Led Zeppoli

[smokeandapancake]

Walked in this evening..they told me they weren't really open yet, but had 100's of cannoli laid out. They're giving them away and they are delicious.

[guttergourmet]

http://www.alwayshungryny.com/thought...

[sugartoof]

Last night they were giving away the donut ring shaped zeppoles.
They were as good as any zeppole I've ever had.

[smokeandapancake]

i think this place may be a winner...for now.. ;-)

[MVNYC]

Isn't a donut ring shaped zeppoli a donut?

[sugartoof]

I don't know. Isn't a Zeppoli a kind of donut anyway?

They had the bumpy ridges, spongey airy texture, and tasted like a zeppoli, served hot, and covered in powdered sugar the way they're meant to be. Same amount of dough, but given an uneven shape with a hole instead of the balled up glob you're probably used to.

No better or worse than any of the really good ones you can find in the city. In other words, if you already have a a favorite zeppoli place, there's no need to rush over, but it's been a while since I found anyone else selling them fresh in Manhattan. The other major difference is that I'm used to seeing these sold 3-6 for a buck rather than as a specialty item. They can be pricier at the street markets, and fairs, but you still get more than one at a time.

It's a walk up counter with what looks to me like a larger kitchen space than Artichoke.
One one side you had a stack of donuts, and on the other, a tray of chocolate covered Cannoli. Typical of the owners, there was no menu available

I would expect that the Artichoke crew are going to price these higher than they should be. I hope they keep the price down and take the opposite approach of their pizzas, to do volume sales so they can move them while hot.

[DaveCook]

You can still find them in Manhattan at six to the dollar, though not on an East Village schedule: http://www.eatingintranslation.com/20...

[sugartoof]

Thanks. The pizza places on 33rd (I think?) near Jack's World used to sell them right out of the fryer, and catch the rush hour crowds going to and from Penn. I don't believe those greasy slice places are still there.

[smokeandapancake]

na, textures and taste are completely different. that's like saying, isnt a zeppole the exact same thing as a donut hole? Zeppole's and donuts are different, no matter what shape they're molded into...

[MVNYC]

A zeppole is a batter style donut its really just semantics

[Yaxpac]

a zeppole is made from dough, not batter.

it is not semantics at all. fried donuts usually have yeast in them whereas zeppoles do not. that is why they are more dense than your average donut.

[sugartoof]

Actually, I'm pretty sure a Zeppole, like it's brother The Funnel Cake, can be made of batter too, just thickened. As to the density, it depends on the kind of donut... but I tend to think of anything that's fried bread, with sugar or sweetness, is a kind of donut. In this case, an Italian form of donut.

In any case, semantics aside what matters is Led Zeppole serves a ringed shaped version. It's a purely aesthetic difference.

[MVNYC]

Sugartoof is right, a zeppole or zeppoli is made exactly like funnel cake.. It is batter. It is an Italian donut. People just give things Italian more credit

[eameyer]

rumor has it it opens today.