EMAIL FROM KRIE:  ”go to gray’s papaya for the super sarap tastes-like-steak hotdogs (take the boys) ”

So I did!  YUMMY!! I just wish they had more locations so it is easier for us to get them. 

Rudy is a Filipino and he helped us out.  I took his photo and he told me to send it to him.  I told him he will be in Heart2Heart so this is dedicated to Rudy!

As usual we get harassed when there are many people lining up or ordering in a place.  Rudy asked us how we liked our hotdog. Gosh!  We did not know.  So we said, just put everything!  This is how “everything” looks like….

Jaime likes the ” EVERYTHING” while Javs and I liked the plain.  You get to taste more of the hotdog and Krie was right, they are “taste-like steak hotdogs.”  They have no mayonnaise but they have mustard on the counter if you want to put mustard. The hotdogs are very small so even my kids can finish two pieces.  

539 8th Ave  New York, NY 10018

402 Sixth Ave., New York, NY 10014  at 8th St. 

2090 Broadway ( cross street 71st street ) New York, NY 10023-2802

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Play the video to listen to the theme song while you read this to put you in the Pinkberry mood!  :-)

How I wish I were eating a Pinkberry right now!  Last year, James had mentioned to us about Pinkberry as Starbucks had invested in this new concept.  So it was a definite MUST TRY on our list.  We visited Pinkberry the night before we left New York.  We kept procrastinating since the family said it was not their type, it was sour, the kids did not really like it, etc etc.  The kids were expecting the typical soft serve or something like their favorite, Golden Spoon. So I guess when you have expectations, of course you will be disappointed.  Though Jackie and Krie told us they loved it.  So, just like anything else, it is a matter of taste.  This is now Heart2Heart’s all time favorite frozen delight! 

One shop had just opened a few days after we arrived near where we stayed.  and OH MY GOSH!!  James and I loved it!!!!!!! We wanted to pass by and get another Pinkberry on the way to the airport but we were running late!

There are only 3 flavors to choose from- ORIGINAL PINKBERRY, GREEN TEA and COFFEE

We were able to taste all since they sample out small cups- we liked the ORIGINAL PINKBERRY FLAVOR!  It is so refreshing and so YUMMY!  It is more icy than creamy and it has a sweet taste to it contrary to what the others said.  And adding the fresh kiwi and strawberry made it even taste better.    

Love this flyer which they gave out!

“Absence makes the HEART SWIRL fonder!”

PINKBERRY TO GO

Some material taken from their website:  PINKBERRY 

 
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My brother, Quito-okay okay now there is a photo of you - was more of a New York foodie compared to us.  His best friend Carey took him to all the good places!  

Quito was trying to make me jealous by sending photos of his meal at the SHAKE SHACK.  He was telling us to go.   We attempted to go there the day before we left but the traffic was heavy and we were already pressed for time.  Definitely a reason to go back to New York!!! 

“It’s a double patty with portobello mushroom in the middle with cheese oozing out of your ears with lots of dressing! Who cares if the line is long , the calories are deadly! This is something you must eat before you die! ”

Thanks Louele for letting me use your photos!  Next time bring me with you and don’t just show me photos!  :-) 

 website:  Shake Shack

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Whenever we go to New York, we always look forward to seeing our friend, Jerome, one of the best lawyers in town!  Aside from the fact that he is our good friend and we enjoy being with him, we look forward to our meal together because Jerome always takes us to good restaurants in the city.  

This year, he took us to a very, very interesting restaurant concept.  Aside from the great food, it had a unique concept.  This was my most favorite restaurant experience this trip, Thanks to Jerome! Excellent food, excellent ambience, excellent conversation with an excellent lawyer and friend! 

Every season, the restaurant changes its interiors and its menu.  We were there in summertime so it is PARK AVENUE SUMMER.

It is in Park Avenue and owned by the Smith and Wollensky group. 

Michael Stillman joined forces with award-winning design firm AvroKO (Public, Stanton Social) on the concept and all aspects of architecture, design, and graphics of the restaurant. All physical components for the four Park Avenue projects were born from one key necessity: transformability. To effectively change both the mood and the architectural details of the space, several systems of receptacles were devised throughout the restaurant. Custom steel wall frames surround the space and were built to accept differing seasonal panels. These panels not only have unique materials for each season, ranging from wood, to porcelain, to mirror, but also have unique architectural details that affect the style of the space overall. AvroKO endeavored to design a space with a sense of discovery, rather than focus on creating stereotypical, physical manifestations of a &quote;season.&quote; This led to using Captain James Cook’s explorative travels as a loose design reference. The designers researched the regions he had visited in each of his major expeditions as a way of framing each season. 

SPRING 

SUMMER 

AUTUMN 

WINTER 

Fried Ipswich Oysters and Jersey Shore sauces 

Caprese Ravioli

Yellow Tomato Coulis 

Soft Shell Crab, Avocado and Strawberry 

Grilled Filet Mignon 

Fire Roasted Lamb Chops Smoked Cherries

YUMMY! Lamb Chops are among my favorite dishes and this one was EXCELLENT!!!

Fried Chicken and Waffle Sandwich  

Side dishes- crispy artichokes and french fries! YUMMY!!! 

The Chocolate Cube - Looks like a sculpture! and very yummy!

Summer Berries ( my favorite ) Goat Cheese Mousse, Lemon, Thyme and honey- YUMMY!!! and what a presentation! A WORK OF ART! 

website:  Park Avenue Summer 

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A recommendation from my brother, Quito.  He had just eaten here with his friends and told us to go for brunch too.  I love fancy and fun menus! Those highlighted in red are the bestsellers of the house so we just followed and ordered mostly the red items. What a lovely experience!

Norma’s Eggs Benedict 

Artychoked Benedict with truffle porcini sauce- Mom’s order because she loves Eggs Benedict and truffle! - Yummy!

Chocolate Hazelnut Fruit Filled Crepes 

Flat As A Pancake Crabcake

Heart2Heart’s only foie gras dish this trip -YUMMY!!  There was a generous amount of foie gras

Foie Gras Brioche French Toast with Asparagus and mushrooms

Potato Pancakes

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It was so hot in New York!  There was a heat wave and there was a day when it hit a record high of 98 degress! Good excuse to have all the frozen delights! Though, even when it is cold in NY, we still get all the frozen treats!!  :-)

Yummy Tasti D-Lite!  There are many of them in the streets of New York but they vary in size.  The bigger the place the more flavors they have and the more candies they have.  We are lucky to have a big one beside where we stayed. The stores are a bit old already and have not been updated…but nevermind…we just go to get the soft serve.

All soft serves are 80 calories or less ONLY!!! But the taste is still creamy and YUMMY! It’s not ice cream and it’s not yogurt!

WOW!! Javier is in paradise!!! Only in big locations they have this much candy to choose from!

The flavors change all the time and small places usually only have one or two flavors.  So this location had six! The smallest size costs around US$ 3.50 and it goes up if you add toppings.

You can visit their website to see the Nutrition facts of each flavor:  Tasti D-Lite Flavors 

Javs always has to have his sprinkles, I like mine plain so I can taste the flavor of the soft serve!

Some materials taken from their website: Tasti D-Lite share with a friend 

A year ago, Chipotle was just a name we were reading about and a name on the stock market. Finally, we get to try what everyone is raving about and why the stock price was going up.  James, the Taco Bell lover,  was so insistent on going to Chipotle and the kids thought they would not like it and that it was not their type…. but they liked it!

Behind the counter is a set up like this and what is nice is that you can tell them what you want in your taco or burrito. You make your own.  All ingredients are FRESH and as Steve mentioned, BETTER SOURCES OF INGREDIENTS.    Which explains its price and maybe why they call it GOURMET.

The lines can be long so you might get pressured when you get to the counter, so better to know already what you want before going to the counter so you do not get harassed.  We did not know what we wanted, so they helped us a bit- good thing it was still good!  :-) So if you will notice, what we ordered, they all look almost the same in terms of filling.

The orders come in 3 pcs.  It is around US$ 7.00+ for 3 pcs. which I think is double the price for 3 Taco Bell tacos.  We tried the crispy taco and the soft taco. And in those 3 pcs. you can choose different fillings for each.

We also tried the burrito bowl!

and of course the chips for Javier! It came in a brown paper bag!

You can even just fax in your order so you do not need to line up: 

Photos taken with an iPhone - It is so hard to bring my big and heavy camera all over the city so I use James’ iPhone

Some materials taken from Chipotle’s website:  Chipotle 

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Around 2 blocks away from Fr. Erno’s chapel,  is this nice Spanish store, Despaña. They sell products from Spain.   

CHEESE!!!!!

website:  Despaña 

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Of course Dad’s birthday is not complete without celebrating mass. Thanks to Tito Stephen and Tita Reggie for giving the gift of prayer for Dad.  They arranged a private mass for the family with Fr.  Erno.  What a beautiful building in a nice location… it is right beside Little Italy.  

I remember s beautiful line that Fr. Erno said during his sermon.  ”The HEART is the source of all good things.  True LOVE comes from the HEART and that keeps us together.”

Thank you to Fr. Erno for bringing prayer and bringing God closer to the Filipino people in New York.  

Fr. Erno is trying to raise funds to maintain the chapel and will be having a fund raising concert in Manila by no other than Tito Jo Mari Chan.  Tito Jo Mari is always so busy doing concerts all over the world and most of them for charity.  Thanks Tito Jo Mari for sharing your talent and for always helping other people. I hope that friends of Heart2Heart will help support Fr. Erno.

website:  Chapel of San Lorenzo Ruiz 

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