Eating our way through NYC, Part 1
food diaries from our first (but definitely not our last!) mother/daughter trip
Hi Foodie Friends! This is Lisa, chiming in from the US Side of the Pond. Jane is spending this week at the Welsh seaside and will be back soon! If you’re a new reader, Jane is the other half (definitely consider her the better half!) of Foodies and lives in the UK.
Today’s Substack is going to be a long one, so if you’re reading this in your email click “read entire message” to see the entire post.
If you’ve ever thought about taking a mother/daughter trip, and keep pushing it off, consider this your sign to book it!
Last month my daughter (who just turned 22) and I took a trip to Boston and New York City. It’s the first time we’ve done a mother/daughter trip, and we had such a blast it definitely won’t be the last.
She’s graduating in a couple of months, and is feeling a pull to explore life on the opposite coast. The saying “time is a thief” is so accurate. It feels like we were just hauling multiple suitcases and duffle bags through the airport to move her in for her freshman year.
And now her 4 years at college are almost over. She’s almost done writing this chapter of her life, and now she gets to turn the page and write the next one.
What do the proverbial they say?…..give your kids wings to fly and roots to grow. Something like that, anyway. It’s so much easier said than done! But it’s our job as parents to work ourselves out of a job, right?
So I’ll watch her spread her wings and fly……..
And when I feel that slight pang watching her go, I’ll try to remember what it felt like to be 22. The feeling of graduating college and leaving behind the familiar for the unknown. Remembering the feeling of freedom and entering this whole new chapter, slightly nervous but also curious and excited……going from student to graduate.
My daughter is our youngest and I’ve already been through this with our son. Our son fell in love with Colorado and decided to make a life for himself there after graduation, and now our daughter wants to use her wings to fly back east.
The good news for my husband and I (besides not having to pay for college anymore!) is both our kids will be in places that are fun to visit!
So off my daughter and I went to spend the week of her Spring break in NYC and Boston. Eating, exploring, more eating, shopping and, yes, more eating.
We’ve both been to NYC before, but it was years ago and our days were filled with all the “must do” touristy things. This time around we had space to breathe it in. We had no plans. No museums we really wanted to see, no tourist spots we wanted to visit…..only the desire to live as New Yorkers for a few days. For her to soak up the atmosphere and see if she could see herself living in New York.
Here are a few of our favorite restaurants and a bakery we couldn’t resist stopping in!
As I was writing this Substack, and it kept getting longer and longer, I realized I should probably break it up into two parts. So this is Part 1 and Part 2 will be posted next Friday!
When I was researching hotels I was looking for two things:
a hotel in a cute, walkable neighborhood, far away from all the touristy areas.
a boutique hotel — I wanted charming & quaint.
The Walker Greenwich knocked it out of the park! It felt very roaring 20’s speakeasy with lots of brick, velvet, and dark wood.
There was nightly live jazz in the lobby which had comfy couches, cozy corners and cushy chairs that invited you to sit, listen and stay awhile. An added bonus was the free coffee in the morning and hot cider in the afternoon. The weather was chilly (note to self: 60 degrees in NYC is much much different than 60 degrees in Seattle!) and the hot cider hit the spot when we’d get back after a day of exploring.
Like most NYC hotels, the room was cozy…..which, yes, means small. They have larger rooms available, but this room fit our budget. It was such a cute room, though! And when I asked for a high floor, I never dreamed we’d have such an amazing view……definitely an added bonus!
The beds were the most comfortable beds I’ve ever slept in and I could kick myself for not asking what the mattress brand is…….note to self: send hotel an email to ask!
The bathroom had plenty of room and even had built in shelves for toiletries. The shower pressure was impressive for an older hotel and the shower itself was pretty roomy.
The room was a bit toasty, but when we figured out how to put the room fan on and cracked open the window the temp was much better. There was an armoire, but, considering how my daughter and I like to pack (we’re not light packers…..lol!) we did need to get a little creative with where to put our clothes.
Room service, the first night, delivered an insanely delicious salad with roast carrots, roasted beets, greens, stracciatella, and a delightful tangy dressing. We also ordered the potatoes with aioli and everything hit the spot after a long day of travel.
Another added bonus of the hotel — if you need a refrigerator or coffee maker, they’ll deliver one straight to your room.
OMG…..where to even start!
NYC is known for many things….museums, culture, fashion…..and food. Jane and I absolutely need to plan a Foodies trip because Lexie and I barely dipped our toes in the incredible food scene.
There are no shortages of amazing restaurants — from large, well known restaurants owned by renowned chefs, to Michelin star restaurants, to local neighborhood cafés, to small family owned, to multigenerational restaurants.
You can find any cuisine at any price point to fit your mood and what you’re craving.
Our first morning we met my daughter’s college friend and her family in Soho at Gjelina.
The funny thing is, Gjelina has been in Venice on Abbot Kinney Boulevard for years and, in all my trips to LA, I’ve never been.
The NYC location is so cool!! The decor feels hip and casually cool, and the restaurant if filled with the loud clinks of silverware, chairs being moved to accommodate more hungry diners, and the low hum of conversation.
Our brunch was insanely delicious!
My daughter and I decided we’d share savory and sweet (I love a bit of sweet with savory!), so I ordered the crispy eggs with romesco and prosciutto, and she ordered the lemon buckwheat ricotta pancake (which was light as air!) with crème fraîche and blueberry compote.
I will definitely be creating my own version of both dishes for a future Substack!
That night we met my cousin’s daughter for dinner at Anton’s in the West Village.
Walking into the landmarked 1850s Greek-revival style building, I knew we were in for something really special.
Anton's menu runs deep with inspiration from both Europe and American cuisine, creating a vibe that captures a quintessential NYC restaurant feel, but with a fresh twist!
We started with warm baguette (a restaurant always has my heart when they serve the bread warm) with creamy camembert and a cherry gastrique. Added bonus: the baguette had the perfect crunchy exterior, but not so crunchy it rips the roof of your mouth to shreds.
I had the spinach ravioli which was perfectly al dente and served in a light lemon cream sauce. It was so good I practically licked the plate clean!
Lexie had bucatini baczynsky which is their version of a bucatini all'amatriciana with bacon instead of the traditional guanciale. It was out of this world — the perfect balance of spice from the tomato sauce and saltiness from the bacon.
There are so many bakeries we wanted to check out and Magnolia Bakery was at the top of our list.
We bought a vanilla cupcake, brownie and a blondie and they were all delicious! The cupcake was light, fluffy and the frosting was just the right amount of sweet. It was also the right amount — we got a bit of frosting an every bite. The brownie was rich and fudgey and the blondie was the perfect texture combination of a cookie and a brownie.
Magnolia Bakery is well known for their banana pudding — literally everyone told us we had to buy it. Neither one of us is a fan of pudding, though, so we passed. If you’ve had the pudding and think we made a huge mistake…..let me know!
Living in Seattle, I consider myself somewhat of an expert when it comes to sushi. Not only is it one of my favorite things to eat, but we have a plethora of amazing sushi restaurants to choose from.
Blue Ribbon Sushi is one of the best sushi restaurants I’ve ever been to.
We went to the Columbia Circle location and it’s a dinner I’ll be dreaming about for a long time. The service was exceptional and every dish was perfection. The fish tasted like the sea, each bite melting away like butter. Each preparation expertly highlighted the delicate flavor of the fish without overpowering it.
And, yes, we ordered the fried chicken, too. Which, at first seems odd at a sushi restaurant (trust me, I second guessed it, but my husband told me it was a “must order’) but was insanely delicious. The impossibly crunchy outer layer gave way to ridiculously tender and juicy chicken. And the wasabi honey….wow!!…so good….I could eat by the sweet and spicy spoonful!
Our last dinner was at Fiaschetteria — my daughter had eaten at the Amsterdam location and raved about it.
It was such a cute restaurant! Tiny inside with Italian waiters who bring over a metal bottle carrier you’d usually see filled with milk bottles in an old movie, but here, they fill it with bottles of wine. Each bottle has the name on a decorative tag — so much more fun that looking at a printed wine list! Very clever!
The vibe feels like you’ve stumbled upon Nonna’s house and have been invited in to share a meal. We, of course, order pasta…..all made in house and absolute perfection! For dessert we shared the shortbread with zabaione foam….the foam was like the lightest whipped cream, gently flavored with Marsala.
Everything was incredible and I highly recommend if you love a cozy, family authentic Italian restaurant.
See you for Part 2 next Friday!
Hope you’re having a fabulous weekend, foodie friends!
xo
Lisa
