Food Bloggers’ Saturday in NYC

I know I am not the first blogger to say this, but I am really ready for spring. I sat in my office on Monday and watched snow blow in off the river all afternoon. I want to put my boots away. No more scarves. No more hair frozen on the subway platform during my morning commute. No more nearly dropping my work phone because I can’t grip the slippery little devil with gloves on.

When a few of us New York bloggers welcomed Erin of The Spiffy Cookie to our city last weekend, we were lucky enough to see sunny skies. But as you’ll be able to tell from the photos, that didn’t stop us from needing to bundle up against the blustery breezes. Hey March—you’re supposed to go out like a lamb. Didn’t you get the memo?

Good Eats: Amada

One of the things I look most forward to in the summer is a weekend (two, if I’m lucky!) getaway at the Jersey shore. There’s something about a place where (a) a bathing suit top and shorts are legitimate hangout garb and (b) ice cream is part of a balanced daily diet that just instantly puts me at ease.

This past weekend, Charlie and I soaked up some sun (after dodging some sneaky raindrops on Saturday–I would not be deterred!); ate a sweet, syrupy stack of Sunday morning pancakes; and were generally beach bums together. And it was glorious. But before commencing Project Laziness, we stopped off in Atlantic City on Friday night for a dressed-up dinner date and some fun at the game tables!

(Mis)Adventures in 5Ks

 

In my efforts to continue to prove that I do more than bake and eat what I bake, here’s another glimpse into my running life!

This week, I participated in the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge along with a group of other runners from my company. The race is a little more than a 5K–3.5 miles, to be exact–around the lake in Central Park.

NYC Eats: Molly’s Cupcakes

A couple of weekends ago, I was lucky enough to have one of my closest college friends come to New York to visit. In addition to doing the “typical” city stuff like taking in the Met, wandering through Central Park, and waiting waaaay too long for the subways thanks to those pesky weekend schedules, my friend C also made it clear that she expected there to be some fabulous cupcakes making an appearance in our day.

Well, I mean, if you’re going to twist my arm…

Good Eats: Soul de Cuba

Today my every-so-often NYC Eats review series is taking a field trip! We’re goin’ on the road to New Haven, CT, where Charlie is a grad student. We’ve both been wanting to try out this intimate but inviting Cuban eatery, Soul de Cuba, since he started school in September of 2010, but we just got around to visiting when I was there this past weekend.

NYC Eats: The Meatball Shop

How do you like your balls?

Chances are, if you tried to order “naked balls” in any other dining establishment, the management would swiftly and (maybe) politely ask you to vacate the premises.  Don’t even try your luck with “the family jewels.”

But at The Meatball Shop, a self-professed “fuss free kinda joint” with locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan, cheeky orders like this are only the beginning of the fun.

NYC Eats: Dinner at Queens Kickshaw

Now that I finally feel settled into my new neighborhood, I figured it was time to start sampling the local cuisines! A friend of mine read about a place that specialized in “fancy grilled cheeses” in the Gothamist–you don’t have to do much arm-twisting to convince me that grilled cheese is a fabulous dinner. Throw in a bangin’ list of hard ciders? I’m all over it.

Lunch Break: Chocolate & Crepes in Alphabet City

I work in Midtown Manhattan. Now, normally this provides for some pretty interesting sights. Free movies in Bryant Park, more food trucks of every conceivable ethnic variety than one could possibly choose from, and a whole lotta tourists (okay, so sometimes that part is exasperating).

But at other times? At other times the constant hustle and bustle and GOGOGO of Manhattan just gets to me. And so last week, thanks to an about-to-expire Groupon, I decided to take a field trip waaaay downtown to St. Marks Place during my lunch break. People, it’s a whole different world south of 14th Street.

Lunch break! Noshing in Philadelphia

There are certain days that are absolutely made for open-air dining. You know the ones–blue skies, zero humidity, light breeze–when those friendly little street-side cafes just seem to call out, “Come! Stay awhile! We have wine!”

Okay, well maybe not always that last part. In any event, my boyfriend and I found ourselves in Philadelphia on just such a Saturday not long ago. We contemplated our dining options: Reading Terminal Market? Always a hit–no matter what you or your dining partner are in the mood for, you both can let the spirit move you until you find the cuisine you fancy. Margaret Kuo’s? One of our favorites during undergrad, but alas, neither of us were having that very particular craving for Asian at the moment. The choice, it seemed, was clear:

Creperie Beau Monde.

Snickerdoodles: Sugar-Coated Nostalgia

This past weekend, I hopped a train and chugged down the Northeast Corridor to the City of Brotherly Love–Philadelphia, home of such illustrious denizens as the Liberty Bell and the cheesesteak. I was invited to a party given by a friend of mine who’d just graduated from college the week before, and as I welcome any excuse to return to Philly, I was more than happy to attend.