17/50 NYC Adventures: East Village Tour

East Village Tour

This is a continuation of our Alphabet City Progressive Dinner tour. The East Village is one of the city's most eclectic hubs, ripe with ethnic restaurants, itty-bitty bars and funky shops. If you're a purveyor of rich food and off-the-beaten-path atmosphere, allow your feet to wander all over this hood. You could walk around this area of town for hours and never see the same restaurant twice.

If you take the subway to Astor Place, you will exit right by Starbucks. If you're interested in doing a bit of pre-game people watching, grab a beverage and sit in this massive window. This particular Starbucks location has the most perfect view of Astor Place, looking all the way down St. Marks Street. You can check out all the chic fashionistas walking by - and you don't feel like such a creeper, staring from your perch on a bench. Because instead, you're a creeper behind the glass. Just sayin', it's a bit of an upgrade.

Once you've had your fill of crowd-watching, dive into the mix and start walking down St. Marks. There are some of the CUTEST little shops in this area. Resist going into everything, because then you will never actually get to the eating. Which, in my opinion, is the best part.

Mighty Quinns

103 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003 mightyquinnsbbq.com

Cuisine: Merger of Texas & "the Carolinas"-style Barbeque

Must Order: Burnt Ends, Pulled Pork, Brisket BBQ, Edamame & Sweet Pea Salad, Baked Beans (and I don't even LIKE baked beans, but these were scrumptious), plus all the Pickled Add-Ons (cucumbers, celery, red onions, chilies)

Impression: So, about a month ago I wrote a post about the deliciousness of Harlem's Dinosaur Barbeque (and I will stand by that review!), but I have to admit - THIS IS BETTER. Also a completely different style of barbeque. Mighty Quinns is smokier, steeped in juicy sauce and tenderly, joyously falling off the bone. Into my mouth. Warming my heart. The Burnt Ends Pork was probably my favorite, but its a real toss-up, because all the meat was so freakin' delish. And the atmosphere is awesome, kinda country (I mean, as country as it gets in the middle of Manhattan) and staffed with folks who know their barbeque. This place had a 30-minute line out the door, and it was completely worth the wait. GO TO THERE.

Big Gay Ice Cream Shop

125 East 7th Street, New York NY 10009 biggayicecream.com

Cuisine: Ice Cream

Must Order: Salty Pimp (vanilla ice cream, dulce de leche, sea salt, chocolate dip), American Globs (vanilla ice cream, pretzels, sea salt, chocolate dip), Gobbler (vanilla ice cream, pumpkin butter & maple syrup OR apple butter & bourbon butterscotch, pie pieces, whipped cream)

Impression: It's pretty self-explanatory. It's a big, gay ice cream shop. There is a gigantic unicorn painted on the wall. And there is really, REALLY good ice cream to be eaten, if you don't mind the insanely long lines. There are benches outside where you can eat and enjoy the sunshine, although beware - the serving sizes are huge and your ice cream might do some melting in the spring sunshine :)

The Far East. Village, that is.

Once again, many many, MANY mad-crazy thanks to our bright-eyed guides to the East Village, dearest Anthony & Jessica. Geez, I'm so thankful to know you. And to glean from your foodie research and wisdom. You two are just the creamiest of the crop. Love you both :)

16/50 NYC Adventures: Progressive Dinner in Alphabet City

Alphabet City Tour

Okay, so we were officially hip for ONE NIGHT of living in this city. Most of the time we are seriously homebodies, cooking up a storm and watching Netflix. Most recently, this tradition has been supplemented by an evening walk in the park or a foot rub, per my husband's generous heart. Bless that man for being so kind while I whip up a baby. But on this one amazing night, our dear friends Anthony and Jessica "showed us the ropes" and took us on the most fabulous foodie tour of Alphabet City, which is a super cool, semi-gritty, chock-full-of-delicious-restaurants-neighborhood in East Village. Anthony and Jess are serious about their taste buds. They cook. Like, they really cook. And they attend all these fancy city dinners and chef award celebrations and they're up on the poshest places to eat your heart out. So we really couldn't have gotten luckier when they offered to tour us around these Alphabet City gems. People, I was sampling cuisine I never knew existed. Tasting recipes with ingredients I had never heard of. How delightful it is to experience and savor the many ways pork can be served. Yum.

Please forgive the grimy iPhone pics. Just know that all this food rocked my face off, so if you're ever visiting this area and want a rec... this post is your pot of gold!

The Blind Barber 339 E 10th St, New York, NY 10009 blindbarber.com

Cuisine: SPEAKEASY

Must Order Cocktails: Strawberry Fields, Batman, Blackjack

Impression: This place wins the chic/awesome/city-swanky award BY FAR. Guys, this is a speakeasy, hidden in the back of a real barber shop. Yes. There is a secret door that takes you to a back room, "the cocktail parlor", they call it, and in the parlor there are a series of rooms, including a library, where one can imbibe prohibition-style. Pretty stinkin' cool. Don't worry, I had a dressed-up lemonade, sans alcohol. But I still felt like one of the bad girls from the roaring twenties. And that was fun enough.

Momofuku Noodle Bar 171 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003 momofuku.com/new-york/noodle-bar

Cuisine:  American-style Ramen & Noodle Bar

Must Order: Pork Buns! PORK BUNS!!!

Impression: Since this was a progressive meal, we only did a quick appetizer here, but of course we could have stayed longer and indulged. Instead, because the restaurant was so packed, Anthony ran inside, ordered pork buns to go, and we scarfed on them in the dark, wonderful New York moonlight. While all the urban hipsters pushed passed us, huffing on their American Spirits and scurrying off to their uber-hip dinner plans. The bunsssssss. Deliciously juicy and seasoned, the pork is housed by a light, yeasty dough that is just. Perfect? Yeah, perfect. We scarfed in decadent silence. And sadly walked away from the thumping restaurant.

Affiliate Restaurants: Ssam Bar, Booker and Dax, Ko, Ma Peche

Porchetta 110 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009 porchettanyc.com

Cuisine: Slow-cooked Italian Fast Food

Must Order: Italian Porchetta Sandwich, Chicken Saffron Sandwich

Impression: This joint is tiny, and more akin to a souped-up food truck, with about 4 barstools crowding the front entrance. And that's about all the seating you get. But you don't come to Porchetta for the seating, you come for the MEAT. Porchetta is a Roman-style herb-roasted pork that will make you cry, it's so good. Seasoned with fennel, sage, garlic, rosemary and pollen... it's just out of this world. And the Chicken Saffron Sandwich? It was a special when we were there, and I hope it remains especially on the menu :) Those Italians. They even do their STREET FOOD right.

// We are disgusting. I already know. //

Somtum Der 85 Avenue A, New York, NY 10009 somtumder.com

Cuisine: Isan Thai (from the northeastern region of Thailand)

Must Order Entree: Pad Ki Mao Pork & Basil (flat noodles with diced beef, scrumptious), Pad Thai with Crab (it sounds kind of weird, but it's kind of awesome), Papaya Salad (everyone loved it, I'm not a huge fan of this kind of salad in general), Sa Poak Kai Tod Der (deep-fried chicken thigh, yes, you read that right), Fried Pork Basil with Egg (self-explanatory and soooo good)

Impression: Inexpensive food (nothing is over $15), and surprisingly delicious, with an excellent mix of sweet-savory in each dish. I've had some strange Thai food since I've been in this city and that have made me a bit gun shy at new places, so I came into Somtum Der with a critical palate - and was pleasantly surprised at how good everything tasted. And from what I've heard, this place is seriously authentic.

More to Come!

We continued to hit up some yummy places in East & West Village, but I will have to split this post up into several because there is just SO. MUCH. TO SHARE. So stay tuned.

Anthony & Jess, how can I best profess my undying love for you?? Thank you for being the hippest, swankiest, most "in-the-know" New Yorkers we know and letting us accompany you on this tasty tour of the town :)

15/50 NYC Adventures: The New York Botanical Gardens

The New York Botanical Gardens

If you want to spend a lovely Saturday away from the maniacal urban jungle of Manhattan, the New York Botanical Garden, located in the Bronx, is the perfect prescription. Just a stones throw outside the city, this expansive green space will give your lungs the full breath of fresh air they’ve been longing for. We had been hearing so much about this little escape outside the city, so we made a plan to catch the spring blooms for the beginning of May. Let me just tell you – it was PERFECT. Making it even more perfect? My delightful Aunt Shirley drove over from Connecticut and joined us for a day of lounging, waltzing around the gardens, and sniffing about every kind of bloom imaginable. And her company is always a pleasure, so it was pretty much the most. Perfect. Day.

Getting There.

There are several ways to get out of the city and up to the Garden. We took the C train from the 86th street stop and then switched to the D train at 125th (which is an express) and took that all the way. Our total travel time was about 50 minutes. It was just so easy. However, we learned a small lesson by taking the subway. You want to ride one of the cars in the back of the D subway. We rode in the front car and came up out of the subway several blocks away from the Garden entrance. Thankfully, an adorable 65-year old Italian New Yorker was standing outside a convenient store, clutching his tiny cup to-go cup of coffee, kibitzing with a few others in the sunshine. He stopped us in our tracks, "Hey, you two trying to get to the gaahden?"

He was very New York. I just grinned at him in wonder. What an excellent accent.

"You don't look like you're frahm around he-ya. The entrance to tha gaahden is 3 blahcks away. You gahtta sit on tha back train cah next time."

Then he proceeded to congratulate me on my burgeoning belly and told us some stories about his three grandchildren. He was precious. People are just precious. Thankfully, his advice was sound and we wound our way around the Bronx and found ourselves at the entrance to the garden. It was mesmerizing from then on.

// We got in trouble for walking on this grass. Yes, seriously. //

The Garden.

What can I say? There is SO MUCH to do at this garden, you can't really do it all in a day. However, you can ride the trolly around the entire landscape and at least get to see most everything, even if you don't experience all the different exhibits up close.

// My dear Auntie Shoil. Love her almost too much. //

Azaleas

The Azaleas swept through the entirety of the garden, lighting up the green space in epic hues of hazy pink, rad purple, splashy red and whispery blue. They looked ripe and ready to usher in a wedding party.

// These two. Makes my heart sing. //

Conservatory

The fancy victorian-style Conservatory housed an ethnic variety of plants and flowers from different ecosystems from around the world, including more orchids than I had ever seen. Very exotic, indeed.

// These seriously looked like candy. I wanted to just reach out and snatch a bite. Stevie forbade it. //

// We walked a LOT, so I sat a lot, too. Gotta take breaks for the tootsies! //

Native Plant Garden

The Native Plant Garden guided us on a historic walk, designed entirely in a modern aesthetic, and showcased plants and wildlife indigenous to northeastern North America.

// It's like he's checking out her booty. Even ducks like a good round behind! //

Everett Children's Adventure Garden

One of my favorite parts was the Everett Children's Adventure Garden (of course!), outside of which there was a bustling (free!) wine and cheese mart. I couldn't indulge the way Stevie & Aunt Shirley could, but it was still so much fun, basking in the sunlight, admiring the explosive cherry blossoms and eating fancy cheese. 

// Oh geez. I can only imagine that he was peppering her with incessant questions about the hops/malt/yeast used to design this brew. Those life-long-learners, you gotta watch out for them. //

// I feel terrible that I don't remember their name, but this band played for several hours and they were great! //

// Yeah, I know. Stevie is an absolute GENIUS with our camera. I mean, POW. //

// We three! //

// I swear, someone must have paid these children to play ring-around-the-rosie. I mean, it's just too perfect, right?? //

My Recommendation.

This place is absolutely stunning. If I were going to be around NYC all summer, I would certainly take another trek up to the Garden for the Rose Garden Celebration in July. We got to see the rose bushes on our trolly ride, but to experience their beauty in full bloom would be absolutely Disney-magic-esque. Cmon, New Yorkers, you can do it! Get up out of the city! There are sights to be seen!

14/50 NYC Adventures: Walking the Brooklyn Bridge

Walking the Brooklyn Bridge

This is such a fun, iconic New York experience. The Brooklyn Bridge is an emblem of New York's ambitious heartbeat. It's been in SO MANY movies and TV shows over the years, it's impossible to name them all (is it bad that the first scene that comes to my mind is when Miranda and Steve decide to give their marriage another go by meeting on this bridge in Sex & the City? Don't judge me. That was a good, good moment.) But if you've seen any bridges depicted in New York-inspired art or film, it's most likely been the Brooklyn Bridge. Because this gateway to Brooklyn is just that epic.

// Under the bridge. So you know you're on the right track. //

// Manhattan-facing, this is a glimpse of Brooklyn Bridge Park to your left. Yes, that is a park on a pier. And yes, that is a cool, cool idea for a city park. I think they know what they're doing. //

// Walking the bridge toward Manhattan, this is your right-facing view. Not too shabby. //

At the time it opened, in 1883, this was the longest suspension bridge in the US. Today it connects (duh) Manhattan to Brooklyn. And it lets goofballs like us flutter across its firm foundations and take too many pictures and bask in its grandness. So there's that, too.

// View of the financial district. The gigantic building you see is Freedom Tower. We talked about that once here. //

// And that tall beauty is the Empire State Building. We caught closer nighttime views of that bad boy here. //

Try It!

I personally like taking the subway all the way to Brooklyn, enjoying the DUMBO hood, and then walking across the bridge toward Manhattan. Because you get ALL THOSE VIEWS (please see above.) It's incredible. Then you can just pop on the subway at Chambers Street or City Hall and get back to wherever you came from. And if you already explored DUMBO like I showed you and ate the most delicious coal-fire brick oven pizza at Juliana's (and maybe even enjoyed a cone at Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory!), then you will be reeeeeeallly ready to walk the mile-ish journey across this East River beauty.

// BFFFFFFSSS. And yes, Stevie's hair is looking pretty righteous here. Cue haircut. //

// These two. I am not kidding you when I say they are as wholesome AS IT GETS. //

// Clearly I am pregnant in the front AND the back. //

// She. Is. A wonder. //

A Word on Friendship.

This girl. I could sob just thinking about how wondrous she is. But I'll spare you, because she's got a baby and I've got one on the way so there's already enough crying quota reached without adding to that mess of ladylike emotions. I am so grateful that this gal has visited me in all the crazy places I've lived. And she's celebrated me a ridiculous amount, no matter which season of life I've been in (thriving or, ya know, diving.) She's been there through my graduation, pursuing an unlikely career path, dealing with family drama, unexpectedly (and wonderfully!) getting knocked up, moving from place to place, and all the while, she's throwing me parties left and right like it's her job... and she HAS a real-people job. Like a really, really good one! She's just always been there. One might even venture as far as saying she's been "my bridge over troubled water" (ahahaha see how I tied this all together? See?! Don't hate me for my cheese.) But seriously, this gal has been so rock solid. Ready to encourage. Ready to find that silvery lining. To tell you the truth, she's been the silver lining, weaving her blissful being into each season's unexpected adventures. And we've had quite a few together :) Tricia, thank you for being the best friend a girl could ask for. Thank you for letting me eat the last slice of pizza. And thank you for walking across this insanely long bridge with me while I took too many pictures and made you pose longer than your comfort level allowed. You, my sweet, are the truest, dearest kind of friend.

13/50 NYC Adventures: DUMBO (& Juliana’s Pizza!)

DUMBO

"Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass", has been fondly shortened to the term DUMBO, which is a section of Brooklyn located over the bridge from Manhattan. A hub for entrepreneurial, creative and tech startups who have since gone mainstream (such as Etsy, Makerbot & HowAboutWe), DUMBO is the kind of place where you can ride your bike to work, bring your dog to the office and lounge outside over a workday picnic lunch. This is also an area where (both fortunately and unfortunately), all the hipsters were born and continue to multiply at a maddening rate. Everyone here is so urban, mangy and unstylish, that somehow it became a style.

Don't be alarmed. In spite of the androgynous unwashed hair, excessively tight pants, and mad-scientist-thick glasses crowd that seems to gather here in droves, this area of Brooklyn is super, super cool and laid-back. Showcasing an eclectic mix of stoney buildings, industrial lofts, aged shipping docks, inventive green space and iconic steel bridge foundations, DUMBO is a neighborhood on the rise. When our best friends came to town (and brought the most heavenly weather from Georgia with them), we took our time eating and strolling through this temptingly awesome area of town.

// Rent a Citibike for a hour. It's the way to roll. //

// The lines are CRAZY long at Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, but I hear it's worth it. //

// These. Are the party people. //

Eats.

This area of town boasts delicious eats (but really, what part of New York doesn't?) We focused the majority of our time with the pizzeria masters at Juliana's Pizza. Let me tell you the secret story (my sources shall remain unnamed!) about Juliana's Pizza, which is located next door to the iconic Grimaldi's Pizza.

Apparently, for all of New York eternity, the Grimaldi family has been the reigning authority in New York-style pizza.

Since 1941, Patsy Grimaldi (who, just so you know, is a man) has been making a mean pizza in a coal-fired brick oven. The pizza, unarguably, ROCKS. There are no questions or qualms about that fact. However, a few years back, Patsy's family sold the Grimaldi pizza location (19 Fulton St.), the brand and the name to another guy (we will call him The Dude). The Grimaldi family, later, regretted that decision. In a series of events (the grimy details allude to unpaid rent, public disputes over pizza quality, drama over licensing the family name, increased city taxes, and an unhappy landlord), The Dude who bought the Grimaldi joint ended up moving the pizza place into another building. Which just happened to be next door. The Dude left behind the famous coal-fire brick oven (which ignited the original Grimaldi recipe), and guess who jumped at the chance to move back into his old stomping grounds? That's right. Patsy Grimaldi. Since he had already licensed out his name, he called this new pizza joint Juliana's Pizza, named after his mother. Today, Juliana's Pizza stands in the original Grimaldi location, with the original coal-fire brick oven, serving the original Grimaldi recipe.

The funny part is, no one knows this story. So people line up outside of Grimaldi's Pizza, wait for 2+ hours to eat, and have to deal with the high-maintenance rules (cash only! no slices!), wondering if the rumors they heard about this pizza are true. All the while, Juliana's next door is quietly serving the original New York pizza recipe, made in the original pizza oven, served in the original location. That, my friends, is the definition of TOO LEGIT TO QUIT. Ponder that one for a second.

// Decisions, decisions... //

// Order the classic margherita pizza or anything with the scarmorza cheese! //

Play.

Brooklyn Bridge Park is just a stroll from the concentration of delicious DUMBO eats and treats. What makes this park special is the fact that it's made up by a connected series of green spaces and converted piers. While the boys threw the frisbee (and probably got in some people's way, it was crowded), Tricia & I sunbathed and stared in wonder at the view of the Manhattan urban jungle. That skyline is just crazy.

// I think John was working on his Brooklyn Swag Face. Or something. //

// Can you spot the Statue of Liberty? //

Oh, Brooklyn.

DUMBO is the place to play. And soooo easy to get to from Manhattan. Because we took SO many pictures, I had to divide this post into two. More tomorrow from the Brooklyn Bridge View!