newyork Archives - Foodology

In Bakery

Ess-A-Bagel: It’s a Bagel in New York

July 16, 2012

Ess-A-Bagel is located in Midtown East in New York. They are best known for their bagels and it was conveniently located less than a black away from my hotel! CanuckGirl went twice and told me it was very awesome and delicious!

You can order bagels at the back of the store, but if you want it prepared, you need to go to the counter on the left.

They have a lot of cream cheese! Imagine a gelato shop but instead of gelato, it’s cream cheese.

Sesame Bagel ($1) was not as fresh as the one I had devoured in montreal. I had the sesame bagel toasted on each side and didn’t add any cream cheese inside. I wanted to taste the bagel itself, which I guess was a mistake. It’s not very great on its own, you really need something to go with this.

I took the bagel back with me as I waited for my flight to Vancouver. As I sat there eating my plain cream cheese-less bagel, I really wish I ordered it with cream cheese or some other type of filling. Departing New York with regret because I wish I could have eaten more.

Address:
831 3rd Ave Ste 1
New York, NY

Website:
http://www.ess-a-bagel.com/

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In Four Beakers

Eataly: Mario Batali’s Grocery Store in New York

July 5, 2012

Eataly is an Italian grocery store in New York and one of the owners is Mario Batali. It’s very large and you can find a lot of unique groceries and delicious eats! It is conveniently located across the street from the famous flatiron building! If you are planning to visit the flatiron, you must take a stroll through this building.

CanuckGirl and I wanted to have some lunch here and ended up buying so much more than just lunch! It’s a good place to buy some gifts like chocolate and cookies. I grabbed a bunch of random items and when we went back home and gave it to our friends and family, they loved it.

When you walk inside, you can have some gelato or some other random snack and desserts.It’s quite packed, you you may need to have a bit of patience.

If you love coffee, they have a coffee bar there too. All the servers are really nice and helpful.

They also have fresh cheese and meats. It’s a bit expensive, but they do have a lot of variety of produce.

As this is an Italian grocery store, you will definitely see a huge section just for pasta! I never knew there were so many different kinds and brands.

La Pizza and La Pasta

La Pizza and La Pasta is a little restaurant inside Eataly near the pasta section. At noon, there was a huge line up for this restaurant, but CanuckGirl and I were fortunate that we didn’t have to wait too long.

Told you it is right beside the pasta aisle.

Complementary Bread arrives at the table too. It’s all wrapped up.

Inside is the bread. The inside is soft and the outside a bit chewy.

Dry Pomegranate Soda was very delicious and not too sweet. It was a perfect drink since it was a pretty hot day in New York.

Pesto Lasagna ($16) has layers of pesto, pinenuts and cheese. It was a decent size for the price. CanuckGirl loved it.

Pansotti di Ricotta e Spinaci has housemade pasta with local ricotta, spinach, lemon butter and pistachio. I was in love with this. It was very simple yet the balance of flavour was fantastic! I would order this over and over again!

Words of Wisdom:

Long lines if in large groups
Awesome place to look at large varieties of produce.
A tad pricey
Makes great gifts

We Rate Eataly:

Address:
200 5th Ave
New York, NY

Website:
http://www.eataly.com/

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In Brooklyn

Grimaldi’s Pizzeria: Pizza in Brooklyn, NY

July 4, 2012

Grimaldi’s Pizzeria is located in Brooklyn and everyone basically raves about this place. It’s located under the Brooklyn bridge, so you can either walk there (amazing view) or subway it (not so amazing view since you’re underground). They also have other locations around the city too. We chose this one because we wanted to hit 2 birds with one stone and see the Brooklyn Bridge.

CanuckGirl and I love pizza and we basically had pizza at every city on our trip.

We went pretty early in the morning and there was a line outside. Apparently there is usually a line and it’s normal for it to go around the block.

The funny thing is…this place is very big inside and there were tons of table available upstairs. I’m not sure exactly why they made people wait. It just reminded me of a night club since they usually make people wait outside even though it’s not full.

Cappuccino is served in a clear cup so it’s super cool to see what it looks like. It tasted good, but it could have been a tad stronger.

Old Brooklyn Cream Soda was amazing according to CanuckGirl. If you love soda, you may want to get one of these to accompany your pizza.

Small Regular Pizza ($12) has 6 slices and can serve 1 – 2 people. It has homemade dough, mozzarella cheese, and crushed tomato. It is cooked in a 1000° F coal brick-oven, is what makes the pizza crispy on the bottom.

The pizza was good, but I still believe the best pizza I’ve had is in Toronto…and for CanuckGirl she prefers pizza in Boston more. Nonetheless, it’s still a good but not super amazing.

Overall, it was a fun trip to Brooklyn. We had our huge pizza and got super full. This place is a tourist attraction, so expect the lines to be long during peak hours.

Words of Wisdom:

No reservations
No slices
No delivery
No Credit Cards

We Rate Grimaldi’s Pizzeria:

Address:
1 Front St
Brooklyn, NY

Website:
http://www.grimaldisnyc.com/

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In Sandwich

Shake Shack: Iconic Burger Joint in New York

July 3, 2012

Shake Shack is another iconic restaurant to dine at in New York. This location surely doesn’t look like a shack, but still has the delicious burgers that customers want. The original location isn’t this once, but it’s very close to the Museum of Natural History.

It was on CanuckGirl’s list of must eats, so we decided to go here. We were in the area anyways, so we didn’t want to miss a chance at eating their famous burgers and milk shakes.

It was packed inside!! There was a long line to the counter and a bunch of people waiting for their order.

They have seating upstairs and another seating area in their basement. It’s better eating on the main floor because of the nice natural light.

CanuckGirl and I ordered a little bit of everything. It’s not that healthy for you, but hey…when you’re on vacation, you can indulge a little. Plus all the walking in New York will surely burn off the fat.

Strawberry Shake ($5) is what CanuckGirl ordered and she enjoyed it.

Fair Shake ($5.50) is a vanilla shake with 100% certified organic coffee. It was good, but there could have been a stronger coffee taste to it. Nonetheless, it was still good for the hot summer weather.

Cheese Fries ($3.65) has the bed of crispy fries with a large amount of melted cheese. It was more like cheese spread rather than cheese. It was still very gooey and fun to eat.

Shack Burger ($4.55) is made with 100% angus beef, cooked to medium and comes with American cheese, lettuce, tomato and shack sauce.

Shack Stack ($8.60) is their cheese burger with a shroom burger topped with lettuce tomatoes and shack sauce. If you can’t decide between the cheese burger or shroom burger, might as well choose this one. I really loved this burger since the portobello mushroom was very crispy and very juicy at the same time.

Overall, we did enjoy our experience here. The waits are long and you might have to stalk other for a table, but it you have patience, you’ll do just fine. The prices are a bit high on a few items, but it’s worth it.

Words of Wisdom:

Shack Burger or Shack Stack Burger!
Lunch will probably be around $10
Long waits and limited tables

We Rate Shake Shack:

Address:
366 Columbus Ave.
New York, NY

Website:
http://www.shakeshacknyc.com/

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In Bakery

Magnolia Bakery: A Taste of Sex in the City in New York

June 29, 2012

If you have ever watched Sex in the City, you will know about this famous bakery. CanuckGirl and I were just walking around Rockefeller Center and suddenly just saw the bakery and immediately lined up. Since this isn’t the original location, it wasn’t too busy. It wasn’t too difficult getting a few of their cupcakes. For those who have never seen the clip of Carrie eating Magnolia Cupcakes, the clip is below.

The exterior and interior is very beautiful and a bit retro. You order on the left and you pay at the cashier in the back.

I went straight for the cupcakes and they had a few different varieties.

Once I picked my cupcakes, they all went into a very travel friendly box!

Your cupcakes won’t be moving around the box! Definitely very travel friendly! Too bad I couldn’t wait to eat it…so we ate it on a street corner. We couldn’t find a table.

S’mores Cupcake ($3.50) was very messy to eat! The wrapper was sticky so it will definitely need some napkins.

The cupcake is comprised of a graham flavored cupcake dipped and filled with chocolate ganache with a meringue icing. It was good, but not the best cupcake I’ve had.

Red Velvet Cupcake ($3.50) was bright red and topped with a meringue icing.

It was very bright inside and obviously has a lot of food coloring. The color of the cupcake is very vibrant, but the flavour wasn’t anything exciting.

Overall, its a great place for Sex in the City fans to go to and reminisce, but the quality and the flavours aren’t there.

Words of Wisdom:

Very close to Rockafeller Centre
Is not the original location
Can get a bit busy during peak hours

We Rate Magnolia Bakery:
Address:
1240 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY

Website:
http://www.magnoliabakery.com/

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In East Village

Ippudo: Ramen in New York with Huge Lines

June 28, 2012

Ippudo NY is the first overseas branch of the famous Japanese ramen chain. It was open in 2008. Ippudo was founded by Shigemi Kawahara in 1985 in the Daimyo District of Chuo Ward, in Fukuoka City. By the time Ippudo NY was opened, there were over 30 branches throughout Japan. By 2012, Kawahara had expanded his ramen empire to over 40 locations.

I arrived at 5pm for 1 person and the wait was already one hour! I wanted to give up at this point since that wait was ridiculous. Fortunately, CanuckGirl really wanted some noodles and they take same day reservations…so we made a reservation for 2 at 10pm.

The bar at the front of the restaurant has some nice decor.

There is even a wall of ramen bowls!

The East Village location features two dining rooms, a sake bar, an open kitchen for non-ramen dishes, and an open ramen bar. The noodles are made in-house in the basement.

It’s very dark inside, but it made for good ambiance.

Complementary tea is something I definitely needed on my travels.The servers were very good about refilling my cup.

Miso Ramen ($15) has soy bean paste flavored noodle in Tonkotsu (pork) based soup with pork chashu, cabbage, menma, ginger, and scallions. CanuckGirl did enjoy her ramen.

“The Kuro Kasane, or Kasane Black is a limited time special ramen at Ippudo NY. It has an authentic “Kasane” tonkotsu & chicken soup with noodles, topped with pork loin chashu, cabbage, sesame kikurage mushrooms, red pickled ginger, naruto, scallions, and fragrant “Black” garlic oil.

It was pretty good, but with the addition of the garlic oil and the broth, it was a bit salty for my liking. It’s still a pretty solid bowl of ramen.

Overall, the waits for a table are ridiculous, but if you make a reservation on the same day, you should have no issues at all. The prices are a bit high compared to what you would find in Vancouver, but you’re in NY, so be prepared to pay more.

Words of Wisdom:

Make same day reservations
Has daily specials
Ramen is a must!

We Rate Ippudo:

Address:
65 4th Ave
New York, NY

Website:
http://www.ippudony.com/

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In Midtown West

Carnegie Deli: Huge Expensive Reuben in New York

June 27, 2012

Carnegie Deli was founded in 1937 and has attracted visitors from all over the world. Even notable celebrities have visited here. They have a few locations in other parts of the States as well. They are best known for their huge sandwiches! I came here since I heard the reuben is something I must try.

At 5pm, there was quite a long line up already, so I opted to just do take-out and eat it back at the hotel.

If you do take out, just walk to the left counter and put down your order. Once you grab your order, you can pay at the counter on the right.

Ah, There`s the Reuben Sandwich ($24.95) was so expensive!! I actually didn’t expect it to be over $20, but it did hurt my wallet. There are layers and layers of pastrami underneath, then topped with sauerkraut and swiss cheese.

It also comes with a container of their mustard and Russian dressing. I love the mustard so much since it complimented the dish so well.

I thought the taste was quite average and nothing too amazing. For $24.95, I expected it to be much larger that what was presented to me. I think I would have had a better time eating a sandwich from Carnegie instead.

Overall, you can definitely get better food for the price of this reuben. I wasn’t too impressed.

We Rate Carnegie Deli:

Address:
854 7th Ave
New York, NY

Website:
http://www.carnegiedeli.com/

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In Dessert

Wafels and Dinges: Throwdown Wafel by Bobby Flay in New York

June 26, 2012

Wafels and Dinges has been featured on Eat St. and even Throwdown with Bobby Flay. I was at Columbus Square and this cart caught my eye. I saw them a few months ago being featured on Food Network and I just had to see what all the buzz is about. They have won several awards and were well publicized by various publications in New York.

If you were wondering what dinges are…don’t get it confused with dingus. Dinges = toppings.

You can watch the video below from the episode from Throwdown with Bobby Flay.

Looking at the menu, it makes for a nice snack and it’s all under $10. The line wasn’t too long and the staff at the cart were friendly.

de throwdown wafel ($6) was the wafel that beat Bobby Flay. It’s crunch on the outside and light on the inside. The wafel is topped with spekuloos spread and then a load of whipped cream. Spekuloos is like a spread that tastes like gingerbread cookies. It’s simple , but I did have to use a fork and knife to eat it. There was way too much whipped cream to eat it with my hands. I didn’t want to get any on my face or my clothes.

Overall, it was a great experience and I can see why they have won so many awards. Definitely check it out when you’re in New York.

We Rate Wafels and Dinges:

Location:
Outside the Time Warner Centre
Website:
http://www.wafelsanddinges.com/

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In Dessert

Big Gay Ice Cream Shop: Twist Cone with Sprinkles in New York

June 21, 2012

When visiting New York, I knew I had to go try te Big Gay Ice Cream Shop. I saw it on Food Network a few months ago and I had to see what all the buzz was about. It was a very hot day in New York, so ice cream was definitely needed!

They also have a Food Truck called Big Gay Ice Cream Truck!

The interior is very small, so you can’t really sit down anywhere. You basically go in, give your order, pay, get your order and leave. A lot of people were eating outside or were walking around.

Vanilla and Chocolate Twist Cone with Rainbow Sprinkles

So many sprinkles! I had the choice of choosing between chocolate sprinkles or rainbow sprinkles. I think I made the right choice! It really does turn you into a kid again.

The taste was quite good, but it wasn’t super amazing. It’s something simple that’s enjoyable. They also have other more adventurous types of ice creams too. I really wanted to try something more basic. I did enjoy my visit!

We Rate Big Gay Ice Cream Shop:

Address:
125 East Seventh Street
New York, NY

Website:
http://biggayicecream.com/