Tag Archives: NYC

S’MAC — Sarita’s Macaroni & Cheese

I call them “comfort foods” others might call it a “food trend” — both are correct. It seems to me that comfort foods have been popping up on menus for several years now, but individual restaurants are now putting all of their concentration on one specific comfort food and selling it pretty darn well. When I say “one specific comfort food” I mean they are specializing in a type of food like, grilled cheese, cupcakes, popsicles, and mac & cheese.

S'MAC

This weekend wasn’t the first time I went to S’MAC, although  it was my first time at the Murray Hill location. I headed to this spot with my out-of-town friend, Brittany.

After eying-down the menu for several minutes we couldn’t seem to pick what we wanted — then the guy behind the counter suggested that we do the sampler which would allow us to taste 8 of the mac & cheeses on the menu. We were also told that this was perfect to split between 2 people… SOLD!

We paid, and the guy behind the counter handed us a laminated piece of paper that told us exactly what we would be eating and where it was in the cast iron skillet our mac & cheeses would be served in.

We couldn’t help but study the menu to see what exactly was in each and every one of the 8 samples we would be eating.

S'MAC menu

We were lucky enough to have gone to the restaurant during a slow time of day, because our skillet came out so quickly! After we pierced the surface of each section and let the mac & cheese cool off, we were ready to dive in. We decided to go section by section together so we could sample the same thing at the same time. (Wouldn’t this be such a cute lunch date?)

We started below the handle with the All-American — which I was surprised at how delicious it was. I thought it was going to be the most boring, after all it was made with only cheese… no herbs, no vegetables… I admit it, I poorly judged this basic cheese combo thinking it was going to be the same-ol’ same-ol’ sort of thing. What was even better? The Four-Cheese mac & cheese. Made with cheddar, muenster, gruyere and pecorino — this was probably my favorite out of the 8 samples we tasted.

Another favorite was the cheese burger. I am always impressed when a dish can hold the same flavors a completely different food owns. Like Serendipity’s frozen hot chocolate, or Empanada Mama’s Cheese Steak empanada. Yum!

Over-all, S’MACK has a very casual atmosphere and very tasty mac & cheese. It’s an experience to go to any restaurant that only offers one type of food on the menu in numerous ways. Would I go back? Maybe for lunch with another out of town friend, but most likely not with a local friend who wouldn’t think anything of a restaurant dedicated to mac & cheese.

Empellon Taqueria

My first summer living in the city (this was before I graduated from college) I used to spend every single Saturday and Sunday having brunch with friends. It was also understandable because summer weekends in the city seem to make Manhattan feel pretty much like a ghost town — so a 3+ hour-long brunch is a great way to pass the time. The humidity spikes, thousands flee for the beach, and anyone else who gets in on a great last minute Fire Island beach house deal is considered one of the lucky ones. But I had spent plenty of summers on Fire Island and I was ready to take full advantage of all-you-can-drink mimosas! Forget about the temperature — my girlfriends and I would treat our West Village cafes the same way every Saturday morning: we insisted on sitting outside where we could casually [and appropriately] sunbathe, people watch and drink mimosa after mimosa (or in some situations Bloody Mary after Bloody Mary). It’s normal in a European cafe to park yourself in a petite chair at a busy establishment and not move for hours on end — it’s not exactly like that at Manhattan restaurants. But, for some reason summer brunch sessions tend to break all New York City restaurant etiquette.

My weekends — summer, fall, winter or spring — sure have changed! It’s rare for me to go out for brunch and spend hours gossiping, people watching and getting tipsy by 11 a.m. Sadly, I just don’t have the time to make that happen on a weekly, or even monthly, basis. But, that doesn’t mean I don’t have time to get out for a sober brunch with good friends!

My fabulous friend Stef (who is also officially a chef by the way) scouted out Empellon Taqueria in the West Village. The online menu made us both thrilled to try out this joint for brunch this past weekend.

types of salsa

Naturally, we eyed down the guacamole and massive list of salsas. Even though the restaurant had fantastic main course dishes, in today’s post I am going to tell you all about the salsas because there is just so much to cover!

We ordered the guacamole with the sampling of 7 salsas — these came in several small bowls with little spoons that came in handy when the chips were too large to dunk. When arranged on the table, they were set out from mild to spicy. My first tasting was right in the middle, something medium-spiced and exceptionally smokey. But then I tried Sikil Pak that had a very interesting texture that was also flavored with some interesting ingredients. Made out of pumpkin seeds, tomato, onion, garlic, cinnamon, epazote, sour orange juice and serrano — the Sikil Pak had a consistency similar to hummus that isn’t as creamy as it can be. The texture is what made me wonder if I would even categorize this as a salsa.

My personal favorites were the Smoked Cashew salsa and the Salsa Verde. I feel like it’s a mind game for me when I eat salsa verde — it looks like I am about to eat a chip full of pesto but the flavors are completely different than one another! Fresh and flavorful, this Salsa Verde makes me fall in love with cilantro all over again! The Smoked Cashew did not have an overwhelming nutty flavor and was light in consistency.

guacamole

The guacamole was perfect. Yes, I just said perfect! Freshly made, the guacamole was my savior after sampling some of the spiciest salsas. The creamy cooling sensation of the avocados helped expedite the end to the sincerely spicy Salsa Habanera.

What is it with spicy foods? I hate the feeling of the spice on my tongue, but I love the taste! I have yet to experience a spicy tasting food that I didn’t think was flavorful. The only “spicy” food I hate is wasabi — I think it tastes foul, as if it has mold on it.

Overall the restaurant was a fantastic spot to meet up at for brunch. Upon arriving at noon it was practically empty — a few families occupied some tables but they were heading out. By the time we left around 1:30/2 p.m. the place was packed and nearly every table was full! A major bonus: the restaurant is in such a prime location it is easy to get to by walking or subway.

David’s Tea

It’s flu season. Enough said, right?

Whether or not you are battling the flu, strep throat, post nasal drip, a cold, etc. etc. I promise you that David’s Tea will have some sort of herbal mixture that will help soothe your winter sickness and discomfort. Please notice I did not say it will “cure” anything — but it will help ease the pain.

tea for a sore throat

I bought The Cold Survival Kit the other weekend because I felt a load of sniffles coming on. In the kit you’ll find a bag of Bravissimo — also known as my current sore throat savior. Made up of licorice root, chamomile, rosehip, goji berries, orange peel and peppermint — this mixture is sweet enough so you won’t have to add anything to your tea after it steeps. After your first sip, you’ll feel the tea soothe your throat immediately. It’s decaffeinated and is the perfect way to warm up before getting some much needed rest.

Of course I’m fighting off my cold with some meds, but I swear Bravissimo is helping BIG time. I don’t know how I fought colds in the past without it!

Cafe Gitane in Soho

A very good friend of mine from Penn State (Alexandra, who goes by her middle name, Kizia) lives in New York — she was actually one of those rare “born and raised in Manhattan” folks. I say it’s rare not because she was born and raised here, but because she actually returned to the city to live and work after college. She’s actually about to go on the most amazing life journey anyone could ever go on — which is why we got together for lunch to talk about her upcoming trip. For several months in 2013 she will be living in India to study yoga and meditation. After working in PR for a few years, she’s ready for the physical and mental break (I wish I could do the same, but she’s just more daring than I am to actually go through with it). To me, the thought of packing just a backpack and traveling more than half way around the world to discover more about yourself in a few months than some do in a life time is very admirable — and I wish nothing but the most amazing experiences for her.

So, Kizia picked our lunch date location — Cafe Gitane in Soho (could be considered Nolita). I had never been before and I did exactly what I always do when I have never been to a restaurant … I stalk the online menu, I read reviews, and I pick out what I’m going to order before I arrive. Although this time I only eyed-down one thing I was going to order before arriving at the cafe, and Kizia helped me pick out my main dish.

cafe gitane avocado bread

The cafe was packed — even in the middle of the day after the typical lunch rush was over. There were even a few seats outside and they were full (it was a dreary cold day too!). So, we waited about 45 minutes before we were seated at this petite, round cafe table in the very center of the restaurant. Kizia ordered her caffeine-fix-of-the-day, then we ordered our food. Going off of Kizia’s recommendation I ordered the Moroccan couscous with red peppers, raisins, toasted pinenuts, hummus and eggplant. I had the option of ordering it with chicken but passed when she had told me it was a very large portion to begin with. We also ordered the most unusual starter to share — a seven grain toast topped with avocado, lemon juice, olive oil and chili flakes.

When the avocado toast came we split the bread and didn’t bother cutting it up for individual bites. It was hearty and full of flavor and the avocado was at it’s prime to eat (not too hard, not too mushy, perfect in color). The lemon juice was subtle, but present in every bite. And those chili flakes added the perfect amount of heat to the mild avocado. The ultimate conclusion was a mix, we were: confused as to why so many people were raving about it on various food reviews online, and we also figured these were basic flavors anyone could combine in their own kitchen so why would it be so fabulous at this little cafe? It was funny though, because we both left the restaurant ranking it out as a good plate but nothing out of this world, but a few days later we were chatting about how it grew on each of us and we really enjoyed it!

cafe gitane couscous

My couscous was a tower of unbelievable fabulousness. Piled high on my plate in the most perfect molded shape, I was afraid to pierce it with my fork knowing I would destroy the gorgeous presentation. After taking a not-so-devastating bite to the tower I couldn’t hold back — I tore through it for larger forkfuls of food. All of the flavors meshed beautifully well and the hummus was also a great ingredient to hold everything else together; it made picking up couscous with raisins, pinenuts and red pepper easy. I also really enjoyed the golden raisins in the mix of everything — it added the perfect sweetness to the savory plate.

Ready for something embarrassing? This was the first time I have ever ordered couscous at a restaurant. Yup, I’m mortified to admit it. This dish is a MUST to order if you go to Cafe Gitane; I actually enjoyed it so much I would love to attempt to make a similar plate at home. I guess I was shocked that I enjoyed the plate so much and it didn’t involve cheese as an ingredient. Actually, I got through an entire meal without eating cheese! #success

I hope to see Kizia again before she ventures off to India. Our food adventures together are always fantastic — I sure do hope she makes a few memorable ones while she travels in the upcoming year!

‘Grace’ on Broadway

For a few weeks now I have been wanting to share with you the details of a play I recently saw. I have been thinking about it for weeks — to say the least. I’m afraid that writing about it will only bring out controversial topics — and my light-hearted food/lifestyle blog is anything but controversial. But, I’m going to take a chance with it and tell you about this play — because it is one worth seeing, actually it is probably my favorite play on Broadway I have seen so far.

grace

Going to a Broadway show isn’t something that even the locals do all that often; tickets are very expensive and it’s just not something that is done on a weekly basis like happy hour or a night out with friends. The last play I went to was in the late winter of 2012 (maybe February or March?) to see “Death of a Salesman”. This play was long — brutally long — and brought back lots of High School memories from when I read it the first time. At least my boyfriend loved it. I, on the other hand, admired the acting but my attention span led me to doze in and out. The highlight of my night might have been when I stood in line for the bathroom and spent a few minutes chatting with Kate Burton (formerly known as Ellis Grey from Grey’s Anatomy — now, she plays Vice President Sally Langston on ABC’s hit show, Scandal).

But I’m not here to tell you about “Death of a Salesman” — I want to tell you all about “Grace”. Instead of using my own words to jump-start my thoughts on the play, I am going to share with you what the website says:

“Grace examines those elusive paradoxes: Believing vs. Knowing, Love vs. Loyalty, Coincidence vs. Fate.”

These words hit home on exactly what “Grace” is all about. Starring Paul Rudd, Michael Shannon, Ed Asner, and Kate Arrington — the play has a cast of actors that truly found their characters in the most intense and impressive ways! Without getting too into the controversial topics of the play — I wanted everyone to know the basis of the play. It’s about a husband and wife who move from Minnesota to the sunny state of Florida where they are hoping to open a chain of Christian motels. Their lives collide with their rocket scientist neighbor who just went through a devastating loss in his own life. Knowing you have small-town Christian couple interacting with a depressed scientist who questions almost everything in life, you can imagine the many ways believing vs. knowing, love vs. loyalty and coincidence vs. fate all come into play throughout “Grace”.

Through the acting you could feel the different types of pain every character was experiencing, you could feel their passion for what they believed in and you could feel their eagerness to live a happy life (and for each character a “happy life” was defined differently).

My thoughts keep going back to Paul Rudd’s character — he’s a hard-core Christian, a bit creepy, and on a constant Christian sort-of high — in a nutshell, he lives in an alternate reality. The word “brainwashed” is a quick and easy description for his character as well. After all, the play opens up to a murder and suicide scene — so you realize instantly, within the first 2 minutes of the play, that you’ll be watching a play with a character who has very twisted thoughts.

Ultimately, “Grace” was a play that kept me thinking for weeks after I saw the play. Overall, I owe a major Bravo to the actors and the writer who did a phenomenal job executing this Broadway play.

I encourage you to browse the play’s website and read a few reviews on “Grace”. If anything, it should intrigue you to question some of the topics listed above in your own life.

NYC Ranking For 2012

Anyone on FourSquare? I loved this write-up Time Out New York did on the top places in NYC people checked into in 2012. I thought you would all enjoy this list — especially since the majority of these hot-spots you can find on my blog!
restaurants

Bianca in Noho

So, one of my dearest friends, Stef, took me to one of her favorite UWS restaurants several weeks ago (I didn’t blog about it because I was so hungry I forgot to capture photos… sorry folks!). This restaurant is called Celeste — and Celeste doesn’t even have a website, so I wasn’t able to menu-stalk prior to going for dinner. Following our dinner a coworker of mine mentioned that I should go to Bianca downtown in Noho — she described this restaurant making it sound a bit like Celeste; there were no reservations, always expect a wait, payment is cash-only and the food is spectacular. Bianca does have a website so I forwarded it to Stef saying we needed to get to this joint asap! Stef couldn’t help but laugh as she pointed out to me that Bianca is Celeste’s sister restaurant.

food from bianca

So Stef and I hurried down to Bianca at 7:30 p.m. thinking our wait would be quick and easy — nope! we waited over an hour to be seated. But time flew by as we caught up over a glass of wine at an uber hipster bar right next to the restaurant. When we were seated at Bianca, I was reminded instantly of Al Di La in Brooklyn; the decor was so similar — old-school wall paper with white subway tiling to help divide the space on the walls, even the smells coming from the kitchen were as delectable as Al Di La’s.

We quickly ordered — clearly, we both scouted out the menu prior to attending dinner. To share: the Gnocco Fritto with Stracchino Cheese, a caprese salad (special of the day) and for our main dishes we both ordered pasta — I ordered myself the Ravioli di Ricotta con Burro e Salvia (ravioli in a butter and sage sauce) and Stef ordered herself the Gramigna con Salciccia e Peperoni (pasta with crumbled sausage and red bell pepper). Even though the restaurant was packed — not a single seat was available — the food came out in a very timely manner.

gnocco

Our apps were d-e-l-i-s-h … The gnocco was perfectly cooked, nice and puffy and soft and the stracchino cheese was out of this world. It was obvious it was coated in a very flavorful truffle olive oil, but the cheese consistency was smooth and creamy — maybe even more so than a burrata. Remember folks, Gnocco is not the same as Gnocchi.

butter and sage ravioli

When it came to my ravioli, I instantly had a flash back. The first time I ever cooked my boyfriend a meal at home I made him a caprese salad served with ravioli in a sage and butter sauce (Thanks Food Network for the fabulous recipe and thank you Whole Foods for providing the “homemade” ravioli). This ravioli at Bianca though was homemade and wasn’t just “served with butter” — it was swimming in it. The longer I let the ravioli sit, the thicker the butter got, which allowed me to scoop more of it up on to my fork. I would order this rich dish again in a heart beat!

meat pasta

I had to share a pic of Stef’s pasta — it was out of this world! I also loved that Bianca wasn’t afraid to feed people, the serving sizes were outstanding!

I love finding restaurants like Bianca and Celeste — I am always ready for more suggestions… So if anyone has any, be sure to share the details! Bianca really fit the bill for me and Stef this weekend — literally! Ultimately for 2 appetizers, 2 main dishes of pasta, and 1 homemade sorbet for dessert … plus a bottle of wine. It all totaled up to $81. The way we ordered we were also “splurging” so the fact that we didn’t faint at the sight of the bill, we were very pleased!

Don’t forget ya’ll — follow me on Pinterest and Instagram for some more fun foodie ideas, recipes, and restaurant spottings!

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Minetta Tavern in The Village

So I decided to mix it up a bit, not on purpose…

This weekend I attended a surprise birthday party, but when I arrived I arrived hungry. I’m not talking about the “I could use a snack” sort of hungry, I’m talking about the “turn the music up because my stomach is growling so loudly” sort of hungry. This party just so happened to over-look one of my favorite restaurants in the West Village, Bar Pitti and it’s neighboring rival, Da Silvano. What’s worse than just being hungry, but looking out the window to see a packed restaurant of people ordering the ravioli dish and caprese salad that you love.

So, as time went on the restaurants across the street stopped serving dinner and there went my opportunity to feed myself. My hunger wasn’t in the mood for an unsatisfying street meat kabob or falafel. So I found myself opening my mental file cabinet of West Village/ Village restaurants within a 5 minute walking distance. And what was exactly a minute and a half walk away was Minetta Tavern. I quickly called over to see if they were still serving food (it was midnight at this point and I had only ever eaten there at about 9 p.m.) and their answer was “yes”. So, we bolted out of the party that was about to change locations anyways, speed-walked down a few narrow Village streets and there it was — my food savior of the evening.

roasted bone marrow

We were seated right away in what was a still completely packed restaurant, ordered an appetizer and of course their Black Label Burger, ordered a glass of wine and at the initial sip of alcohol I instantly felt relieved. I was about to be fed, finally.

Ready for this? We ordered roasted bone marrow for our appetizer — yup you read that right — bone marrow. Bone marrow has the same consistency as an oyster, in other words — it’s slimy. But you put it on top of a baguette that has been heavily buttered and toasted with a shallot confit and all of the flavors ooze together to make the perfect flavorful app. I quickly realized that I shouldn’t try to pick up the bones to help me slide the marrow off and onto the bread — the bones are exceptionally hot and they stay hot for a while. So, don’t make the same mistake I made.

Minetta Tavern Burger

To fully satisfy my grumbling belly — I went for the Black Label Burger. This is THE burger that you have to order, there are a couple on the menu but this is the one you have to go with. The prime dry-aged beef cooked medium is full of the best juicy flavors you can sink your teeth into. It’s a thick burger that’s topped with caramelized onions that adds the perfect amount of sweetness on top of the rich burger. Oh — and, lets not forget about the pommes frites, in other words — French fries. They are perfectly salted, they have the perfect amount of crispiness and they are just oh so tasty! This order has the perfect amount of savory, salty and a hint of sweetness.

The “mixing it up” this weekend came down to swapping out dinner for “supper”. Yup, that is correct, there are restaurants in NYC that provide a “supper menu” and Minetta Tavern has one of these menus. It’s a late-night menu that is shorter than the traditional dinner menu but it still gets the job done. All that I cared about was ordering the Black Label Burger! This is something I might have to start doing for the restaurants that are difficult to reserve a table for (just like Minetta Tavern), I need to start eating a late lunch and head to my restaurant of choice for supper.

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What’s to come…

I have lots of pictures, and lots of typing to do — you’ll see everything over the next couple of weeks in a variety of posts. Lets just say this — one month, 3 fabulous cities. That’s right, I am a dedicated New York City lover, but I ventured to new restaurants not only in my favorite city — but I did the same in Boston and San Francisco.

New cities, new restaurants, new adventures. And, my favorite part — exploring different food markets! We all know how much I love The Chelsea Market located in [the best neighborhood] Manhattan, but I was able to explore other gems, like the Quincy Market in Boston and The Ferry Building’s farmers market in San Fran.

In case you can’t wait to see my posts, feel free to follow me on Instagram to get a sneak peek of my pictures! Thanks to the setup of Instagram’s new web feature, you can follow my pictures via mobile or online!!! Plus, almost all of these photos aren’t shared on Twitter!

Pinterest

Also, be sure to follow me on Pinterest for other great foodie ideas!

Wine:30 in Murray Hill

I love wine, especially full-bodied red wine. To be more specific I have a soft spot for Malbec, it’s my favorite type of wine… although I have truly enjoyed a variety of wine from Tuscany too. This summer, I want to venture to more wine bars, and if possible experience wine tastings every once in a while. So, if anyone has any ideas of where to start, I would love suggestions!

I recently went to a wine bar in Murray Hill — I know, I never spend any time in Murray Hill (unless it’s at my boyfriend’s apartment, or seeing a movie at the AMC). So when I was invited to Wine:30 I thought it would be a hit to find something great in a neighborhood I am not a big fan of. When I first walked in I only saw a couple tables out front, and of course they were occupied — I immediately assumed that I would be sitting inside. I was pleasantly surprised when I was lead out to a back garden that seated dozens! It was the perfect weather to enjoy a glass of wine outside!

Of course I ordered my favorite Malbec, but there was such a wide selection of wine I’m sure every wine lover would be satisfied. A new foodie friend of mine joined me and we ended up ordering some Bruschetta. I highly recommend everyone who is looking for some vibrant flavors to order some bruschetta. Plus, if it’s just you and a friend, Wine:30′s order of bruschetta is perfect because each selection comes in two pieces. So, you can order 3 types and 6 pieces will arrive at the table (perfect, a sample of each for both people).

We ordered 3 types: tomato, mozzarella, basil, balsamic, honey, and extra virgin olive oil as well as  caramelized onion, goat cheese, and melted gruyere and finally the last one we ordered was roasted corn, black beans, chihuahua cheese, cilantro and lime juice.

All three of them were fantastic, but if I had known about some of the flavors I would have ordered other options because of my food mood (if you know what I mean). I love gruyere cheese and hearing the goat cheese gruyere combo with caramelized onions sounded delish — but when it came and I quickly bit into it, I realized that it reminded me of a gourmet grilled cheese. It was ridiculously delicious although I wasn’t in the grilled cheese mood.

I was insanely surprised with the order of the roasted corn, black beans, chihuahua cheese, cilantro and lime juice. I don’t know what I was expecting but I wasn’t expecting for it to be my favorite. It was a cold mixture of toppings which went perfect with the refreshing flavors of the cilantro and lime juice. If this specific bruschetta was heated it wouldn’t have been as tasty. But how interesting are these toppings? Can you say, “Mexican-style Italian bruschetta”??

Last but not least was the tomato, mozzarella, basil, balsamic, honey and extra virgin olive oil. This is such a classic way to make bruschetta and the ingredients always come together beautifully. Typically when I make this combo at home I don’t dice up the ingredients, rather I slice everything up and pile them on top of one another — I like this way much more because then the pieces of cheese and tomato aren’t constantly falling off.

This was just a quick brief overview of what is on the menu — I was so surprised with how large the wine bar’s food selection is and I need to go back soon to sample more. I promise you I will, because I think this wine bar has amazing summer-time-hot-spot potential!