NYC trip recap – Friday

I’m going to do something different this week… I’m not going to post about what I eat every day.  Instead I plan on doing a bit of catching up on all the things I’ve been meaning to write about, including our NYC trip this weekend (we’ll start with that), final recap of our Asia trip, some product reviews, a giveaway, and more. So I hope you stick around and we’ll be back to regular programming soon So let’s get to it…

Another fabulous trip to NY is over!  NYC is such a great city and every time we visit my sister, I can’t help but be a little bit sad that we no longer live there.  I know, I know, Boston is the right place for us, but still… NY is awesome!!! I have a lot of food to talk about. Let’s just say that I’ve been eating non-stop for the past 3 days, with short breaks to catch up on some sleep As to not overwhelm you (and scare you of how gluttonous one person can be) I’ll break this up into multiple posts. Let’s start with Friday, shall we?

I was a bottomless pit when I woke up. Actually the truth is I think I wasn’t even hungry, but I wanted to eat… EVERYTHING! I was full yet unsatisfied and in a very crappy mood (I seriously have no idea why because I had a really fun trip to look forward to) so I proceeded to fill my mouth and stomach until I couldn’t breathe. Healthy, I know! (*that’s sarcasm for those of you who can’t hear it through the screen*) There was a typical bowl of yogurt to start the morning (yum!):

+ unpictured passover cookie, 2 organic choc chookies, a Mojo trail mix bar, and leftover baked ziti with chicken – all of which I consumed before 11am!  At 11, I planned to hit the gym but duh, I was too full! So I tried to digest for another hour and went to the gym anyway. Clearly my workout was crappy but I figured it was better than nothing. I did 10 minutes on the stationary bike, a 3 mile run on the treadmill and a bit of walking. My workout stats showed my lack of effort (about 265 calories burnt in 40 minutes).

But don’t worry, the day got better from there…. A LOT better!! My husband and I took a half day at work so we could get to NYC at a decent time and still enjoy our Friday night there. The Bolt bus is a really easy and very economical way to get to NY… and they have wireless internet right on the bus! I was so happy!! I got to catch up on some blog reading… yeah Mid ride, I got hungry. In the morning after polishing off my lunch I was convinced I’d be unable to eat for at least 24 hours, but around 4pm, I thought I was going to chew my arm off if I didn’t feed myself. Luckily, I was able to find a few healthy snack in my purse…

This was my first time trying a pure bar. My first impression when I opened the package was that it looked like a larabar, but was much smaller. I almost wrote it off before even trying it, and that was silly because this bar rocked! It did have a very similar texture to a larabar (since the base is mostly dates) but it wasn’t as “date-sweet” but rather had a subtle sweetness… I think from the agave nectar. I should have taken notes after/during eating it (dorky, I know… but I have to do that sometimes to give you a better review than “it was great!”) but alas, I have to go with… “This was a very delicious bar and I can’t wait to have it again!” Last thing I’m going to say about it… if you had the cherry larabar, this wasn’t as tart. I think both bars are great in their own way, though. Give this guy a try!

All right, all right, we finally arrived in NY and were greeted by my sister, her boyfriend and this crack. Inna, this stuff is officially called crack, right? If it’s not, it should be because it’s seriously addictive!!! It’s saltine crackers, covered in caramel, chocolate and almond slices. Yup, chocolaty crack!!!

I started with this:

And then basically polished off this whole container:

*I’m only half-way kidding here. My sister actually made 2 containers’ worth and I was going at them for the 2 days we stayed at her place… some upon arrival at her place, some (I think) after a night out on Friday, more in the morning after breakfast on Saturday… and a few more times throughout the day on Sat and Sunday. Yep, I probably did eat close to a whole container. I’m sorry – it’s not my fault the girl served us crack!

And then Adam and I were off to find a place to get some real food. A few places suggested by my sister had a 2 hour or so wait, but luckily the last place we tried – SavorNY – had an open table! From their website:

SavorNY is proud to offer an eclectic small plates menu inspired by the diverse food cultures that exist in New York City, especially the Lower East Side. Behind our small plates menu, you’ll find big flavor, a full and inviting atmosphere, with a certain richness that is synonymous with New York.

The place was tiny (maybe 7 tables?) – kind of fitting for a place serving small plates The atmosphere was very cozy. We were happy campers See? Happy Adam…

And on the bottom right here you see my glass of Cabernet… which actually wasn’t very good but I drank it anyway

Adam and I weren’t too hungry (I blame the above mentioned crack!) so with our wine we decided to split 2 “fingers” plates and 2 “forks” plates. The fingers plates arrived first.  Grilled vegetable samosas with coconut curry:

Inside were some shredded carrots and other spicy veggies (maybe cabbage?). The flavors were excellent (nice and spicy), but the texture was a bit off. I think they weren’t fried or baked enough… or maybe they were waiting for the spring rolls to finish cooking so they got a bit soggy. I wouldn’t classify this as finger food, but I still really enjoyed it

Shrimp in a coat with sweet sriracha sauce:

Now these guys were perfectly fried! The rolls were jumbo shrimp in very thin phyllo dough. Despite being fried they tasted quite light (I still know this is not a low calorie food, I’m just saying they weren’t overwhelmingly greasy). I had 2 of them and let Adam have the last 1 I know, I’m such a good wife

And then came out the fork dishes – both were absolutely fantastic!!

Spicy duck wontons with sesame oil and scallions:

So tender and melt-in-your mouth delicious!

Tortilla Espanola – root vegetables and chorizo

The description of this was so simple I didn’t really know what to expect, but I knew I liked root vegetables This was like a sliced potato cake covered in creamy roasted pepper sauce, with sliced pan fried chorizo on the side. I had only one of the tiny chorizo slices (very good, I’m just not much of a sausage girl) but definitely polished off my 1/2 of the cake. The sauce really complemented it well. I loved this dish!!

And yes, there was dessert. I really can’t help myself! I got the chocolate mocha cake and let Adam have probably 1/3 of it…

Somebody stole one of the blackberries before I could snap a photo The cake was delicious! Strong coffee flavor, very rich velvety texture – like a soft flourless chocolate cake. The best way to end a meal in my opinion

After dinner we stopped by Spitzer’s – we both absolutely love this bar! They have a really great beer selection and a really cool vibe. We snagged a sweet spot on one of the benches too and enjoyed some people watching while sipping on our drinks. I got the Original Sin hard cider. I love hard ciders!!

Around midnight we called it a night and headed back to my sister’s place. I think we’re getting old! :O

More to come on our NYC trip. Stay tuned!