I am staunchly anti-carb-on-carb (i.e. I don’t want garlic bread next to mashed potatoes and I don’t like rice in burritos – fries are allowed though!) but this macaroni and cheese slice from Pizzaria G is the best pizza I have ever eaten.
Black eyed pea salad. BEP with baked super-firm tofu, orange bell pepper, poblano pepper, sharp cheddar, crispy broad beans, and Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing.
Plus seaweed potato chips for crunch.
Buffalo bowls. Cabbage (roasted with salt and pepper and then tossed with mayo, skyr, evoo, rice vinegar, ranch seasoning, celery seed, smoked paprika, and sugar) topped with Blackbird buffalo wing style seitan.
Horchata-ish iced latte. I blended leftover brown rice, milk, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla bean powder in the blender. Unstrained, with ice, half and half, and espresso.
Berry smoothie. Frozen strawberries and blueberries, with chocolate protein powder, milk, and water. And a strawberry gummy.
These Kissabel apples have rose colored flesh.
I enjoyed these Quin maple almond butter filled pretzels much more than I was expecting to.
Chip City’s caramel apple cider donut cookie is hands-down the best thing they make. The cookie has the perfect amount of apple tang and the cider donut cinnamon sugar spice rub is divine.
10/10 dessert skyr bowl. Plain skyr, salty peanuts, leftover pecan pie toffee candy, and TWO KINDS of blueberries (Sweetest Batch and Super Jumbo!).
Braised tofu bowls. Brown rice with roasted cauliflower rice / sauteed bok choy with green onion / firm tofu cooked in butter and braised in chicken broth, rice vinegar, gochujang, gochugaru, Sichuan pepper, sugar, and sesame seeds / cashews.
Greek-ish salad. Romaine, Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing, baby tomatoes, roasted zucchini, and roasted chickpeas (baked until crispy with evoo, salt, pepper, sumac, onion powder, and garlic powder). Plus Trader Joe’s dolmas.
Crispy rice omelet. Eggs steamed on top of crisped-up leftover brown rice, kimchi, and extra-sharp cheddar. Plus roasted broccoli and baked chicken on the side.
I can’t skip a seasonal special; even if it’s from Arby’s. Their Gobbler sandwich was great though – deep-fried turkey, crispy onion, Swiss, stuffing, cranberry spread, and mayo on a toasted sub.
New new-to-me pear. This wasn’t as good as the last two but still not bad.
A dips/dippers situation. Little Sesame Herby Jalapeno hummus and Red Clay pimento cheese (hands down the best pimento spread we’ve ever tasted!) with bell peppers, baby carrots, and Crunch Master pimento cheese rice crackers.
Warm salads. Sauteed Trader Joe’s Cruciferous Crunch topped with dressing (maple syrup, Dijon mustard, vinegar, and sesame oil), lamb sausage, and roasted honeynut and delicata squash.
Tofu salads. Romaine / Trader Joe’s mano vinaigrette / cucumber / extra-sharp cheddar / crispy broad beans / and tofu (marinated, dredged in a flour, cornstarch, salt, white pepper, Sichuan peppercorn, and toasted rice powder mix, then stir-fried).
A very, very loose take on the Very Fresh Noodles Dan Dan noodles. Buckwheat soba / dinosaur kale, baby bok choy, and scallions sauteed with fish sauce and rice vinegar / ground turkey sauteed with hoisin, dark soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine, and five spice powder / crunched up crispy broad beans / sauce – peanut butter, garlic, onion chili crisp, chili oil, soy sauce, sugar, five spice powder, Sichuan peppercorn, and chicken broth.
P.S. I put pecan pie chocolate chip cookies into the oven as I wrote this post!
And pumpkin beers! Southern Tier’s Maple Warlock imperial pumpkin stout and Caramel Pumpkin imperial pumpkin ale were both excellent.
Pumpkin smoothie. Canned pumpkin puree, frozen banana, brown sugar, vanilla protein powder, and water.
Boo-berry smoothie. Frozen blueberries, cherries, and strawberries with vanilla protein powder and water (with a marshmallow ghost!).
Halloween candy week seemed like a fitting time to open this Bonne Maman chocolate peanut spread. I enjoyed it in a few iced coffees and am eagerly anticipating a yogurt bowl.
Another new to me pear – Gem. It was delicious, but I prefer the Happis.
This Wella Crispy Treat did not taste like ube to me but it was yummy; good salty-sweet balance. Adam hated it, however, so your milage may vary.
Oyakadon-inspired dinner. Eggs soft-scrambled in leftover Rose Marie whipped garlic parsley butter / roasted broccoli / Bell and Evans breaded chicken patties / horseradish Sriracha aioli / leftover Rose Marie sourdough.
Pumpkin chili. Ground turkey, Whole Food’s canned bean trio, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, canned pumpkin puree, fish sauce, yellow onion, red bell pepper, poblano pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, urfa chili, and salt and pepper. Plus leftover Rose Marie cheese curds and Trader Joe’s pumpkin tortilla chips.
Two types of leftover pizza reheated in a skillet with leftover butter and an egg cooked on top.
These crispy roasted beans were the best dinner of the week. Labne / roasted shredded brussels sprouts / Great Northern beans tossed with evoo, cornstarch, panko, gochugaru, and furikake and roasted / Roland’s spicy chili onion crisp / crispy numbing broad beans I found at 99 Ranch but can’t read the label for.
It was a great weekend! We got in a final run on the Long Beach Boardwalk and spent some time in Brooklyn. Some of what we ate…
Witches Brew from Rose Wolf. Cold brew with oat milk, cinnamon, maple, and caramel. We actually didn’t love this – too milky and too sweet.
Cookies and Scream iced latte from The Barn. We didn’t like this coffee either(!!) but we loved the Shmackary’s cookie on top.
Spooky yogurt bowl. Plain skyr with golden kiwi, blueberries, and candy eyes.
Beers at Grimm. Love a spot with small pours! My stand-out favorite was the Maximum Boogie triple IPA.
More importantly, we had food from Lala’s Apizza on their upper level. A 10/10 kale salad with cheese and sweet and spicy nuts.
And a Funghi Pie – mozzarella, fontina, tarragon oyster mushrooms, and lemon zest.
We had an exceptional dinner at Rose Marie. The space was cute, the service was great, and my cocktail was perfect. Goin’ to Alcapulco – lime, guava, white rum, dark rum, and lime bitters. Adam also had stunning pickled green tomato martini.
Sourdough bread and focaccia with radishes and whipped garlic parsley butter. <– this was the best butter I’ve ever tasted
Cranberry beans with paprika vinaigrette, croutons, and baby cauliflower.
Fried cheddar cheese curds with a burnt olive ranch.
And a patty melt on a homemade Pullman with grilled onion, white cheddar, and pickled green tomatoes.
Saturday breakfast in Huntington. I got a maple spiced iced latte at Southdown. Reminder to me for next year — I don’t like this; one of the spices is cardamom which I don’t care for in coffee.
For the last week of Apple Month I got my hands on the – delicious – Trader Joe’s juicy apple gummies.
See also – we made fall dirt cups! Chocolate pudding, toasted Reese’s Oreo crumbs, and mellowcreme leaves.
Other snacks of note were all from 99 Ranch. The best egg yolk rice crackers.
And 10/10 mochi, x2.
I also grabbed some hot food at the food court while I was at 99 Ranch. Beef rice rolls and a purple yam salted egg yolk mochi from Shanghai You Garden.
Black bean tacos. The filling was sauteed mushrooms, scallion, poblano pepper, and taco seasoning food processed with with walnuts and black beans. Baked in tortillas with tons of sharp cheddar. Plus roasted cauliflower and broccoli and homemade guacamole. We loved these.
Chicken kimchi quesadillas. I chopped together baked chicken breast, cabbage kimchi, Sriracha, and honey. Cooked on the stove with butter and evoo (and tons of sharp cheddar!).
Salmon and tofu veggie bowls. Bok choy sauteed with ginger and scallion / roasted white sweet potatoes / baked super-firm tofu / ACME salmon candy crisped up on the stove. This is our new favorite iteration of the sheet-pan hash I used to make often.
We had a perfect weekend! Tons of great food, several good walks (a part of Brooklyn we don’t usually explore, Astoria, Manhattan, and our neighborhood back home), and a run on the boardwalk! Here were five food highlights…
1) Between the Bagel. Bulgolgi egg and cheese bagel heaven. And the owner is the nicest man.
2) Somedays Bakery. I fully get the hype. Pistachio lattice, chocolate chunk cookie, and a crab and cheese pastry.
3) Treats on the Lower East Side. We didn’t think that the Papa D’Amour Hokkaido milk soft serve with a French butter shell was that exciting.
But I thought the croissant bao with butter, red bean, and granulated sugar was fantastic. Plus yuzu lemonade + pear green iced tea.
And Adam adored the scallion and Thai basil pesto scallion blossom.
Noonas is my favorite ice cream in the city. We shared ube Vietnamese coffee latte and pandan ice creams with mochi and black sesame jam.
4) Brunch at Naks. Para Sa Paborito Kong Apo cocktail – dry gin, mezcal, campari, ginger, citrus sherbet, and chile; served in a toasted frozen grapefruit.
The Filipino platter was my favorite. Short rib with garlic rice, fried egg, bone broth, fried tofu, salad, and pickled veggies. Adam loved the (pork) bone broth and I thought the rice and fried tofu were perfect.
The salted egg pancake with citrus butter and salted egg cream was Adam’s favorite thing he’s ever eaten.
Plus flan for dessert.
And Taho – sea buckthorn spirit, silken tofu-soya milk, burnt sugar syrup, and tapioca pearls.
5) Dinner at Swoony’s. The vibe is great and they have cute matchbooks. My Swoon Cycle cocktail was delightful and interesting – rum and amaretto with ginger, lime, and cucumber.
Tuna crudo with avocado, capers, scallions, and citrus vinaigrette with buttery brioche. We loved the diced avocado here.
Brussels sprouts with horseradish sauce, shallots, and toasted breadcrumbs. These were the best non-fried brussels spouts I’ve eaten in a restaurant.
Crab toast with jalapenos and tomato.
Swoony’s burger – double patty with thousand island and American cheese plus fries. Meant in the most complimentary way — this tasted exactly like an upscale McDonald’s burger and fries! It made my top five New York burgers list (Nomwon, Sonder, Rolo, Swoony’s, Rippers).
Chocolate mousse for dessert with vanilla cream and strawberry topping.
Space Cowboy is a new coffee spot in Long Beach this year and I’m a fan. They have some inventive drinks — like this root beer cold foam cold brew. Every weekend we can we go for a run on the Long Beach Boardwalk followed by an iced coffee and it’s a great date.
Salted peanut butter David Bar = 10/10. The texture (chewy with crunchies) and flavor of these is just right for me.
We had a perfect (delicious!) afternoon at Rockaway Beach. Rockaway Beach Bakery – yuzu and mixed berry bun with cream cheese frosting.
They also served us the best cheeseburger we’ve had in NYC this year! Makes my top three list, easily. Plus crispy yet creamy, well-seasoned fries.
And you can’t go to Rockaway without getting a perfect frozen pina colada at Connolly’s.
Olmsted is sadly closing and their final dinner service is tonight. We had a nice meal there Saturday sharing a bunch of dishes. Fava bean falafel with Calabrian honey, pea shoots, and pickled shallots.
King salmon crudo with rhubarb agrodolce and cilantro. <– our favorite bite of the night
Kale and crab rangoon.
Cauliflower okonomiyaki with hazelnuts, kosho mayo, and tonkatsu sauce.
Heirloom tomato schnitzel with whipped ricotta, yuzu piperade, and basil sunflower butter.
Pasilla rubbed scallops with roasted corn and a blueberry gastrique.
Finally – chocolate mousse.
Take-out dinner. Guac Shop is a fast-casual Mexican spot near us and while they don’t have roasted zucchini they do have fantastic tofu (and some great veggie topping options). This bowl was brown rice, hot sauce, tofu, cabbage, sweet potato, corn, and cheese.
P.S. We were so taken with Varli‘s Indian food that we are heading back there for dinner tonight!
Eating Chalk 