Eggstravaganza Cart

Eggstravaganza Cart is a savory breakfast oasis open when few other vendors have set out or opened their doors. The small cart features Mexican style breakfast food, and seems permanently parked in midtown, on 52^nd street. The vendor is perfectly arranged for early risers, as it opens at 4am and stays until 2:30pm, just after the lunch rush. I tried a steak and egg taco and a western omelette, for $4 and $5.25 respectively. The portions were decent but I would have expected slightly more for the cost. The two orders collectively more than filled me up, but individually one order would not have been enough.

I love salsa with my eggs, and was pleased with the generous portion Eggstravaganza gave me. The salsa was milder than I expected, but accompanied the steak and eggs very well. The tortilla was surprisingly good as well, better than some taco trucks that I have tasted from in the area. Eggstravaganza Cart offers satisfying food in the morning, and opens earlier than the sun rises most days. Though the portions may not be grand, it hits the spot first thing in the morning.
To order from Eggstravaganza Cart, click here.

Food Genius: The Netflix for Food?

Food Genius is a new application available for Android, iPhone and other platforms that acts as a customized food recommendation engine to help those who just cannot decide what to eat. It works in a similar way to Netflix in that users rate food they have tasted and enter in their preferences to receive customized suggestions based upon distinct flavors and ingredients.

                The app is based out of Chicago, and works with users and restaurants to help choose the perfect restaurant dish based upon a user’s taste profile. It’s no easy feat for technology to customize food based upon ingredients, and requires a great deal of understanding of each ingredient, cooking process and other variables that go into food preparation. The application links these variables together to classify how a dish would relate to each user’s taste profile. Reviews from across the internet are cross-referenced with the user’s preference to make impressively accurate recommendations.

                Food Genius’ founder, Justin Massa, says that what makes Food Genius unique is that it understands what makes a certain dish taste good, whether it be a crunch, smoothness or warmth. In this way Food Genius collects information from each dish and files them under its complex taxonomy system. Massa also notes that many user’s were not aware of what ingredients were in the food they eat out, and would sometimes rate an ingredient low without knowing that it’s in some of their favorite dishes. Because Food Genius is highly ingredient based, a working knowledge of what’s in the food we eat certainly helps the process along.

                Though based in Chicago now, Food Genius has over 150,000 dishes and is rapidly expanding. Expect to see this app in your area soon, and be ready to surrender your taste buds to this Netflix of food. To download this app, click here