During the world’s most exciting trip to 7-11 I scored both the Oreo flavored Coke Zero and the Coke flavored Oreos! Super fun. I thought both were very successful and would definitely buy the soda again.
Casa Enrique. Their brunch is just as good as their Michelin-rated dinner service. Jicama and beet salad with queso fresco, mint, candied pumpkin seeds, and lemon vinaigrette.
Chicken mole enchiladas. Their mole is a work of art.
My mezcal tamarind margarita was the best drink of the weekend.
Katana Kitten. We thought the drinks could have been more alcoholic but loved the food. My amaretto sour was a standout – Wild Turkey rye, amaretto, salted plum, honey, lemon, egg white, and yukari.
We had deviled eggs with white miso, Japanese mustard, and salmon roe.
And an astonishingly good Sukiyaki Sando – soy-braised ribeye, caramelized onion, pickled ginger, jalopeno, and mayo on a baguette with au jus.
Foul Witch. The lighting was unflattering, the food was magical. We shared a great dinner. Their house bread was a 20/10.
Fairytale eggplant with heirloom tomato and fresh cheese.
Maine lobster bucatini.
Lamb shoulder with squash blossom and chimichurri. The very best bite of the night was a dessert that was too dark to photograph but blew our minds – carrot cake with meringue and husk cherry.
An easy but great homemade dinner. Mandu bulgogi chicken frozen dumplings / roasted zucchini / cold silken tofu / spicy peanut sauce (peanut butter with sugar, chili crisp, sesame oil, rice vinegar, dark soy sauce, and water) / furikake.
It is normal to have a weekly food theme, yes? This week had two – the 1st week of Apple Month and breakfasts for dinners! On-theme highlights included…
{Apples} Duh.
Over Easy apple cinnamon granola bar (7.5/10).
Health-Ade pink lady apple kombucha (8/10).
Trader Joe’s apple chips (9/10) with a caramel apple iced matcha – matcha with caramel, apple cider, and Spindrift lime and mint seltzer.
Jelly Belly cinnamon and apple mix jelly beans (8/10).
Caramel apple cocktail – apple whiskey with apple cider, lime mint seltzer, and caramel.
{Breakfasts/Brinners} Trader Joe’s coconut cold brew. I actually really don’t like this and need to stop forgetting and rebuying it every two years or so but one morning I had a cup with young coconut water and sweetened condensed milk and that was great.
A complete breakfast coffee shake – iced coffee with half and half, cold brew powder, brown sugar, vanilla protein powder, edible glitter, frozen banana, and Lucky Charms!
Matzoh brie. We used egg and onion matzoh and it was fantastic. I top mine with salt and sugar. Plus roasted purple cauliflower.
Blueberry cottage cheese pancakes. This recipe but I used all-purpose flour, skipped the maple in the batter, and added a bit of lemon juice. These were great. I ditched my plate for a larger one so I could smoother them in maple syrup though.
Paired with the best green smoothie I’ve ever made – frozen spinach, mango, and banana, with hibiscus powder, vanilla protein powder, and water.
Egg burrito from Roast. Scrambled eggs, avocado, crispy potatoes, peppers, onions and hot sauce aioli. Plus their sweet potato tots and (homemade) green beans sauteed with honey and mustards.
Paired with a fantastic mimosa sour IPA from Abomination Brewing.
Ming Bings plant-based sausage, egg, and cheese bing. With yellow squash and fairytale eggplant that I roasted and then sauteed with gochujang, tahini, sesame oil, brown sugar, and water. After the matzoh these veggies were my favorite bite of the week!
It is Apple Month! I started my Sunday, September 1st with a trip to New York Beanery for their caramel apple latte special.
And I, of course, have an Apple Month stash. P.S. Those fall Whole Foods hand soaps smell amazing.
Baklava flavored protein bar.
Burrata ice cream (only ok) topped with blueberry jam, honey, and aged balsamic (delicious).
Leftover creamy mushroom turkey pasta. I went back and topped with bowl with Sriracha and furikake. Goodles noodles are wonderful leftover.
Homemade cole slaw topped with baked chicken breast that I chopped and then tossed in a skillet with butter, honey, and several types of mustard.
Dinner at Bluebird Kitchen. We shared housemade chips with french onion dip and deviled eggs with gochujang mayo and furikake.
I had a Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner with Tito’s, lychee, grapefruit, and rose petals. The petals were in a rose-shaped ice ball!
And the best frozen pina colada we’ve ever tasted.
Lobster mac and cheese for dinner.
And we got the sundae for dessert – housemade vanilla soft serve, bruleed banana, chocolate magic shell, sugar cookie crumble, whipped cream, and a maraschino cherry.
It was a FANTASTIC weekend! We had perfect Brooklyn dates (Gowanus and Williamsburg) with the best foods, drinks, sights, and walks.
Some highlights…
Blue Brown. We really enjoyed this coffee spot and shared an espresso with palm juice and a dirty Thai iced tea.
Homemade coffee shake. Iced coffee with frozen banana, half and half, instant coffee powder, black sesame paste, vanilla protein powder, and brown sugar.
Yogurt bowl. Plain skyr with Heritage Flakes, plucot, blueberries, and birthday cake granola butter + sprinkles.
NYC tip – the Williamsburg location of Bon Bon has a beautiful storefront and all of the selections of the Lower East Side location with a tenth of the line.
Pokito is my favorite bar in the city. My paloma jell-o shot was a work of art and my frozen rum punch came with a bird I got to keep.
Finback Brewery. They didn’t have small pours/flights so I skipped beer and got a delicious Guavamente cocktail – gin, guava, sorel, lemon, and nutmeg.
Three’s Brewing. We tried a few small pours and had a nice smoked peach saison that obviously couldn’t compare their Super Burrito window. We shared a California-style burrito with carne asada, french fries, jack cheese, guacamole, sour cream, and salsa.
Taglio Pizza takeout (buffalo chicken and vodka slices for me) with roasted shredded brussels sprouts and homemade Greek yogurt ranch dip.
Cafe Mars. Aka “unusual Italian.” Aka my favorite meal I’ve ever eaten. My photos were not great with the lighting but the food tasted spectacular. Also the inside was a neon retro dream. [photo from their Instagram]
I had an unphotographed El Diablo – tequila, ginger, lime, and cassis. The service was impeccable and we also started and ended the evening with complimentary drinks. We shared a bunch of things and have some very exciting leftovers. Inside Out Italian Beef – thin sliced Italian spiced chuck eye wrapped around focaccia and giardiniera and served with pepperoncini-beef jus.
Cucamelon – with cucumber, smoked trout roe, and whey granita.
Fried nectarines (my favorite savory dish I have ever been served) – with heirloom tomatoes, ricotta, and shiso. Also garlic knot monkey bread with red sauce.
Waves – homemade pasta, with shrimp, zucchini, mint, squash blossoms, and Calabrian chili. This was the other dish that blew me away; the sauce was a tiny bit sour in a way that balanced everything perfectly.
Scallops with new potato salad, cured egg yolk, and spicy cucumber salad.
Steak Pizzaiola with penne fries.
Desserts – liquor soaked cake with a chocolate pudding sauce and candied eggplant (not for me, apparently, though Adam liked it) and a watermelon sorbet with pistachio cookies and sea salt.
Shalom Japan. Another wonderful dinner where we shared and loved many things. Two cocktails that were greatly enjoyed but I can’t remember a thing about.
Corn ribs with Kewpie, parmesan, chili, and lime. Their special was the best dish of the night, a take on a caprese salad – heirloom tomatoes, plums, umeboshi dressing, koji-marinated tofu, and shiso.
Okonomiyaki with Wagyu pastrami and bonito flakes.
Lox bowl with sushi rice, avocado, Japanese pickles, fried capers (<– divine), and chili mayo.
Matzoh ball ramen soup. We added a foie gras dumpling and a soy-marinated egg.
P.S. I couldn’t take a photo because I was immediately sticky but we also had a Milk Bar marshmallow gooey brownie that was a 20/10.
This was easily one of our best weekends! I say that every weekend I get to spend with Adam, but still! We got to eat a thousand tasty things and admire a thousand beautiful things in Long Island, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. And our fridge is full of the most exciting leftovers! Highlights…
Amano Cafe Rocket Fuel, cold brew with maple and oat milk.
Strawberry smoothie. Frozen strawberries and cherries with water and vanilla protein powder. You can’t tell that those gummies were strawberry cake-shaped but I had a whole theme going.
Something & Nothing seltzer’s new flavor – pineapple and pink grapefruit – was a hit
This Hubba Bubba/Skittles min gum is an 11/10 and I recommend purchasing it. And it’s sugar-free!
Postcard Bakery 100% lived up to the hype. We had raspberry mochi donuts (best donut of my life), a lemon roll, and a sesame chocolate chip cookie.
Sea Cliff shave ice. We got cola and butter pecan with vanilla ice cream (they have the best, chewy ice cream) and mochi.
Thick ice cream. They were out of the chocolate cola flavor (so they will be seeing me again) but we did get to try buttered cherry pie.
We visited the Deep Roots farmers’ market (which is lovely and right on the water in Garvey’s Point) and had several treats. Jerk chicken empanadas.
S’mores cookie.
Homemade garlic bread chicken sandwiches. These were insane. Ciabatta baked with a mixture of butter, garlic, sugar, smoked paprika, gochugaru, and mozzarella cheese / baked chicken marinated in yogurt, lemon, and tons of garlic. Plus roasted broccoli.
And split a bowl with jerk chicken, sweet plantains, macaroni salad, grilled zucchini, spicy corn, coleslaw, cilantro aioli, and white rice.
Noreetuh. The lighting at this cute/cozy Hawaiian spot was abysmal but I am going to share my unattractive photos because the food was so great. They were doing a pre-fix menu for Restaurant Week so I got to try a ton of stuff. Bigeye tuna poke with macadamia nuts. Plus an amaretto Colada with dark rum, pineapple, and coconut. I also had an unphotographed Mai Tai – best I’ve ever tasted – with dark rum, pineapple, apricot brandy, and orgeat syrup.
Garlic butter shrimp bowl with pineapple, chili, macaroni salad, and steamed rice.
Sundae with chocolate haupia, graham crackers, almonds, Hawaiian black salt, and coconut ice cream.
Super Bueno. These were some of the very best cocktails we’ve ever tasted (and we tried most of the menu!). Salted Plum and Tamarind Milk Punch – charanda, ayuuk, salted plum & tamarind, lojana tea, and milk + Roasted Corn Sour – corn whiskey, reposado tequila, roasted corn, guajillo, lemon, and egg white.
Vodka Y Soda – vodka, guava, pasilla, and soda. This is hands-down my favorite drink I’ve ever tasted.
We got nachos as an afterthought and they ended up being the best nachos I’ve ever bought. With mushroom carnitas, poblano, pickled jalapeño, red onion, crema, Mexican cheese blend, cilantro, and mole negro. Now we need to go back again for a full meal!
Win Son. This was my favorite meal of the year (Adam chooses Noreetuh). Plant Daddy cocktail – cilantro-mint tequila, matcha, lemon, simple syrup, and egg white. I also had an unphotographed Breakfast of Champions with almond milk, roasted black sesame, El Dorado 5 year rum, rum cream, and toasted coconut.
Pea shoots with yun hai bean paste, sesame, and fried garlic.
Fried eggplant with black vinegar, labne, and spiced cashews.
Beef roll with garlic-ginger cucumbers and tons of herbs.
Sesame noodles with roasted oyster mushrooms, snow pea leaves, and peanuts.
Wavy noodles with lamb and fermented bean sauce.
Sundae with fried sweet dough, golden sesame ice cream, and red rice condensed milk plus we added butter fried peanuts and cilantro and made it a 15/10.
Yogurt bowl. Plain skyr with butterscotch syrup, blueberries and blackberries, Heritage Flakes, and peanut butter.
I tried my first yellow dragon fruit and it was delicious; way more flavorful than the pink ones.
99 Ranch snacks. The seaweed crisps were actually too spicy for me but Calbee honey butter chips are always a hit.
They clearly have a lot going on but these grape green tea and cheese ice cream bars are possibly the most satisfying frozen dessert I’ve ever eaten. The mix of creamy and chewy is perfection.
Leftover turkey lasagna with roasted broccoli.
I used leftover lasagna noodles to make (otherwise authentic) chicken pad see ew. This recipe (sidenote, I adore Recipe Tin Eats, everything we’ve tried from her site has been perfect) but I used chicken breasts instead of thighs and six-times more Chinese broccoli.
Mandu bulgogi chicken frozen dumplings – delicious – pan-fried with tons of sharp cheddar plus chili crisp and leftover sauteed Chinese broccoli.
Roast‘s weekly special was lobster rolls so we obviously had to get them. We shared a Maine and a Connecticut-style.
Plus fries and an Abomination Brewing double IPA brewed with lobster! We did not taste any crustaceans but it was a great IPA.
This weekend included some fun Long Island stops as well as a trip to Bushwick for dinner and my favorite street art in the city.
Some highlights…
Brunch at Orwasher’s. We shared an Edith’s tahini frozen iced coffee.
And lox toast with goat cheese and capers.
Instant coffee I carried home from Denver.
Summer fruit.
Gong Cha‘s cream brulee series has my heart. With strawberry milk and pudding.
S’mores! My sister-in-law got us a mini fire pit kit so we took Webster on a mini picnic.
I used peanut butter sandwich crackers, milk chocolate, and vegan marshmallows.
Whole Foods’ pineapple pie cookie with sprinkles!
Reminder to myself that the Whole Foods hot bar has great options when you go at lunch time. Spicy cucumber sesame salad, hard-boiled egg, sauteed veggies.
Salmon salad rolls. Canned sockeye salmon with mayo, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, celery seed, smoked paprika, and scallions on brioche hot dog rolls. Plus sauteed asparagus with lemon, pepper, and garlic.
Nowon – best dinner of the summer so far. We tried and loved their wood-fired margherita pizza with gojuchang marinara, mozzarella, basil, and chili oil.
Horchata with hibiscus, pineapple citrus, almond, and cinnamon / Smoke & Mirrors – spicy mezcal, amaretto, and pineapple / seasonal cocktail with cherry, sour plum, yuzu, and soju.
The best drink of the night was the Dew Drop with added Tito’s; lavender, yuzu, and juniper.
We shared the seven-course “Mix Tape” pre-fixe and every dish was a showstopper. Whipped ricotta toast with homemade focaccia, citrus jam, and chili oil. I was expecting not to care for this but it ended up being my second favorite dish of the night!
Broccolini a la Caesar with black sesame, parmesan, and candied anchovies.
Spicy gojuchang fried chicken.
Chopped cheese rice cakes.
Honey garlic butter tater tots. <– my favorite dish. These guys are so perfectly crunchy!
Legendary cheeseburger = double smashed patties, kimchi special sauce, roasted kimchi, pickles, onion, and American cheese. After Elder Greene, I think this is the 3rd best cheeseburger in NYC.
Plus dessert I didn’t capture – honeydew panna cotta with mint and lime.
We spent the second half of our vacation back home and had a fabulous time! The past four days were spent cuddling with the dog, catching up on errands, checking out new spots in Brooklyn, running on the Long Beach boardwalk, and spending a perfect day in Hudson.
Some highlights include…
Hudson Roasters. They have my favorite espresso in New York.
Blue Bottle. Vanilla Nola Cola. Also our favorite seltzer – Something & Nothing.
Mel the Bakery. We got a fantastic pistachio and almond twice-baked croissant (plus a chocolate chip cookie).
Bread and Butter. We got a key lime pie soft serve (a swirl of key lime and graham cracker).
And an insanely good ube roll.
Huckleberry gummy bears we brought home from Colorado.
Cafe Mutton. My “excessive garnish” Bloody Mary came with a lamb chop!
Plus we had an omelet with trout roe, creme fraiche, and potato chips and the best buttered toast of my life (and chicken congee).
Lido Kosher Deli. Love a deli with pickles! Plus pretty great cole slaw.
We had an outstanding brisket sandwich on a knish (and a bagel loaded with lox).
Hidden Gem Cafe. We shared a Knockout – shredded beef, caramelized onion, Swiss cheese, Hidden sauce, and hashbrowns on a garlic roll (also a smoked turkey with tomato, spinach, cheddar, and bbq Dijon on ciabatta bread).
Kitty’s. Toki Kollins – Suntory Toki whisky, yuzu juice, club soda, sea salt, and thyme.
Romaneso with green chickpea, puntarelle, broken parsley bay oil, and limequat young coconut sauce.
Spring lamb sugo with treccione, Kinderhook lamb shoulder, fennel, green garlic, and shaved Pecorino Romano.
Rotisserie chicken with roasted Yukons and sunchokes, citrus, date, and charred spring onion relish.
Salted devil’s food cake.
Miso butter bean dip with roasted broccoli, baby carrots, and Trader Joe’s chicken samosas.
Egg salad (shredded hard-boiled eggs / sauteed white onion, orange bell pepper, poblano pepper, and garlic / Greek yogurt, Dijon, mayo, rice vinegar, mustard powder, smoked paprika, celery seed, and salt and pepper) / baby zucchini sauteed with a tahini harissa honey sauce / chicken chips and 7-11 garlic bread chips.
Eating Chalk 