Only a place originally settled by the Irish could have a name like Hell’s Kitchen. The area is now known for it’s cheap and delicious restaurants — but was originally synonymous with gangs, porn shops, violence and poverty.
Only in the last few decades has the area gentrified and lived up to at least part of its name.
This was Wednesday night’s destination and Greg and I started at the Delta Grill on 9th Avenue and 48th Street — a pub frequented by Michi and her friends at the end of the school week. It’s a great place to relax and have a beer while eating good New Orleans food.
The next destination was restaurant row, an area once known for speakeasies and gangster run clubs. The intended destination wasn’t a bar or pub, but Pam Real Thai. The setting is a little hole in the wall reminiscent of restaurants in Asia; the overflow for the restaurant is up a set of stairs in the back, which lead to a second level seating area.
To find out more about Hell’s Kitchen and its history check out Turf of Gangs and Gangsters from the New York Times.
