Five favorites from the weekend…
New York Beanery s’mores iced latte.
Nectarines. Summer fruit is so good!
Giant double chocolate chip – white and milk! – cookies (this recipe).
Thai take-out! I got chicken Pad See Ew and Ma Khue Puang (stir-fried eggplant with chili sauce and lime leaves).
Mish-mash but it works salad. Baby kale with honey chipotle vinaigrette / leftover eggplant / baby bell pepper / cashews / crispy tofu – marinated in pickle juice, breaded in Cheez-Its, and baked.
Adam and I had an amazing vacation in Michigan! We ran along the lake, took a ferry to Mackinac Island and admired the flowers, explored downtown, and spent time with friends and met their twin babies!
Our favorite things we ate included…
A perfectly roasty latte from Higher Grounds.
Iced espresso with cherry cold foam from Espresso Bay.
A fantastic s’mores cold foam cold brew from Biggby Coffee.
Rocky road fudge on Mackinac Island.
Ice cream with housemade fudge from Milk & Honey.
Yuzu and Earl Grey macarons from Merlyn’s Patisserie. Also an ube crinkle cookie that was the 2nd best cookie I’ve ever eaten.
The number one best cooke we’ve ever eaten was a peanut butter cookie from Common Good.
The smoked whitefish hushpuppies from Great Turtle.
Everything on the menu at Sugar2Salt, our new favorite restaurant. We liked it here so much we went back the next day! This was The Duck – duck leg confit, duck ham, duck sausage, and a duck egg with applesauce, poached pear, and crispy greens.
The salad from Mama Lu’s with pepitas and gigante beans. Plus a margarita made with creamy coconut.
A cherry whiskey slushee from Traverse City Whiskey Co.
The Pterodact Ale IPA from Terra Firma.
By the time this post goes live I’ll be on my way to visit friends in Traverse City, Michigan! I can’t wait!!
I’ve actually been on vacation since Saturday, which is great. Adam’s siblings came into town and we took them to Eataly, Roast (off course!), an escape room, and more. Then they took a family trip and Webster and I had a little staycation. Basically I spent three straight days with the dog on my lap — it was perfect.
Some highlights from the past few days include…
Southdown Coffee‘s espresso tonic. I don’t even like tonic water but I love this.
The Layers Perfect Bars are an 11/10.
I had not expected to love these BelliWelli bars but I do, the chocolate chip cookie flavor is easily a 9/10.
Yogurt bowls. Plain Greek with chocolate chip cookie dough granola, blackberries, and blueberries.
See also – watermelon with fresh berries. I love summer!
His and hers Ben & Jerry’s for the dog and me. We loved it.
Roast breakfast burrito with eggs, avocado, hashbrowns, and aioli.
Giant salad from Burrito Blvd. With chicken, zucchini, corn, tomato, and cheese. See also, but without a photo – we took Adam’s family to Rosa Mexicano and I had the best cheeseburger I’ve eaten in 2023.
I worked the weekend but Adam and I were able to have some fun date nights! Some highlights (all Brooklyn-based!) included…
Qahwah House. We got a Mofawar (Yemeni coffee with cinnamon, cardamom, and cream) and a Basboasaa (a semolina cake with pistachios and sweetened condensed milk).
Inday All Day. Hibiscus Mezcal Margarita – mezcal, homemade hibiscus syrup, pineapple, and masala honey / Spicy Mango Margarita – chili-infused tequila, mezcal, cointreau, cinnamon, lime juice, and mango juice.
Housemade cheddar naan with a yogurt dipping sauce. <– so good!
Tamarind salmon.
K’Far. Persian margartia with mezcal, tequilla, and black lime.
Savory baklava with haloumi, rhubarb, and pistachio.
Short rib with amba and passionfruit.
Chocolate kanafi with a coconut ice cream.
Highlights from this week…
I took myself on a sunny coffee date to Wired on my day off. Espresso with marshmallow and Oreo cold foam.
Blackberries and a blood orange. So pretty!
Snack plate – corn nuts, smoked almonds, cacao almonds, blackberries, vegan jerky, and salmon jerky.
Loved both of these summer-y seltzers; the Polar was so pineapple-forward!
These marshmallows were so asthetically pleasing and so terrible (crumbly and very odd tasting).
But I used the vanilla ones to make homemade Snickers! This nougat recipe with salted peanuts and caramels folded in, topped with milk chocolate.
I was actively grocery shopping when I saw this week’s Roast specials and I changed my list to accomodate a night of take-out. Crunchwrap with honey Sriracha fried chicken, cheddar, coleslaw, french fries, and sweet chili aioli / buffalo chicken mac and cheese balls / roasted zucchini from home.
Filipino-ish dinner bowls. Ground turkey sauteed with tons of sisig seasoning, red and sweet onion, eggplant, and crispy baked shredded tofu. On a base of rice noodles tossed in chili crisp.
Bagel and lox inspired salad – romaine (with ranch, I was too lazy to figure out a cream cheese dressing), tons of fresh dill, quick-pickled red onion, hot smoked sockeye salmon, and everything seasoning roasted chickpeas.
This past weekend Adam and I… lost our minds over the beautiful flowers all over Park Slope / went to a Filipino/JapanFest street fair / checked off two restauarants on my “lauded cheeseburgers” list. Highlights included…
Birthday cake smoothie bowl from Juice Press. I kept seeing the advertisement for this and I couldn’t help myself! The smoothie was meh but the Out Haus birthday cake granola butter was perfection.
Marvelous by Fred – mini meringue with coffee and hazelnuts.
Ice cream from Teo’s – coffee crunch and sprinkles. Great texture, I love an egg-heavy ice cream base.
Street fair finds. Ube and calmansi juice was a surprisingly sucessful combo.
Okonomiyaki.
Mini twinkie with jackfruit and Frooty Pebbles.
Drinks at The Warren. I loved my Madame Brown with bourbon, passionfruit, sour, and egg whites. We also had the best (unphotographed) deviled eggs I’ve ever eaten; I want to come back here for dinner immediately.
Dinner at Red Paper Clip. My drink was the best of the weekend, College Drop Out – a whiskey sour with passionfruit.
Roasted cauliflower with yuzu agro dulce, shiso, and sunflower seeds.
The everything brioche with cured trout, miso egg yolk, and trout roe was a showstopper; this was stunningly good.
We got the cavetalli with nori, parmesan, and bonito.
Lobster three ways, fried salt and pepper claws / fried rice / and in a miso beurre blanc.
The burger – double patties, lettuce, special sauce, and yellow cheese.
Dinner at Emmy Squared. Palomo.
The burger – double patties, american cheese, spicy sammy sauce, greens, and pickles; served with waffle fries.
We also got a pizza with red sauce, meatballs, and banana peppers.
Niether burger makes my top three list (Elder Greene, Nowon, Ruthies) but they were quite good and it was a great weekend!
I love a good set of theme dinners! Some highlights from this week include…
I am definitely a fan of the BelliWelli bars, cinnamon swirl was soft and not too spiced.
Summer fruits are bringing me a lot of joy. It was a great week of yogurt bowls. Plain 2% Greek with cinnamon, blueberries, blackberries, and chocolate chip cookie dough granola.
Plain Greek with maple syrup, mandarin, blackberries, granola, and chia seeds.
Adam and I really enjoyed this Mabi tea with mauby and strawberry.
Instant topokki.
Two non-traditional jerkies, both a 10/10 – Louisville Vegan Jerky Co maple bacon and Trader Joe’s salmon – both had wonderful textures and great balance of flavors.
McConnell’s double peanut butter chip ice cream is a new favorite. This was the year I discovered that chocolate flakes are a top tier ice cream mix-in.
This packaged Alfajor was surprisingly moist; we would buy it again.
Two of my current favorite canned tequilla cocktails – Superbird paloma and Onda passionfruit seltzer.
Taco salad. Arugula with Trader Joe’s cilantro dressing / black beans / cheese flavored corn nuts / homemade tortilla chips – baked with lime and togarashi / poached chicken / roasted veggies – bell peppers, poblano pepper, and sweet onion / roasted zucchini / salsa – Frontera chipotle.
Chilaquiles. Shredded chicken – breasts and thighs cooked in the crockpot / all the leftover veggies / homemade tortilla chips / salsa / sharp cheddar and mozarella / topped with a fried egg / and plain Greek yogurt and hot sauce.
Crispy quesadillas. Shredded chicken reheated with green onions and taco seasoning / seasoned and mashed black beans / mozarella and sharp cheddar. Plus a trio of dipping sauces (guacamole, salsa mixed with yogurt, serrano mayo) and roasted broccoli.
Homemade burrito. Shredded chicken, black beans, salsa, avocado, and sharp cheddar. The surgeon did an excellent job rolling.
New Wave burrito. Sirloin Steak, chimichurri, rice, french fries, lime crema, chihuahua cheese, ranchero beans, and pico de gallo.
Highlights from quite a nice weekend! We had good weather, tons of coffees, great food, and a walk across the Williamsburg Bridge…
Rose water iced Americano from Land to Sea.
The cinnamon bun from Duck Island Bread Company is my all-time favorite.
I love this sort of spicy ginger and meyer lemon seltzer from Aura Bora.
Red bean stuffed, sesame coated mochi from Lucky King Bakery are a can’t miss.
Cola-flavored Chupa Chups!!
Lunch at Tanoreen. Za’atar mezcal margarita (mezcal, house made za’atar shrub, and fresh lime) — the best cocktail of the weekend.
Falafel. Plus we had the complimentary bread basket with great za’atar crusted crisps.
I got the baked eggplant with tomato, almonds, and ground lamb.
Knafeh – crispy filo dough with sweet cheese and orange blossom syrup.
Dinner at Virginia’s. Spicy Marg 2.0 – tequilla, passion fruit, lime, Thai chili oil, and spicy salt.
A mojito that reminded me of a julep.
Fantastic hamachi crudo.
French onion and crème fraîche dip with potato chips and trout roe.
Roasted carrots with almond romanesco and goat cheese.
THE burger with cheddar and onion marmalade. This was so good that I loved it even though it was vastly overcooked.
Plus the best shoestring fries.
We got the “banana pudding” for dessert; bananas with cookie crunch and whipped cream. Adam liked it because it tasted good and I hated it because there was not even a hint of pudding.
Eating Chalk 