Awesome Dishes Around NYC

While I do sometimes like to focus on one meal at one particular restaurant, I thought it was about time that I share some delicious dishes I've had recently around the city--a "round up" if you will. I eat about 99% of my meals out and while some of those entire meals aren't necessarily worth a story, some of the individual food is.

1. Fish Tacos at good restaurant in the West VillageI've already raved about the brunch, but last time I was there having brunch with Jill & Jen I decided to order the fish tacos because, well, I love fish tacos! These didn't disappoint, and I highly recommend you try them (but only after you've worked your way through their standard brunch menu!)

2. Soup Dumplings at Dumpling Man in the East VillageSoup Dumplings are also one of my very favorite things. This place is a definite go-to for us whenever we're in the East Village, especially since Caroline and I used to only live 1 block away. You get to watch your food being made right in front of you.If you order delivery from Dumpling Man, you can log onto their website and spy on the place from their live webcam. (Right Sam?)

3. Crab & Spicy Tuna Timbale at Sagaponack in the FlatironThe only thing that could make spicy tuna better is to add a few of my favorite things: crab, avocado and mango. This appetizer at the charming nautical-themed restaurant in the Flatiron was so good that I almost wished Patrick and I had each ordered our own.

4. Roasted Shitake Mushroom Sandwich from Olives in SohoThis is, hands down, one of the most delicious sandwiches in the entire city. Maybe it's the unique texture of the roasted mushrooms, maybe it's the herb ricotta spread all over it. Whatever it is, get yourself down to Soho and order this sandwich, you won't be disappointed!

5. Croque Monsieur at The Boom Boom Room (Top of the Standard) in Meatpacking (important to note, Boom Boom has no website. So sometimes I doubt it actually exists.)Maybe it was the plethora of cocktails we consumed during Stevie's Birthday Brunch before visiting Boom Boom. Maybe it was the ridiculously ooey gooey cheese melted all over the dish. Maybe it was because we were taking in some of the best views in the city while eating it. Whatever it was, I'm still drooling over the Croque Monsieur from Boom Boom.

What are some of your favorite dishes in NYC, or wherever you live? I am constantly finding new food that I love, and these are just a few examples. Looking forward to discovering lots of yummy new dishes.

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Fun, Casual Comfort Food at Mooncake

I remember when I was a teenager, I used to babysit for the young daughter of our family friends in NYC. Before the parents would go out for the night they would hand me a stack of 100 menus and say "Order whatever you want for dinner." Since I grew up in Connecticut, this concept of food delivery was brand new to me. I was told that I could get a cheeseburger and fries brought right to the apartment, and it was like a whole new world was opened up to me.

Of course since then, the New York City delivery industry has been revolutionized by companies like SeamlessWeb, and now we have thousands of options at our fingertips. With almost every restaurant in Manhattan offering delivery, it's difficult to sort through the options to find the truly great places to order from. I order delivery more often than I'd like to admit, but because of this I consider myself somewhat of an expert. No restaurant has impressed me more than Mooncake Foods.

Dubbed as "Fun Casual Asian Comfort Food," Mooncake Foods has 3 locations in Manhattan-- Soho, Hell's Kitchen and Chelsea. Since I both live and work in Chelsea, I order from the West 30th & 8th Avenue location all the time. My absolute favorite thing on the menu is the Steak Kebab plate. Grilled red peppers & onions accompany flavorful chunks of steak over rice, all covered in a delicious peanut curry sauce. Yum! I also enjoy the Miso-Glazed Salmon and the Pulled Pork Sandwich with Curry Lime BBQ Sauce. Everything on their menu is the kind of food that warms your soul, both tasty and comforting.

If you're looking for some delicious delivery in NYC, check out Mooncake Foods, I promise you won't be disappointed.

What are you favorite delivery spots around NYC? Let me know, I'm always looking for new places.

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Winter Restaurant Week: A Recap

As I've mentioned before, I love NYC Restaurant Week the way a 5 year old loves a trip to Disney World. As soon as the restaurants are announced on nycgo, I go into a frenzy of menu-reading, Open Table reservation-making & emailing friends to invite them to join. I changed a few of the reservations I had initially made for Restaurant Week (had to cancel Primehouse & Nobu), and here is where I eventually landed:

1. BONDST to celebrate my birthday with Lauren & Jill
2. Riverpark with Patrick & 2 other couples
3. Mercer Kitchen with some more of the girls

BONDST is a constant favorite of mine during Restaurant Week and, to be honest, every other week of the year. The vibe is sexy, the food is incredible & the drinks are delicious. For my meal, I chose the Tofu Miso Soup, the Salmon Avocado & Spicy Tuna Rolls, and the New York Strip Steak with Caramelized Shallot Teriyaki & 12-year-old Balsamic. Every dish also comes with Spicy Crispy Shrimp, Age Dashi Tofu and a Steamed Chicken Dumpling. For dessert, I had the Ricotta Cup.The flavor of the Miso Soup was rich, the rolls were the perfect ratio of rice to fish and were incredibly fresh and the steak was a medium-rare masterpiece. Tender, juicy and packed with flavor, I savored every bite of the meat. The 3 accompanying sides were also delicious, each bite was a bold new flavor. And yes, I even enjoyed my dessert, the savory (not sweet at all) Ricotta Cup.

Riverpark has been on my "must try" list as soon as I first heard about its opening last September. Tom Colicchio is my favorite chef, and since I can't quite afford to dine at Tom Tuesday Dinner (yet!), I've been dying to go. I made a 6-person reservation and drooled over the menu for the weeks leading up to it. When Patrick and I got in a cab and told them "take us as far east across 29th street as possible," we knew this place wouldn't be easy to find. And boy were we right! After wandering around lost for about 10 minutes along the FDR, we ran into 2 of our friends who were just getting out of their cab and were as lost as we were. Together, we investigated the building and finally found a security guard to ask where to go. But, let me tell you this: don't let the location turn you off. This restaurant has both a beautiful decor and delicious food. I ordered the Cavatelli, Lamb & Mint dish for an Appetizer, the Roasted Chicken with Sunchokes as my Entree and the Cinnamon Pana Cotta with Pumpkin Cake for Dessert.The pasta dish was outstanding, the combination of lamb & mint reminded me of a great rack of lamb with mint jelly and the pasta was perfectly al dente. My roasted chicken was juicy and tender and had a delicious crispy skin. While the Panna Cotta was just okay, I think I just don't like Panna Cotta. I'd never had it before, and I just didn't enjoy the texture or the flavor of the dish. Lesson learned.

Finally, Mercer Kitchen. Deep in the heart of Soho, the atmosphere here is similar to BONDST. A hip lounge with food from Jean-Georges Vongerichten, any restaurant in NYC that's been around since 1998 must be doing something right. The 6 of us arrived early for our 8:30 reservation, and we weren't shown to our table until close to 9:30. The staff offered absolutely no apology, but we did get a nice corner table in the busy restaurant. For this meal, I decided not to order from the Restaurant Week menu because I'd had my share of desserts for the week. I ordered the Pizza Bianco (4 cheese & garlic, hold the red onions) as my Appetizer & the Breast and Confit of Duck with rhubarb, preserved lemon and wild rice as my Entree.I love a good white pizza, and this one was fantastic! The crust was both chewy & crunchy and the cheeses oozed with olive oil & garlic. I didn't want the dish to end! And then when I thought I couldn't be happier with my selection, my Duck came out and I was first surprised at how much food was on the plate. When I bit into the Confit, it was incredibly tender and full of hearty flavor. The Breast of Duck was medium rare, just how I like most of my meat cooked, and the juice from the duck spread out over the plate when I cut into it. It was moist, well- seasoned and practically fell apart in my mouth. I wanted to lick my plate clean, and I wasn't even a little bit jealous when some of the other girls ordered dessert. The service was lacking at Mercer Kitchen, but the food was not.

Now that Winter Restaurant Week has been extended until the end of the month, I may try to visit a few more spots, but overall, I'm very happy with the restaurants I visited this time around. Until Summer Restaurant Week!

What restaurants did you try, in NYC or any other city you may live in? Any suggestions of places I just HAVE to try? I'd highly recommend all 3 places I went, but beware of the bad service at Mercer Kitchen.

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Great Find: Burger & Barrel

For over a year, I walked from the East Village to Soho across Houston Street to work. The space at the corner of Mercer & West Houston always looked like a spot that would work well for a restaurant, but nothing good was ever there. Until now.

After a day of Christmas shopping around the city, Patrick and I found ourselves hungry in Soho. We passed by Burger & Barrel noting that it looked good, and after checking out the menu, we were sold, it looked awesome. We walked in the door and we were greeted by a trio of friendly ladies and shown to a table for 2 near the bar.

The decor of the restaurant was the first thing I noticed, all dark wood and red tiles arranged to look like exposed brick. Our waitress was attentive and friendly, and she loved that I took pictures of the food (seriously, she high-fived me.)

Patrick & I decided to share 2 appetizers and 1 entree, so we each picked an app to start with. I chose the Short Rib Tacos and he chose the Tuna Tartare. The waitress assured us we had made solid choices, and brought us the wine and beer we had ordered.

When the food came out, it looked delicious. Two small tacos that were bursting with color and a perfect circle of Tuna Tartare topped with Avocado Mousse and surrounded by crunchy chips were placed on our table. The tacos tasted even better than they looked. The Short Rib was tender and full of rich flavor, not at all dry as Short Rib can sometimes get. The veggies inside the taco were fresh, and served as the perfect compliment to the meat.

The Tuna Tartare was the perfect shade of red/pink and tasted exactly as it should: chilled, with a great texture and taste. The Avocado Mousse on top was awesome and paired really well with the fish. The chips were the right amount of salty, and served as a great serving utensil for the fish and avocado. When all 3 elements were eaten together, the result was perfection.

For our main dish, we chose to share the Fried Cornish Hen with Mashed Potatoes, Gravy & Cole Slaw. The waitress again assured us we had made a great choice, and I only believed her once I tasted it. Frying a Cornish Hen results in a less greasy, juicier take on classic Fried Chicken. While I wish the portion had been a little larger since Patrick and I were sharing, that is my only complaint. We "ooed" and "ahhed" our way through the entire dish until our plate was completely empty.

When we were finished with our meal, we decided to share the Salty Peanut Butter Brownie Sundae, which was good, but I wouldn't recommend it. The brownies were cold and the Peanut Butter drizzle was just okay. This further confirms my theory that dessert isn't worth saving room for, but I'll leave that argument for another time. Overall, the meal, the drinks, the decor and the service were all outstanding, and I highly recommend everyone try this place as soon as possible. It's only been open for 3 months, and it's only a matter of time before it turns into a Soho gem.

On the dessert topic, I'm interested to hear your take on ordering dessert. Do you always order it? Never order it? Do you specifically leave room for it, or are you one of those people who proudly shouts "I always have room for dessert!" after a meal? Let me know, I love hearing from you.

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie