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Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Big Apple Bites - Part 1



There wasn't enough time. (I think I said the exact same thing in last week's post, I need to take longer vacations.) I recently spent a fast-and-furious 2.5 days in the Big Apple where I met my foodie family who was visiting our cousin (Hi G!) who just started NYU. There's nothing better than spending time with family (especially with our NYU superstar, who we miss terribly), except spending time with family...over food. Which we did. A lot. Here goes...

I had three places on my wish list, and Momofuku-anything was at the top. However, getting into
Momofuku Noodle Bar on a Saturday night is tough (especially with a party of 9) but after waiting an hour and a half and splitting our group in two, it was a dream come true. Green Light: Momofuku ramen ($16) was savory, slippery and made with love; with luscious chunks of pork belly and a perfectly poached egg. Spotlight: melt in your mouth pork belly buns. Everyone from Anthony Bourdain to Martha Stewart raves about these famous buns and now I know why.

We also visited
Momofuku Milk Bar, which turned out to be a smallish take-out dessert spot hidden in the Chambers Hotel. Green Light: the Cinnamon Bun Pie has built-in cream cheese icing (genius!), we also liked the yummy peanut butter and compost cookies. Yellow light: the Candy Bar Pie was a little bit too sweet, in my opinion (like a Reese's, Snickers and Rolo all at the same time, with a pretzel). Spotlight: their famous Crack Pie had an addicting, custard-y, butterscotch-y taste that made you want to swallow more and more with each bite.

We also made sure to try the
Shake Shack, which some say is like the In & Out of the E. Coast (I think it's even better, and I love In & Out). Green Light: perfectly cooked, deliciously seasoned burgers and cheese fries. Yellow Light: the peanut butter fan in me had to try the salted peanut butter hot chocolate, which was good if not a little too rich. Spotlight: here they have concretes - which is kind of a cross between a sundae and a shake. All I can say is wow. Their Pumpkin Pie Oh My Concrete (vanilla frozen custard with a piece of pumpkin pie blended together) is one of the best things I've ever tasted.

I lived in NY for a few years and my fave bagels were from
H&H,
so I had to visit for old times' sake. Green Light: cinnamon raisin bagels: firm and toothsome on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside, best when eaten still warm. Another Green Light: strawberry cheesecake from Junior's: dense, creamy and flavorful with just the right amount of tart and sweet. Unfortunately, a a return visit to a former favorite spot, Gray's Papaya turned out some underwhelming hot dogs - Red Light.

Lastly, a BIG Green Light for the
Halal Guys in midtown. Open from 7:30pm-4am, this food cart (my sister's bf Pat-strami did the research, and these guys at this particular location are the best) serves a $6 platter of some of the best chicken or lamb gyro and rice ever. Fresh, tender and perfectly spiced with an awesome white (mayo? yogurt?) sauce. At $6 it's one of the best, and most delicious deals in town.

And this is only the first half. The eating continues...Part 2 next week!

SAMIWICH'S OVERALL TASTE RATING

2 comments:

Galen said...

Green light as mean good to go?

Sami and Addie said...

Yes - green light means go, go, go! (Get the point?)

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