Kwik Meal’s Mohammed Rahman Returns to Restaurant World

After saying he'd never work in a restaurant again, he's slinging pizzas in Harlem.

Posted 08/04/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed

Tags: harlem, kwik gourmet, kwik meal, muhammed Rahman, newsfeed, presidential pizza, russian tea room, street carts

Handicapping the Vendies

The Vendy Awards, a.k.a. the Homeless Beards, are upon us again, and the finalists for Street Vendor of the year have just been announced. As at the Beards, a familiar cluster of luminaries dominates the nominations. These are not necessarily the very best carts going, but the ones whose years of service and body of work has earned them a high reputation among sidewalk gastronomes. The nominees, and our handicapping, are below.

Posted 09/10/07 in Grub Street : Back of the House

Tags: Back of the House, kwik meal, muhammed rahman, street carts, street vendor project, street vendors, vendy awards

Russian Tea Room Back From the Dead

Not that we remember ever eating there — who does? — but New York has never seemed the same without the Russian Tea Room, which closed in 2002. (A lone dividend: Former RTR chef Muhammed Rahman went on to launch his famous midtown lunch cart, Kwik Meal.) Now, however, Restaurant Girl reports that the Tea Room will reopen in late October or early November. They're taking on former Biltmore Room chef Gary Robins but losing the chandeliers. The new Russian Tea Room will be a lot like the old one, in spirit anyway, with 40 vodkas (some making their New York debut) and four sommeliers. Now if only they could get Rahman back!

Posted 10/03/06 in Grub Street : Openings

Tags: biltmore room, gary robins, kwik meal, muhammed rahman, openings, russian tea room