Good things come to those who eat LATE! This spot is usually jampacked during regular or post-drinking hours alike, but a small crew of hungry eaters came here to munch around 1 am on a Tues night, and were treated to meatball magnificence. Dim-sum style menu instructions. Choose: meatball / sauce / bread or salad / cheese. Hear specials, re-evaluate choices and order even more. Our fiesta de carnage consisted of a well-rounded assortment of flagship standards and envelope pushers, including: Beef meatball/tomato/mozzarella/roll + “chicken cordon blueball” special/parmesan cream/naked/add an egg on it + beef/spicymeatsauce/mozz/whole wheat roll + assorted slider combos. Also added some totally unnecessary but good sides such as butternut squash daily veggie special + risotto special. With a few wines and beers, came out to $20 a head. Sharing dessert.

Don’t save room, but make some space for the ice cream cookie sandwiches. They are like Oh My Gawd. Hit the gym the next day. Hard.

mega meatball smorgasbord.

oh lonely special chikn cordon blueball slider a la parmesan creme, let me put mine lips to thee...

OUTSTANDWICHES! snickerdoodle/pumpkin special ice cream + mocha latte special cookie/vanilla ice cream

dry-erase markers. B-I-N-G-Oh

Pricing: Not Cheap
Venue: Take Out (truck)
Cuisine: American, Ice Cream, Dessert, Coffee
Favorite Dish(es): Ginger $6

This is one ice cream truck that doesn’t need a jingle. Labeling themselves as purveyors of artisan hand-crafted ice cream, the Van Leeuwen truck whips up small batches of a select list of simple gourmet flavors from Peppermint and Chip, to a bit more less traditional ingredients such as Red Currant and Gianduja, chocolate with hazelnut and almond paste. Their ice cream is luscious and creamy, softer than a hard ice cream but much thicker than a gelato. The flavors are clean, delicate, and not overbearing, so it’s easy to eat a lot. It’s definitely on the sweet and smooth side, and one of the best consistencies that I’ve found in NYC. Some of the best food in a city is often found in its street food, so don’t be surprised when there are huge lines waiting for food from a truck, and in the summertime, this yellow cream-mobile gets quite popular.

They have two trucks which can often be found at 22nd & 6th ave, and 15th & 5th ave, but they are often on the move, so you can keep track of their whereabouts on their Twitter feed. Sometimes they even carry coffee and pastries at the truck, so keep a lookout on the way to work. Scoops are available at select locations throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn, and pints are now available at various places including Whole Foods. Check out their nifty site for more information on their craft. Bring a friend, and don’t feel bad about asking for an extra spoon – they even use sustainable, biodegradable dishware.

Keep an eye out for this yellow vehicle and you're in for a treat.

You get just what it says. Ginger. Sweet, lovely ginger.

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Pricing: Not Cheap
Venue: Take Out
Cuisine: French Bakery, Dessert, Coffee
Favorite Dish(es): Blueberry Macaron ($2.95), Bacon Chive Scone, Red Velvet Cupcake

Fancy bakeries are pretty commonplace in NYC, but this one on the top floor of the uberposh “mall” at Columbus Circle sets itself apart with a few notable offerings. Most obvious are the colorful, oversized macarons (not to be confused with macaroons) and bakery-made Oreos behind the glass. Don’t even get her started on the macarons. Definitely try the blueberry one- it’s blueberry and cream cheese heaven. I also liked the chocolate and our friend is a huge fan of the vanilla ones. Just get one of each and try them all to find your favorite. I doubt any will be left uneaten.

But in my opinioin, the hidden gem that isn’t a sweet treat at all is the Bacon Chive Scone.

It may sound odd to some, but it’s really a good pairing of flavors and textures, meat and carbs. Crunchy bits of bacon embedded in between flaky layers of buttery pastry that are more like puff pastry than “scone”, but who cares? When i think of scones i think of a rock. This is firm but not crumbly. Its almost like a super gussied up hot pocket, without the freezer burn and oozing fake cheese. I almost thought for a moment that it could be even better with a coat of crispy cheese on top, but the butter and bacon are plenty salty and savory enough on their own. It’s a good thing I don’t work near Columbus Circle or I’d be eating these for breakfast on a regular basis.

The other sweet nothing whispering in my ear was a huge Red Velvet Cupcake. Really though, at the size of a large beefsteak tomato, it was shouting at me, “Take me home.” So I did. It was the perfect size to share, like a mini cake. The interesting thing about it was that it actually tasted chocolatey, unlike most other red velvets. (Red velvet, for those who don’t know, is simply just red food coloring added to a cocoa-based cake mix.)  The chocolate flavor is strong but not overpowering. The frosting is a thick rich cream cheese and butter base. Think chocolate cream cheese muffin. Mmmm. The packaging was also fancy, albeit wasteful. I felt like I had just bought a Coach bag – it is, Columbus Circle after all.

I’ll be back here for sure. after I work off the 2 lbs of butter from the first trip!

Crayola Macaroni!

macarons, not little hamburgers.

chocolate, meet blueberry and cheese

Beggin' for Bacon...Scones

fancy schmancy

mega cupcake, not sure what the red crunchies on top are...

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Places Visited:
1. Maxie’s Supper Club
2. Hot Truck @ Shortstop Deli
3. Doug’s Fish Fry
4. Purity Ice Cream
5. Hazelnut Kitchen

Having lived in Ithaca for 4+ years while serving time at Cornell, I always enjoy making the trek upstate to get a breath of fresh country air and relive foggy memories of yesteryear. While we originally planned to go wine touring, all the great food stops along the way kept us plenty occupied… and our bellies full. Here are a few of the highlights.

1. Maxie’s Supper Club
635 W State St
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 272-4136

This is a pretty new spot in Ithaca that opened up a few years ago, and offers real smoked BBQ and a raw bar, both of which are pretty rare for Ithaca. The BBQ was pretty decent, the cheese grits were super saucy, and the andouille sausage was mighty zesty. Raw clams and oysters were half price during happy hour, and it was great to wash them down with some good local brews on tap. All in all, a great find.

2. Shortstop Deli
204 W Seneca St
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 273-1030

Had to stop by the 24-7 Shortstop Deli down on Seneca for a late night grub session, since now they’ve got the famous Hot Truck subs, a Cornell tradition. “TMBC” – six meatballs with sauce and mozz on a half loaf of toasted french bread. And they even have totally sustainable, eco-friendly cutlery and glassware too. Ithaca is becoming quite a progressive town for others to take note.

Doug’s Fish Fry
3638 West Rd
Cortland, NY 13045
(607) 753-9184

Doug’s Fish Fry in Cortland is a personal tradition that I always highly recommend to any fried seafood lover. Their East Coast-style fried fish recipe truly takes the cake, in my book. Lightly battered cod in crispy breadcrumbs, using generous chunks of fish caught fresh and shipped in from Boston, served with a zingy slaw and chunky fried taters with skin on. They also fry up scallops and clams on certain days of the week. Mmmmm mmm. Totally worth the trip.

Purity Ice Cream

700 Cascadilla St
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 272-1545

Purity Ice Cream is like a blast from the past. Super creamy, buttery, thick, rich, old-fashioned churned ice cream where you can taste all the flavors without any of them overpowering each other. Watch out for the “Goose Tracks” though! (Inquire within.) Good stuff in any weather.

Hazelnut Kitchen
53 E Main St
Trumansburg, NY 14886
(607) 387-4433

Our final stop on the dining expedition was a cozy little joint with a quaint rustic feel in Trumansburg by the Seneca Lake wineries, owned and operated by a super nice husband and wife couple. The food is fairly upscale but with a great local upstate flavor and vibe, using only fresh readily available local ingredients. Chef Jonah switches up the menu seasonally. Our vegetable pot pie dish had fresh parsnips and celeriac, and the huge Conan-portioned pork chop was locally raised and rubbed with fine coffee from an Ithaca beanery called GimmeCoffee, which now has a cafe down in Soho. Talk about keeping it local. Definitely call ahead, as the whole town seems to be coming to this spot on the weekends, probably with good reason.

Needless to say, we ate a good time in Ithaca. We’ll be back to eat some more soon.

The contenders, in no particular order:

A – Magnolia’s
B – Buttercup
C – Billy’s
D – Crumbs
E – Sugar Sweet Sunshine

Best of luck! And the tasting begins…

A – Magnolia’s (new bigger location w/ seating!)

Price: $3.00
Cake: It’s very red. It’s very dense, crumbly, and dry. A subtle cocoa flavor, but SALTY.
Frosting: Instead of their signature thick, sugary frosting, this one comes with whipped buttercream. We didn’t care for it much.
Overall: Poor cake. Ok frosting.

B – Buttercup

Price: $2.25
Cake: It’s light and fluffy. The kind you can eat huge mouthfuls of and finish in 3 squishy bites.
Frosting: A buttery cream cheese frosting…very buttery.
Overall: Very yummy cake consistency and good cream cheese frosting. I would definitely crave this one.

C – Billy’s

Price: $2.75
Cake: Super moist, rich, and just buttery enough. Decadent cocoa flavor.
Frosting: Moist and buttery cream cheese frosting.
Overall: Excellent cake + frosting combo!

D – Crumbs

Price: $3.75
Cake: It’s a huge cupcake. Dry. Tastes like cardboard – old and like from a pre-mixed package.
Frosting: Very sugary. Tastes old and packaged.
Overall: Tastes old and packaged…we’re not impressed.

E – Sugar Sweet Sunshine

Price: $1.50
Cake: Good consistency, moist enough.
Frosting: Whipped cream cheese frosting is very good.
Overall: Very good cake + frosting combo. Great price.

And… the overall melt-in-your-mouth winner of the YumYum Award goes to (***drumroll please***)…

Billy’s Bakery.

Billy’s takes the cake!

Billy’s Bakery
184 9th Ave (btwn 21st & 22nd St)
www.billysbakerynyc.com

Shake Shack
366 Columbus Ave at 77th St

Pricing: Cheap
Venue: Sit Down / Take Out
Cuisine: Burger Joint
Favorite Dish(es): Strawberry Milkshake ($5.25), French Fries ($2.75)

People have been waiting for the opening of the new uptown Shake Shack for, well… as long as they typically wait in line at the original location in Madison Square Park. The Upper West side location boasts some meager indoor seating in a fast food style setup, with some New York touches. There is still usually a line, but there are two cashiers and they keep it moving. They give you a buzzer to let you know when your order is ready, which is a nice touch. They serve some good local draft and bottled beers, and wine, but you’ll want to make sure to save some room for a milkshake, which is, in our opinion, their best offering. Their burgers are ok, but too greasy – they’re the small, picnic bbq size kind on a potato roll that is either buttered or soaked in extra burger grease. They’re made of decent ground beef, juicy and cooked right, but nothing to write home about. The “Shack burger” ($4.75) comes with yellow american cheese and their special sauce, which I guess is something akin to McDonald’s orange special sauce. Their burgers just left us wanting more [J.G. Melon's perhaps?]. The fries, however, were really good, crispy, and well salted, which is usually hard to find in the crinkle cut variety. This brings us to the piece-de-resistance of the meal, the strawberry milkshake. It’s SUPER suck-your-brains-out thick, with some malt to add some texture and more flavor, and tastes a bit salty for that deadly salty/sweet combination. We will definitely come back for their milkshakes, but your doctor would probably not recommend more than one a week. They also serve frozen custards, a different flavor every day, but we were too sugared out from the milkshake to try anything else. Overall, for burgers Shake Shack is decent but we’ve had better in the city – stay tuned for our upcoming post rounding up the best burger spots in NYC.
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Gyu Kaku

Pricing: Not Cheap
Venue: Sit Down
Cuisine: Japanese (and some Korean)
Favorite Dish(es): Kalbi ($12 each), Chicken Bibimbop ($9), S’mores ($4 each, dessert)

This is a large, upscale, wannabe-trendy West Coast chain Japanese restaurant across from Cooper Union in Astor Place.  Each table is equipped with its own BBQ pit, much like Korean BBQs, but with high tech ventilation systems.  You order by single serving portions of various marinated meats and vegetables, all of which are fairly bland, that you grill on your own.  Sort of like Village Yokocho meets Benihana, but where you are the chef.  So why pay extra to cook your own dinner?  It’s all about the sauce.  One of the dipping sauces at each table is awesome – sweet, tangy, and spicy like a BBQ marinade with Sriracha.  It goes great on everything they serve.  Plus, on certain days after a certain time, some of the dishes are half price.  And, this is one of the only places that serves Kirin beer by the pitcher – ice cold.  Their other dishes are pretty good too, like their take on Korean “Bibimbop” (rice mixed with veggies and a spicy pepper sauce) which is a welcome change of taste from 32nd Street.  And for dessert, the BBQ pits turn into S’mores pits.  All in all, a pretty fun (but kind of expensive) place that’s good for long group dinners and dates.

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203 E 10th St, between 1st and 2nd Ave
(212) 995-9511

Pricing: Not Cheap
Venue: Sit Down
Cuisine: Dessert, Dessert Bar
Favorite Dish(es): Blueberry Trifle, Chocolate Tart (Prix Fixe, $12)

This is a tiny little “Dessert Bar” near St Marks that has become popular as a date and happy hour spot, and usually has a line. They only serve dessert and drinks, and everyone from the host to the chefs and Chika herself pitches in to help wait tables, and are super attentive. This isn’t your typical dessert place though – it’s definitely not for everyone and you won’t find a slice of chocolate cake here. The desserts are very unique and inventive, using less sugar than most places, with uncommon ingredients and interesting flavor pairings. The portions are small, more for tasting and holding conversation than getting your sugar fix. It’s definitely worth a try at least once, just for something new and different. We recommend getting the Prix Fixe course for a good sampling.

Note: They also have a take-out bakery across the street that serves more “normal” desserts like cookies and cupcakes, but with the “Chika” flavor twist. We had their Red Velvet Cupcakes, which were pretty good, but too different from what you’d expect from a Red Velvet. Not quite up to the Cupcake Challenge.

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2290 Broadway, at 83rd St
(212) 579-5959

Pricing: Cheap
Venue: Sit Down
Cuisine: American Deli
Favorite Dish(es): Hot Pastrami sandwich ($10) ; Hot Dog ($2.50)

Although NYC is famous for its traditional kosher delis (Katz’s, Carnegie, 2nd Ave), we think Artie’s on the Upper West Side is the best all around. The portions are generous but not overwhelming, their deli meats are tasty and clean, and their hot dogs are snappy and large enough for a meal. Artie’s captures the real NYC deli experience with something to satisfy everyone in your party. Some of this probably has to do with the fact that, according to the site, the place was created in 1999 after years of research and experience in the restaurant biz by Artie Cutler and his family. It’s well worth taking their Pastrami to the test to find out for yourself.

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Little Pie Company
109 E. 42nd St (in Grand Central basement Food Court)

(212) 983-3538

424 W. 43rd St, between 9th and 10th Ave

(212) 736-4780

Pricing: Not Cheap

Venue: Take Out

Cuisine: Dessert, Pies & Cakes

Favorite Dish(es): Florida Key Lime Pie, Southern Pecan Pie, Peach Pie, Sour Cream Apple Walnut Pie

I first found out about this place from work- when someone’s bday rolls around in the office we usually buy a few pies…and Jason first found this place at the Grand Central Terminal.

We haven’t tried ‘em all yet- so if it’s not on here as our favorite it’s probably b/c we haven’t eaten it. There’s no wimping out on flavor or substance- these are hearty and good. Some flavors are seasonal so check with them periodically when your favorite fruit is in season. Make sure to heat up the non-fruit ones. (They’re great a la mode too!)

Don’t worry about size- if you need to feed a bunch of people or just yourself, they have individual portions to 10 inch pies.

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