I'm BAAACCCKKK!!!!!!!!!!!! All I can say is, I'm ready to move to New York. Okay, maybe almost ready. :) Actually, I don't think I could ever leave the South, but New York will be a great travel spot from here on out. I LOVED this city so much. It's energy, the food, the people, everything! We had just the best time. I'm going to break up these posts so it's not one long gigantic one that people fall asleep 1/3 of the way through. So....this post will be all about FOOD. I wanted to save this one towards the end, but I'm just so excited about it I'm writing it now.
Friday NightWe landed pretty close to dinnertime and had a 30 minute drive to Josh's aunt and uncle's house. Did I mention we got picked up by his uncle's driver???? I felt like Don and Betty Draper. Minus the huge weirdness that is their relationship. Also, we haven't caught up with the last two seasons, so don't leave any comments that might give a spoiler!!!! Okay, so when we got to their house, they were at Temple. Their two younger children were there, but had already eaten so Josh and I picked through the 30 or so takeout menus that DELIVER (so jealous) and found a good looking Italian place. Josh got a meatball sub and I got a pepperoni calzone. It was the most unassuming calzone, but once I bit in, there was delicious mountains of cheese inside. And not just mozzarella, but the most buttery ricotta(or perhaps marscapone) cheese that just made it so decadent. And this was just like someplace down the street. I knew this trip was going to be the Mecca for foodies. We went to bed exhausted, me especially since I pulled a 5 a.m. bedtime the night before. Crawling into a bed with cold sheets and being so tired your almost giddy with impending sleep is one of the best feelings in the world.
SaturdayJosh's aunt and uncle were celebrating Yom Kippur and were at Temple for most of the day, and also couldn't eat. Josh and I went to this Italian Deli and once we walked in, we almost wet ourselves. It was like a dream. A brusque guy with a THICK "New Yawk" accent was asking me "whattya want?" And did I mention there was Italian meats and cheeses everywhere?! Along with things like lasagna, chicken cutlets and other prepared foods. I swear, I was Italian in another life. Anyways, I told the guy I love salami, I love cheese, just make me whatever. He laughed and suggested the Italian combo. It had marinated roasted red peppers, ham, salami, provolone, lettuce and oil all on a sesame roll. DELISH. Josh opted for a roast beef sandwich. I was too absorbed in mine to even look over and see if he enjoyed it, but he assured me later he did.
We took a train into the city and checked into our Hotel, which I might mention we stayed at The Waldorf Astoria. Did Josh turn into J.J. Rockefeller overnight and not tell me??? This also furthered the Don and Betty Draper vibe we were going for, since many a scene of Mad Men are set in that bar. There were multiple times throughout the trip, I thought we were going to pass out from pure excitement. We were totally cool though and waited until we got until the elevator to gush like little girls about the awesomeness that is the Waldorf.
By the time we got unpacked, it was time to meet up with Mur and Granddad for dinner before the show. Deb and Rob suggested an Italian place called Becco, in the Village. We had a bit of a wait, but we just sat on a stoop and talked and people watched until our table was ready. Since we were in kind of a hurry, we all chose to get the pasta special that night. Basically, they make three types of pasta and come around to your table with huge skillets of the fresh pasta and serve you till you burst. Heaven. Our trio was spaghetti with a spicy tomato sauce and fried shrimp. Fusili pasta with pesto and green beans. And, pumpkin ravioli in a brown butter sauce. OH MY WORD. The pumpkin ravioli was my favorite and that really surprised me. The pumpkin filling was sweet, but the brown butter sauce made it savory and the combination of the two was just perfect.
After our show, which I'll talk about in the next post. We decided we needed some ice cream. I suggested Serendipity, because I've seen it in a few movies, and other friends had recommended it. It was almost 11 when we got there and it was still a 45 minute wait. Again, we grabbed a bench and enjoyed the nice fall weather until our table was ready. Josh, always the level headed one, suggested we just get a couple of sundaes to share since we were all still pretty full. Well, we like to throw all caution to the wind when were on vacation and we all ended up ordering something different. I got the famous frozen hot chocolate, Josh got the black bottom cake sundae, Granddad got the strawberry cheesecake sundae and Mur got the apple pie sundae. While they were all delicious in their own right's, Mur's won. It had a wedge of apple pie nestled into the gigantic mug they serve it in, and topped with loads of walnuts, CINNAMON ice cream, caramel and whipped cream. We ate ourselves sick.
SundayJosh had us a place to eat brunch at on Sunday, but once we went there we found out it was only open for dinner. :( But, there was a place next door called Sarabeth's that was really busy and the menu looked good. Other than me having the most unlucky cup of coffee, the waiter spilled it twice on himself (I felt terrible!!!!)it was a great choice! I'm not a huge breakfast person, so I can't really gush about it like the others, but it was very good.
Afternoon hit and we found ourselves wanting a little snack. I have always wanted to go to Magnolia Bakery ever since I saw it in....well, I actually can't remember where I first read about it, but it's been a while. I ordered there cookbook a long time ago and have been dreaming about trying one of their cupcakes! When I went to check us in on my phone (which I never do, but thought it was fun for this trip) I noticed one of the nearby places was Carrie Bradshaw's apartment!!!!! Ahhh!!!!! We couldn't find an exact address, but it looked just like her street and it was all those cute walkup apartments. Anyways, it was crazy town inside Magnolia. I mean people were losing their minds over cupcakes. We grabbed a box and filled it with six cupcakes, grabbed a fistful of almond macaroons and four brownies. Once we got outside with our treats we laughed at how ridiculous our bounty of food was. But, the cupcakes were exactly how I dreamed they would taste! It was a highlight just sitting on a stoop, eating a Magnolia cupcake, somewhere near where Carrie Bradshaw lived just taking in the scene. So cool.
For dinner, we HAD to have pizza. We chose Lombardi's because it's the oldest pizzeria in NYC. It's made in a coal fired oven and topped with the most incredible red sauce. It reminds me a lot of Zaza's pizza. Very Italian. Such fresh ingredients and you can tell this recipe has been around a LONG time. SO good.
MondayWe were actually in a rush to get to the ferry to the Statue of Liberty that we just grabbed something on the way. We also ate lunch at the little cafe on Ellis Island so not too much to write home about. When we got back to the city, I was left feeling a little unsatisfied. I still hadn't had classic New York style pizza. All I wanted was this huge slice that was just dripping with cheese and you have to fold it to eat it. I have to give a big shout out to Josh here. We were SO exhausted, he wasn't really hungry, and I mean to be honest I really wasn't that hungry, but he walked 2 miles trying to find a Ray's Pizza for me. That's love right there y'all. Anyways, with Ray's, I found EXACTLY what I was looking for. A huge slice of pizza that soaks through about 5 paper plates and you have to fold it. Perfection. They also had about 12 pies to choose from and if I wasn't full from lunch and about to eat dinner, I might have tried another kind. But, I was pushing it as it was.
Let's talk Monday night dinner. There needs to be a moment of silence before we get too far in. ..... Okay, I'm ready. Josh's aunt and uncle came into the city with their kids and took us to Nobu. Josh and I ate here on our honeymoon at Atlantis. Since then, we have declared that to be top three best meals of our lives. We were pumped to go back. Especially since I am actually trying sushi now. Once we sat down, it was discussed we should just let the chef prepare us whatever he wants. Let me insert here, if you ever have the option to do this at any restaurant, DO IT. The chefs know what their doing people and they will take care of you. Trust me on this. We literally had about 8 courses. No lie. And each one was more amazing than the next. Here is some of what we had:Crispy Rock Shrimp in Spicy sauce, lobster salad, seared tuna salad, king crab tempura, a quartet of mini tacos, filled with crab,lobster, salmon and tuna, yellowtail with jalapenos, scallop ceviche (wasn't really ceviche, but it was raw served on a hot plate). I'm pretty sure I'm leaving a few things off. And then friends, we had........KOBE BEEF. The real stuff. OH EM GEE. Talk about best meal of your life! This beef was not only cooked perfectly, but it literally was melt in your mouth quality. And then...they brought out a huge tray of sushi. My dad always raves about his most favorite sushi, fatty tuna, and I actually got to try it. Like BUTTAH. I don't even like sushi guys, but there is a difference in eating it when someone who knows what their doing prepares it. Ya know? And then there was dessert. Oh dessert. So unique, so different, so good.
I have to mention also, that night, after going to the top of the Rockefeller center. I walked past an Auntie Anne's and we all nearly died from the tempting smells. I really don't think it's possible to walk past one of those and not get hunger pains. So we split some cinnamon pretzel sticks. As if we weren't already full. :)
So, after writing that I am now ready to go back. I want at least a full week there next time! There are just so many food options it's impossible to try everything you want to!
Next post will be about what we did!
In the long line waiting to go on the roof, there was a King Kong in the lobby taking pictures.
haha!
At Ellis Island, Josh searched for his family. We found his great great grandfather that came over from Germany in the records. So neat!!!! We've already traced my family back to the American Revolution so I couldn't search for anyone. :(
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