to eat / what i ate recently around nyc

(1) Bagel from Tompkins Square Bagels (Can’t get a good bagel in NJ!)
(2) Roasted broccoli is a fave (olive oil, kosher salt, pepper, 425F for 25 min)
(3) Bar Primi fiore di carfiosi pasta (pretty but so-so). They take reservations now, but I probably won’t go back!
(4) Fresh California uni at Chelsea Market‘s the Lobster Place.
(5) Chelsea Market Mokbar bulgogi ramen. Share and get a side of extra noodles. The ho cake and tteokboki was less exciting.
(6) Cauliflower steak. Same process as (2). Cut it less than 1 inch thick.
(7) Roasted chicken using Trader Joe’s brined chicken and used some of this recipe. I need a meat thermometer. Love my Falcon enamelware. So easy to clean!
(8) Hu Kitchen “Benny” eggs benedict with chicken sausage, kale, and jordy cakes.
(9) Shake Shack’s new Shackmeister burger with crispy beer marinated shallots. I still prefer the Shack burger… 

(1) The only Beard Papa’s Cream puff left in NYC also sells Mud coffee. The Paris brest cream puff wasn’t as fresh and cream filled as my memory.
(2), (3) Red Farm is Asian fusion and was a surprisingly good brunch – their shrimp & snow pea leaf dumplings and curry crab dumplings were delicious. The skin was thin.
(4) Harbs is a new Japanese cake boutique. Beautiful cafe, much pricier than Lady M (think $10+ on average for a slice). Their cakes are less sleek and more ambitious than Lady M and tends to tumble over. This slice had tons of berries, chocolate chiffon cake, and some rum.
(5) Simit and Smith — Turkish “bagel” is called a simit. Slim and chewy.
(6) This is a relative of the pomelo — it’s so much more fun to eat when it’s all peeled and segmented.
(7) The Harbs’ spin on the millecrepe has tons of fruit. I didn’t care for the banana.
(8) Seasonal red velvet cake from Lady M did not impress.
(9) Shiny Tea in Flushing Panda milk tea = mini white pearls + normal pearls. The mini white pearls fascinate me. They have the same texture!

to eat / what i ate recently

Edi & the Wolf (East Village) – Brunch. Super fluffy scrambled eggs with crispy onions and speck.

Torrisi (Nolita, previously featured here) – Limited seating every night. Menu changes every day depending on what is in season. We got a table for 9:30pm. The antipasti consisted of fresh mozzarella and toast (AMAZING), sweetbreads, seafood salad, and another salad. We had the gnocchi, which were fluffy little pillows of goodness. For the main, we shared the John Dory (which wasn’t cooked with marsala as stated on the menu), the bbq lamb, and an amazing shortrib (we cleaned the bone real good). The house pastry was an assortment of cookies, after a quick grapefruit sorbet palate cleanser. The rainbow cookie and fresh cream puff were faves. The celery salt cookies were not. You can take away cookies $0.50/per.

Manhattan Cocktail Classic “British Invasion” event at Eleven Madison Park (Flatiron) – This was on the EMP “patio”. The charming Crooners played Beatles songs for hours and they passed around excellent fish and chips. I won’t mention how many I had, but it made me miss my trip to Ireland last May! There were 6 signature cocktails and table service :)

to eat / what i ate recently (more LA)

More LA… Urth Caffe, Umami Burger, Lark Cake Shop, and a wedding.

Urth Caffe – I met M at her new (to me) home on a sunny Saturday morning. I rarely get up before noon on a Saturday but had to in order to “fit” everyone into my schedule. After admiring the many designer chairs, we walked over to the Melrose location of this popular cafe. The sun was shining a bit too brightly for this pale-faced Asian, so I hid in the shade. Their tea lattes looked very popular, so I started with a green tea latte.

I got the “eggs verde” egg dish, which consisted of poached eggs over arugula, roasted corn, baby tomatoes, and asparagus. The salad was so fresh and delicious!

The line to order snaked around the cake/pie case. Their cake/pies are massive (think Cheesecake Factory grandness). You think I could pass it up? We shared a slice of the coconut custard pie. Delish.

Umami Burger – It was my last few hours of freedom. J and I grabbed lunch at the popular Umami Burger in Los Feliz. We started out with ginger beer and root beer.

The interior had an industrial, Japanese schoolhouse vibe.

to eat / what i ate recently

Here’s a smorgasbord of stuff I ate in NYC and LA.

Around home

Brindle Room fresh donuts – Caramel donut made out of mashed potatoes. Surprisingly light. Made to order.

酒釀 (sweet fermented rice) – This is a common winter comfort dessert. My mom has been making this for decades. It smells like rice wine. We usually cook it with eggs, rice balls, or mandarin oranges. I was about to eat some today, when I realized my roommate had thrown my tub out… :(

Bespoke Chocolates – Sadly, this chocolate shop just shuttered last week. They have beautifully crafted artisan chocolate and was hidden in an alley near Houston St. Pretzel-Covered Sea-Salted Caramels, Venezuelan Dark Chocolate Cognac, Southampton Tea Truffle, Strawberry Balsamic, and Lavender Honey Fleur de Sel Caramel seen below.

Pulino’s – Brunch! I discovered sausage gravy and biscuits in my college dorm. I have yet to meet an unsatisfactory version of this dish.

Los Angeles

Newport Seafood – I’ve been wanting to eat at Newport Seafood ever since I saw it on Oh Joy!’s blog. I LOOOOVE Chinese-style seafood. My friend J and her husband indulged me on my quick trip to LA. We had the clams with black bean sauce, their popular beef loc lac, a healthy dose of pea sprouts, and their special lobster.

to eat / what i ate recently

Last Saturday, we stopped by the Brooklyn Flea for the Bake Sale for Japan. My friend, Talida, lovingly baked for the sale.  I wanted to support her and the other bakers. And I love baked goods, not much convincing needed! She made matcha, azuki, and kurogama (black sesame) shortbread cookies. Visit her blog for recipes!