I went to Big Gay Ice Cream quite some time ago and found the ice cream uninteresting, with the chief selling point being the toppings. It wasn’t worth waiting on line for. More recently, people on Chowhound have said the quality of the ice cream there has deteriorated and the place is no better than mediocre.
If you want great ice cream in that neighborhood, you can either go to the very interesting Odd Fellows on 4th St. between 2nd and Bowery, which is an outpost of their Williamsburg location and has a limited but always interesting selection, or if you like gelato, go to Il Laboratorio di Gelato on the corner of Houston and Ludlow, right across the street from Katz’s. Il Laboratorio has something like 256 flavors, with a few dozen on offer each day.
Only one that I’ve been to is Punjabi (down the street on Avenue A), where they make what I like to think of as the “Frito Pie” version of samosa chaat.
Good, cheap, homey grub. Microwaved to order. Open 24 hours.
The place is actually called Punjab. It’s perfectly OK and a good value, a bit salty, and sometimes, the microwave doesn’t heat everything through and through. I usually go there late on nights when I’ve been drinking south of Houston, feel a little tipsy and have the munchies.
Start the day healthy with
Abraço Espresso drip coffee and an olive cookie or pound cake
il Buco Alimentari & Vineria boboloni (filled or not)
Runner and Stone Almond Croissant followed by slices of Miche and butter
Lunch
Pearls Fish Sandwich and Steamers Di Faras Grab a slice
Arcade Plain Pizza and Lemon Brioche thing
Dinner
Chaing Mai Jackfruit curry, Pork Mok, Kao Soi
Sassm Bar Porgy, Ham Plate