When in New York, there are thousands of restaurants to go to.  It is PARADISE for anyone who loves to eat!!!  One of the reasons I LOVE NY! So many restaurants and each is unique and has it’s own character and story to tell.  We look forward to every meal!  

 1.)  WonJo – Korean  in Korea Town is always a must for us – If you have not heard or tried Chadol Baegi- try it.  My cousin Gippy introduced it to us many years back in New York and from that time on, it is a MUST- we have not ever seen it in any korean restaurant in other countries except for the ones in New York

The photo on top is the regular kalbi beef but below is the Chadol Baegi – it comes with a salt sauce.  TRY IT and you might like it too!  

23West 32nd Street New York, NY 10001Tel : (212) 695-5815

2.)  Hatsuhana 

It is really a sushi restaurant, but we liked the 2 unique tempuras they had – Lobster tempura and the Anago ( eel ) tempura

3.)  Serafina– WOW!  This was a yummy Risotto!!

Risotto veuve clicquot

With champagne & black truffle.

Serafina Broadway  210 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019  Phone: (212) 315-1700 

4.)  Joe Shanghai – We only go here for the Xiao long Bao ( Soup Buns ) – nothing else!  And that is really what they are known for.  James went here three times this trip!  It is his favorite.  He said to make sure you order the CRABMEAT with pork soup buns

From Joe Shanghai’s website: 

Soup Dumplings (Xiao Long Bao)

Xiao Long Bao or “Little Dumplings from Basket” was originated from Nan Xiang, a suburb of Shanghai. Their perfectly symmetrical shape, resembles a pagoda.

These tender pouches, “little dumplings”, are freshly made to order. They arrive at the table in piping hot bamboo steamers. Each plump dumpling contains a little pork meatball surrounded by a delightful meaty broth.

To prevent burning one’s mouth and to savor the dumpling, the preferred method of consumption is to bite off a little piece of the doughy wrapper, suck the broth with a “slurp”, then eat the rest.

There are two variations available at Joe’s Shanghai – crab meat and pork meat. Each basket is freshly made to order, so don’t forget to order your Soup Dumpling upon arrival at your table. Otherwise it might be a long wait.

A cartoonist, Robert Zimmerman, had drawn “Soup Dumplings: A Survival Course” comic strip that was once published in the newspapers. It comedically depicts the hazard of eating a fresh, piping hot dumpling. Although a little extreme, the danger of burning one’s mouth is no different from the dangers of enjoying a hot cup of coffee.

Soup Dumplings : A Survival Course 

5.)  Doughnut Plant- Our brother, John recommended this place.  So we made sure we went to check it out.  It is a small shop downtown with only one branch in the city.   Since they only have one shop, they sell their doughnuts in other locations –  Dean and Delluca, Whole Foods, Zabars  and other known food specialty stores.

This is Tres Leche which is supposedly their bestseller and recommended by John.  We liked it.  It is a different kind of doughnut. More “cakey” – not the Krispy Kreme melt in your mouth type.  

6.)  Buttercup Bake Shop

 Buttercup is the Queen of all cupcakes!  This is where we first fell in love with cupcakes many years ago!  Even the kids always ask to go back to Buttercup so they can have their cupcakes. The icing is the BEST!   

7.)  Basta Pasta

Basta Pasta was established in Tokyo Japan 1985, which was designed after the TV program Iron Chef with a totally open kitchen as a Kitchen Theater. In 1990 Basta Pasta opened in New York. We would like our guests to enjoy Italian as The Japanese do    

As you enter the restaurant, you see this gigantic freezer where they store all their ingredients

One of their specialties – Spaghetti with Parmigiano Reggiano and Parma prosciutto,served in half a wheel of Parmesan cheese at table – Pepato in Greenbelt also has something similar to this dish

 37 West 17th Street New York, New York, 10011 (212) 366-0888 

8.)  Ollie’s- Thanks to Tito Stephen and Tita Reggie for our despedida lunch

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Ninja was a fun eating experience!  Only in New York will you find places like these.  

When you enter the front door, you are greeted by a receptionist  It is dark inside.  She then lets you use the elevator which takes you down to the restaurant.  And when the door opens, a Ninja comes out from nowhere and shouts and greets you!  It was so funny!  We were all startled! 🙂

Then he makes you choose between two doors…of course we chose the more interesting door…. it is a hallway but you are walking on a bridge like thing- its very dark and the ceiling is low….halfway we are startled again by another ninja and then that takes you to the restaurant finally.  

There are many rooms of different sizes in the restaurant – so everyone gets a private room to themselves.

This was a sashimi dish being served and Jaime pulled a sword out of it…..

And the sashimi that had smoke…. they had many interesting food presentations

This was an appetizer but i made it my main dish- SPICY CHEESE TEMPURA!  It was actually good and the spicy was not that spicy!

CLAM BOMBSHELL

The clam was closed and they lit it like they were lighting a bomb – when it reached the clam, it sort of exploded and opened the clam shell….all throughout we were entertained by the dishes!

Mom always likes to order Shabu Shabu 

Chicken Teriyaki and KIRIKABU – Wagyu beef with  Woodstamped KIRIKABU FILO- it has a filo pastry on top and you remove it

Happy Birthday Quito!!!

We thought that was it – but a guy came and did some magic tricks!  It was Stewart the magician!  He was really good! Of course Jaime and Javier who love doing magic as well were amazed!

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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