todd english's food hall

this weekend my mom visited and we had a ball. she suggested we check out the newly opened food hall in the plaza hotel. it's essentially what americans know as a "food court" however, it felt nothing like one. it's based on the classic food halls at famous department stores like harrod's. like everything else in the plaza hotel, it's incredibly glamorous and luxurious.  there are many different food stations such as a raw bar, pizza, a bakery, a flower stand, cheese selections, housewares etc. i took lots of pictures because the actual space is so beautiful. gorgeous tiling, intricate woodwork and of course every delicious treat you can think of. definitely a foodie's dream. i highly recommend that you check it out. next time i go to the plaza though, i'm going to find eloise. 

the breslin

it's time for a restaurant review...woooh haven't done one of these in a long time. this weekend friends of ours brought us to a place i had only heard about through nymag and the like. it's called the breslin, located on 29th between 5th and 6th. it's actually inside  the ace hotel, which i think once was the hotel breslin. it's a super trendy but not pretentious gastropub. i didn't get to try much of the food because i had already eaten, however, what i did sample was terrific. the menu is filled with comfort foods gone glam like smoked pork belly, beef and stilton pie and onion and bone marrow soup. so, actually, none of these things are probably things i would ever eat but for the adventurous type, i am sure they are fabulous. i did get a chance to sample their homemade salt and vingear chips (delish) and several different cookies (the fresh fig newton was unbelievable) i also had a cleverly named cocktail called "a rush of blood to the head." all in all, i think the breakfast and lunch menus look slightly more appetizing (think oven baked 3 cheese eggs, fried peanut and banana sandwich or caramel popcorn) but the decor and overall relaxed atmosphere definitely make it a place where i will go again!

lunch with front studio

every so often..i become obsessed with one blog (okay more like very often). usually they are similar to my own, i.e. style, fashion, design etc. however, my newest fav is solely devoted to lunch and snacks..it's called lunch with front studio. these brilliant girls are architects who also happen to love food. just like me (except for the architect part). they highlight what they have for lunch and where it's from..as well as my favorite part, their 4 pm snack. i'm thinking i'll apply for a job there..

71 irving

(via ny mag)

on sunday, t and i decided to head over to the gramercy park neighborhood for brunch at friend of a farmer. this was our second attempt and we were yet again, unsuccessful. the lines are always so long. though that was frustrating, we found the most wonderful coffee shop next door which made the trip down there totally worth it. it's located at 71 irving place, and goes by the same name though it's owned by a coffee compnay called irving farm coffee. it has a cozy, rustic vibe and i really felt like i was in vermont instead of the city. aka this is why i loved it. but i also thought the cofee was absolutely delish and i even bought a pound to bring home to my mom (the packaging is adorbs!). next time, i want to go back and try the pastries and other baked goods, since they all looked tasty. it's just a little place, but it could be my new favorite spot.

weekend re-cap

so i've never done this before, but because i had such a wonderful food and culture filled weekend, i wanted to report to you the new places i hit up. it was the weekend before my birthday, so definitely splurged quite a bit (aka i ate my face off).

on friday night i checked out stanton public for some allagash white with j, a & m

then on saturday i tried some amazing west village falafel at taim. only 5.25 for a big falafel sandwich! yum!

while basking in the cuteness that is the west village, we stumbled upon this AWESOME store which i've seen in blogs quite a bit. jonathan adler has the most awesome home stuff i've come across in nyc.

on sunday morning t and i headed to the asia society. i'd never been before and had heard wonderful things. we saw an exhibition on vietnamese artifacts like vessels, jewelry and even drums. it brought me back to the days of 9 am art history classes. and yes, i really do miss that.

for my final fat kid splurge of the weekend, t & i went to rosa mexicano to celebrate my birthday. good lord the food was good. the guac was definitely the best i've ever had and they make it right at your table. you must go.

meatball shop

well yesterday was just the most wonderful day. i went wedding dress shoppping (for her, not me!) with K&A. it was oodles and boatloads of fun. we finally found THE dress at kleinfeld, which was just an amazing experience all around. but the best part of the day for me was definitely the dinner afterwards! k's fiancee read a review of meatball shop in new york magazine and was dying to try it. i believe it only opened to the public on wednesday? well. let me tell you. it was AWESOME. they only sell meatballs and ice cream sandwiches pretty much, but that was okay by me. the atmosphere was beyond cozy with dark burgundy walls and vintage wedding photos (appropriate!), dim lighting and milk bottle flower vases at the bar. it was very crowded, but didn't take us too long to find a spot for five people at one of their family style tables. the owner was our waiter, and he was fabulously downtown with a plaid shirt and tatoo covered arms. did i mention he was also a babe? i had beef balls (the meat was local!) with mushroom gravy and a caramel/chocolate chip cookie sandwich for dessert. here are some pics, which i stole from nymag (sorry!). i would definitely recommend this place to anyone. the food is awesome, the atmosphere cool but not too cool and everything was reasonably priced. pretty much my qualifications exactly. xx

kiehl's

this weekend, t and i headed downtown to the flagship kiehl's store, on recommendation of his dad. sounds funny, but his dad had sent me an article about the store, and i thought it looked really neat. i've never owned anything by kiehl's, but i now officially may be a convert. the store itself is located on 3rd ave between 13 and 14th street. it has been there since 1851. as they have touted, "kiehl's is new york born and bred." the store itself was filled with every luscious lotion and cream i could have ever dreamed of. we spent a good long time lathering up and moisturizing, which was quite fun. the decor in the store itself is very cool, beautiful wood floors, vintage furniture and glitzy chandeliers, motorcycles on display  and photos haphazardly hung on the wall. there is even a mud stop coffee shop in the corner. perfect if you need to fuel up mid-beauty routine. i ended up buying the avocado eye cream, because the girl at sephora actually said.."WOW, how old are you?" when she looked at my eyes and just on principal i refused to buy anything from her. so i got the point i needed some cream. and no one at kiehl's was pushy or horrified at my dry undereye area. i have been religiously applying it since yesterday..so we will see what happens. regardless, i had such a nice experience at kiehl's, and next on my list is their classic musk lotion/body wash combo set. it smells terrific. xx

a voce: columbus

now, i am no fancy pants when it comes to restaurants. but the other night, i had a fancy pants meal and it was fancy pants fabulous. i was lucky enough to be invited to dinner by t's brothers wifes parents..or to make it more complicated, also t's sisters husbands parents..yes both siblings are married to other siblings. so complicated! regardless, they are definitely t's family. we met them at a voce in columbus circle. the decor was modern, sleek and made me feel like quite an oaf. but that's okay, it was well worth it. the view of columbus circle is gorgeous and the food is even better. it's classic italian with wonderfully fresh ingredients. i had the cavatelli which had bacon, sheep's milk ricotta and brussel sprouts (my new obsession). for an app t and i shared the stracciatella which had creamy pugliese mozzerella, pears and arugula. the mozz literally melted in my mouth. for dessert we all shared the bombolini which are these fantastic little donuts with chocolate dipping sauce. all in all, a wonderful restaurant. i can't see myself splurging and going back any time soon, but having the opportunity to go with this family was such a treat.

alice's tea cup

aaaaand this girl has yet another food recommendation. i've always heard that alice's tea cup was a fun place to go, but i didn't have the opportunity to go myself until this morning. i decided it would be a fun place to take my mom, and it being wednesday, i didn't have to worry about the treacherous wait i've heard it  has on the weekends. i went to "chapter 3" of alice's tea cup, located on 81st between 2nd and 3rd. the moment i walked in i felt like i was in a fairy tale/tree house/wonderland (approrpriately). there were tutus on the wall and alice and wonderful murals and beautiful china oh my!
        my mom and i got to sit on a raised area towards the front where we could look down on the rest of the restaurant and also out the window. there were about 100 different teas to choose from and we ordered the peach tea with flowers. it was fabulous! so flavorful! it came in a lovely purple tea pot with a porcelain kitten on top, which was clearly so up my alley. i ordered an omelette and my mom got the crepes. both were wonderful. mine came with a side of grilled pears and asparagus which was quite an unlikely duo but delicious nonetheless. this place would be so fun to take out of town friends for tea and scones on a rainy afternoon. i have to say, alice's tea cup is as good as everyone said!

vegan cupcakes

ok. yesterday, i had a revelation. my roommate and i were lucky enough to both get out of work early. so without question, we headed down to the village for shopping and a cupcake mission. she has read about babycakes on a blog and we were excited to try it. i was particularly interested in this place because both my brother and his fiance are vegan, so i considered this research for a potential wedding gift . after a little searching we found the bakery, which is located on broome between orchard and ludlow. we picked out 6 cupcakes. red velvet, carrot and mint chocolate chip were among the selections. they were delicious. and hands down the best thing about this place is that these sweet treats are not only vegan, but not as bad for you as a regular cupcakes too! they are sweetened by agave juice and you can choose other options like soy-free, gluten-free or with spelt (a grain). all in all, it was a really fun place albeit incredibly overpriced. but i guess if that's the only downfall to the perfect, healthy cupcake..i'll take it. xox

westville

so last night, i had the most wonderful dinner date. and in my opinion a great dinner date is made up of good food, good people and good conversation (cheesy, i know). i certainly can find that easily with l & m. they are two of my favorite nyc girls and i love meeting up with them. they have great taste and always introduce me to cute, delicious and affordable places to eat in new york. l recommended we head to a restaurant called westville. there is a west village location and also one in alphabet city. i opted for the east side spot, simply be cause it's slightly closer to my apartment. when i arrived, it was already bustling. the front and side walls were mysteriously non-existent so it really felt more like we were eating outside. there's a real country feel to it (which i love) with worn signage and clapboard walls. the greatest thing about westville are the variety of sides you can choose from. they are fresh daily and include things like green peas with shallots and bacon and artichoke hearts with parmesan. you usually choose two from a list of about 20 to go with your entree. i'd have to say the best of all the sides were certainly the sweet potato fries (we decided they were probably the best we'd ever had). all in all, it was a wonderful night spent with great friends and i now have another favorite restaurant that has guaranteed good food for a reasonable price.