We were going to the Museum of the Moving Image in Long Island City, when we stumbled upon Sala Astoria a restaurant with a large tapas menu. Great place I have to say, with so many choices for vegetarians and non vegetarians. Of course the tortilla espanola is a must when having tapas and theirs is superb: moist with the egg very slightly runny, smothering the perfectly cooked potatoes and onions.
When Morelia Gourmet Paletas opened in Hoboken, I was really excited! I love ice cream, so combined with whatever topping you can put on top, this is heaven. The ice cream at Morelia is simply delicious, made fresh everyday, and creamy. When you go there, you first pick your paleta from their large selection, that you can then dip and cover with the topping of your choice: dark chocolate, white chocolate, crunchy…
If you are looking for a place for breakfast or brunch that proposes insane dishes and milkshakes, Brownstone Pancake Factory in Freehold is the right place for you. As you enter, you get the sense that this will be a bit crazy, the decor, with its fully functional carousel and sign in the back, setting the tone. Sure, you can get plain pancakes, waffles or French toast, but, looking at the menu, you will be intrigued and probably want to order something decadent. To start, check out their milkshakes: you can get a classic vanilla or chocolate one, but their “ultimate insane milkshakes” are…
Created last year by the founders of Unregular Pizza, Unregular Bakery is quite original: do not go there if you are looking for classics. The vessels for their sweet or savory offering are laminated croissants or bombolone, these Italian donuts and you kind of get overwhelmed with all these mouth watering items on their menu, with lots of vegan choices. I did not really liked the filling of the BurraCroissant, that is…
There is no question that Antique Bar & Bakery is one of my favorite restaurants in Hoboken: their food is simply fantastic, their dirty ribeye being phenomenal and their bread pudding one of the best I ever had among other things that makes this popular restaurant a visit worth a trip to the mile square city. So, when they opened Antique on 112, few steps from their restaurant, we had to try it. The first time was during the Holidays, a perfect time as many people were traveling. The second was recently: the experience was totally different as the place was packed and the cuisine seemed overwhelmed with not just the orders from their hungry diners, but also the deliveries….
When La Isla Uptown closed, I was a bit sad, the place serving delicious Cuban food in a more spacious space than the downtown location. Martha’s came a few months later, who, leveraging on the decor of its predecessor, serves new American cuisine. We went there a couple of times, and tried some of their dishes. Here is what we had:…
This is not the first time we went for afternoon tea at The Plaza Hotel. We wanted to go during the Holidays, but it was impossible to get a reservation. So we went 2 weeks ago, on a Saturday at 11am. As we arrived, they asked if we had any dietary restrictions and gave Jodi a vegetarian menu that was not on their website. On my side, the only choice I had was the Holiday Signature Tea that they probably continue to serve in January. If you never had Afternoon Tea, it is composed of…
Since it opened in August last year, Toast x Bowl has been one of our favorite places for lunch on the weekend. This casual place offers an interesting menu composed of sandwiches and rice dishes with an asian flair. I admit that I am not sure which one I prefer, both being quite tasty.
The sandwiches are a take on classic egg sandwich. Made with a deliciously buttery toasted brioche, they top the moist scrambled eggs with whatever you will order. My favorite is the…
When Le Relais de Venise closed during Covid and remained closed until recently, I thought that was it. But then, I started to see people posting about this place. It did not take me long to go there, excited, knowing that the reopening triggered long lines, probably thanks to social media, a phenomenon that happened few years ago with Skirt Steak, a copycat from Chef Laurent Tourondel.
We went when I was off from work and, as they were supposed to open…
Have you ever been to Benihana? Or any Hibachi place? I love these places: they are fun and when the food is also good, this is even better. This was our first time at Benihana: we talked about going there for years but never did until the Holidays where we thought that it would be a good dining experience after seeing a show on Broadway. As we arrived, we checked in for our reservation, but they told us that we had to wait a little. The reason was that they needed all the people sitting…
When Dipped N’Smashed announced it would take over the space of Curry Up Now, few doors from Carlo’s Bakery, I was a bit skeptical: Shake Shack, 7th Avenue Burger and 30 Burgers (that I did not like) are just few blocks away. What would this place offer that would be different? Well, that is when the Dipped part of the name comes into play: they make fresh donuts that you can then customize. So we decided to give it a try, starting with a first visit just to try the donuts.
Meaning “Hamburger construction site”, Cantiere Hambirreria is a truly unique place. Opened mid-December on the Lower East Side, this is an outpost of an Italian restaurant that opened on Lecce, Italy back in 2017. Beams, bikes and various signs give to this place a certain charm that makes you feel right away that you are in a special place.
Finding Metropolis, the new venture of Chef Marcus Samuelsson that opened few weeks ago, is a bit challenging if you do not know that it is inside the Perelman Performing Arts Center. There isn’t a sign outside indicating that you have to go inside the art center and immediately see a busy place with a sleek dining room.
It’s funny how first impressions are not always the right one and you sometimes need to give a second chance to restaurants. This is what happened with Saka. When this place opened in Hoboken, replacing Myron Mixon's Pitmaster Barbeque, I was a bit skeptical: there are plenty of Japanese restaurants already in Hoboken, so, what would this one bring to the mile square dining scene? Two things caught my attention…
Few years ago, gluten-free options were very limited, with mainly bread and pizza, people often commenting on the latter tasting like cardboard. But now, there are many more options, tasty options. I could mention for instance the donuts at Alfalfa in Hoboken that you would probably not guess are gluten-free if I did not tell you. Eating gluten-free used to be necessary for people with celiac disease or other ailments, but, many people started to adopt such diet and reported less bloating, better digestion and energy level. So, I was…
It’s been years we have been talking about trying The Grey Dog in Chelsea, but it only took a visit from our friends Gary and Jen to make us venture to this popular place. Too popular maybe as quite noisy, a bit disorganized and slow (they forgot to bring Jodi’s dish), but quick to bring you the check and get the bill paid so you can leave, when you are still trying to enjoy your dish….
I never know what to expect when I go to a restaurant located in a hotel: sometimes it is delicious like Fire & Oak in Jersey City, and sometimes, it is disappointing. So, going to Ramerino Italian Prime was a bit of a bet, their menu looking delicious. As we entered, the spacious dining room was empty that was not a good sign and I admit that the stale bread they served us was also not a good sign. At least, the espresso martini I started with was good, well balanced, upping a bit my hope that we would have a nice dinner. We started off with the melanzane that is baked layers of sliced eggplant,…
When the Pastrami House closed its doors, I was not that surprised. The food was good there, but the lack of space for dining left this place with no other option than being a take out joint, limiting a bit its customer base. So, very quickly after they closed in the Summer, construction began and Purple Rice opened in August, and we decided to give it a try. We ordered on their Point of Sale, where most of the dishes were presented with a photo, that I thought was a good idea as we had no idea what some of the dishes were.
