebrew מטבוחה), kartoshka (картошка a.k.a. potato), or of course, pelmeni (пельмени). Chak chak (чак чак) or lavz (лавз) for dessert.

This is serious stuff. No mere bacon sausage, if you know what I mean.