In 2019, I went to New York for the first time, and I have been itching to get back ever since. So, I figured turning 30 was a good enough excuse as any to make it back to the Big Apple. My friends Chris, Andrew, and Anthony came up from DC and met me in the city for the weekend. I had an exhausting, marvelous time, and even got to see my first Broadway show. This post, however, is dedicated to the food we ate along the way.
First up: lunch at Chelsea Market. There were so many options to choose from, but we were initially intrigued by Takumi Taco, labeled as Japanese inspired Mexican. Chris and Andrew were still able to order food there, but unfortunately, I was unable to eat anything on the menu due to my sesame allergy. I was not surprised, but I thought I’d at least check.
So, I walked around again and landed on Num Pang Kitchen, a Cambodian sandwich joint. I chose the five-spice pork belly num pang. The fatty pork belly was juicy and full of flavor. The pickled vegetables cut through the fattiness of the pork. In addition to the usual cucumbers and carrots, this sandwich also had asian pears, which was a nice touch. I love the varying texture from the soft bread, melt in your mouth meat, and crunchy vegetables.
Now onto our first dinner in New York. Before going to see the Lion King, we happened upon a pizza place in Hell’s Kitchen, Nizza. This continues our trend of getting pizza before a show. Chris and Andrew both chose Calamari Fra Diavolo pizza, while I got the mushroom pizza. Anthony joined us for drinks before his dinner plans.
The calamari pizza had a healthy amount of calabrian chiles, which is definitely Chris’ style. I liked it, but I thought the chiles overwhelmed all the other flavors. I quite enjoyed my mushroom pizza. It had a nice creamy goat cheese and caramelized onion for lots of flavor. It was earthy and delightful.
The next morning, the four of us hit up Ess-a-bagel near Herald Square. Of course we couldn’t go to New York without getting bagels. I got the Signature Favorite, a classic lox bagel sandwich with chive cream cheese, lettuce, red onion, and capers. I skipped out on the tomato. The bagel was absolutely great with the perfect chewy texture. The sandwich was a generous portion, so I felt full and ready to take on the day ahead.
After spending the day in Brooklyn, we took a recommendation from my professor to get dinner at a Trinidadian roti place near Prospect Park. This was my first time having Trinidadian food, and it was delicious. I got the goat roti. Why have I never had roti before? This flatbread is a great vehicle for scooping up all the great flavors in the dish. I loved the curry sauce for the goat, and the chana was so creamy. De Hot Pot is a cash only restaurant, and it is definitely worth visiting if you are near Prospect Park in Brooklyn.
Spending the weekend in New York was a dream. We got in lots of walking, eating, drinking, and quality time together. In my next post, I will talk about our NY brunch experience.
Catie Cooks 