Shake Shack

Madison Square Park, NY, NY 10010

Rating: 2 - Super Happy
Visit #: 6
In Brief: The Shake Shack burger is as good as people claim, but we wait for rainy days and cold weather instead of braving any hour long lines. Do not overlook the shroom burger.

Walking past Madison Square Park at 11:35am on this gloriously beautiful day, we noticed one of the shortest lines (maybe 8 people) ever witnessed at Shake Shack. It was a little early but who could pass up such an opportunity! With seats a plenty, the sun warming up the park, the fresh juicy burgers were devoured under prime settings. We savor this rare occasion.

4:30pm brown butter rhubarb tart

Every day we are waiting for Maison Kayser to open and every day the windows remain papered up. It's ok, LA Burdick suffices pretty well with the always interesting selection of dessert specials. Today is a brown butter rhubarb tart. I'm unable to resist anything rhubarb and it is the season! I hope to eat more rhubarb in the next weeks.
L.A. Burdick, 5 East 20th St, NY, NY 10003 (btwn 5th Ave and Broadway)

Wildwood BBQ

225 Park Ave South, NY, NY 10003

Rating: 5 - Disappointed
In brief: The first visit was the best.
Visit #: 2

The presentation is super plain, but the brisket platter at Wildwood Barbeque is a cacophony of deliciousness in your mouth. Everything was divine, whether a simple bite of the mashed potatoes or a taste of everything at once. The pickled jalapenos were an especially nice counterpoint to the lushy fattiness of the brisket. We flirted briefly with ordering a salad or vegetable side but could not give up the Carribean jerk wings. Next time we need more friends so we can try more things, if what we had today was any indication, there is an entire menu left to try.

4:27pm pineapple doughnut

Interesting, I did not realize this was a pineapple doughnut until I went to write this post and read M's caption. It tasted citrusy, though not lemon citrus. I confess, I wasn't paying attention and before long, my half of the donut was gone, baby gone.
Doughnut Plant, 379 Grand St, NY, NY (at Norfolk St) 

Dumbo Kitchen

108 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Rating: 6 - Regretfully Yours
Visit #: 1
In brief: What can I say, next to the subway entrance, we were starving, to be expected.

I completely forgot to post yesterday, but also because it was a rather unremarkable lunch that resulted from a panel discussion lasting well past lunch time and us stopping at the first place to serve lunch, that being Dumbo Kitchen. It's a pretty space though, so there's that.

4:30pm carrot cake cupcakes

Mental note to self: when hosting a bake-off be sure to invite as many people as you can so you're not forced to eat dessert leftovers for more than a day. Though the dessert leftovers are rather tasty.

Barbounia, with Mark

It would be really fantastic if restaurants posted their noise levels along with the cost of the meal, good for groups, ratings, etc. We're often picking restaurants based on sound levels, it plays such a major factor in whether or not the meal is enjoyable or stressful. I hate yelling while trying to eat. Maybe Julian Treasure should tackle the restaurant industry. At Barbounia, we chatted with Mark, or rather talked loudly, over a very delicious meal, though next time I might ask M. to share the burger. It was large, very good, and super juicy.
Barbounia, 250 Park Ave S, NY, NY 10003 (at 20th St)

4:30pm German apple cake

Following yesterday's bake-off, we're heavy into dessert leftovers and likely to be so for the next several days.

Mira Sushi

46 E. 22nd St, NY, NY 10010

Rating: 4 - Just Fine
Visit #: 1
In brief: Don't go here if you're an Asian food purist. And if you do go here, don't order the salad unless they happen to have changed the disturbingly sweet vinaigrette dressing.

Except for the disturbingly dessert sweet vinaigrette on the salad, the $9.95 lunch special bi bam bap at Mira Sushi is pretty enjoyable. It tastes like your Westerner roommate made it with whatever fresh vegetables she had in the refrigerator. The slight sprinkling of seaweed and marinated meats brings it back to Asia, but the red pepper, chunky cucumber and shredded lettuce is too much of this continent. Following the change from its previous owners, Mira Sushi seems to be doing well and I'm sure it's going on the too lazy to walk too far list.

4:15pm Bake-off! Round 3

I didn't think I would survive too long in the Harvest Bake-off, being not much of a baker. Joschka may have loved my German apple cake, but he's German like that. The judge's vote and the people's vote were widely disparate today, which could explain why Kristy and I were last place in the judge's vote but numbers 1 and 2 in the people's vote. Patrick heads off the judge's vote, and unless he really flubs the last round (anything is possible!), it looks like he is headed toward first place. I have hopes that Kristy will pull off something amazing at the Finale. But until it's over, it's still anyone's game!

Hummus Pita & Co

585 6th Ave, New York, NY 10011

Rating: 4 - Just Fine
In brief: Could be better.
Visit #: 2

Happy Earth Day! Today the rampant consumption of the earth's resources was reduced by one Hummus Pita & Co. falafel platter.

4:20pm almond cream bread

The thing I like about Asian sweet breads is that they aren't too sweet. It's almost like eating a donut with less sugar (generally speaking that is). And I like that the fillings tend to be made from beans and such rather than jelly and chocolate. This one from a Korean bakery really hit the spot. The filling was more an almond paste, but for all of you who like almonds but dislike marzipan. It tasted of sweetened ground almonds but not like almond paste where you get that super concentrated flavor that almost tastes fake.
Tous Les Jours, 31 W. 32nd St, NY, NY 10001 (btwn 5th Ave and Broadway)

Heartland Brewery w/ the fam

Husband and child were running errands in Union Square so I decided to go meet them for lunch preferably somewhere with outdoor seating to enjoy this warm day. I had heard much great things about the burger from Heartland Brewery from A Hamburger Today. What I failed to note was that I was to get the Steakhouse Burger. Well I'm glad I have something to try again, because while the burger was nice and very fresh/clean tasting, it was nothing that will linger in my mind. I'd happily eat it again, but not because I crave it. I was kind of disappointed but I'm happy I got the wrong thing.
Heartland Brewery Union Square, 35 Union Sq. West, New York, NY 10003 (btwn 17th & 18th Streets)

Old Town Bar w/ Ostap

45 E. 18th St, NY, NY 10003

Rating: 2 - Super Happy
Visit #: 4
In brief: When it's not crowded (lunch) it's one of the best pubs in the city. The frankfurters are not to be missed, but otherwise it's not really about the food here.

Old Town Bar is such a great place for lunch to escape the busy-ness of the neighborhood. Even though most of the customers look like local businessmen, it still has a neighborhood feel that is hard to find in this area. Plus we're a total sucker for their frankfurter which comes on a piece of white bread folded in half. There's something on the menu about Martha Stewart featuring this item. Whatever you think of her, if she likes it, it probably ain't bad right? Try it next time you find yourself there, you won't be disappointed.

4:12pm donut

The creme donut is my favorite everyday donut. Not that I eat one every day. I live very close to The Donut Pub, but now that our new office is in the opposite direction, I rarely remember to pick one up on my way to work. I don't think Y has been too happy about that.
The Donut Pub, 203 W.14th St, NY, NY 10011 (near 7th Ave)

The Lobster Truck

Shockingly, or maybe not shockingly, considering a cheap lobster roll is $16, the line at the Red Hook Lobster Truck was not that long today. I don't know why, that shit is good. We ordered one Maine (cold) and one Connecticut (warm) and pretty much wolfed them down in 10 minutes flat. Afterward we sat at that weird park-non-park at Broadway between 22nd and 23rd and basked in the afternoon sun.
Red Hook Lobster Truck, 5th Ave at 21st St, NY, NY 10010 (north west corner)

4:30pm oatmeal raisin, with walnuts

I am finding the whole updating of news via twitter completely fascinating and terribly addictive. I find myself speaking things out loud as they occur to M. across the room from me. Everything is with a qualifier, because I can't trust anything the twitter says.

Rosa Mexicano, with Julia

9 E. 18th St, NY, NY 10003

Rating: 7 - Offended
Visit #: 1
In brief: Poor, poor and poorer service. Food is ok if you can bear being ignored the whole meal.

I couldn't bear to write about the mundaneness of lunching yesterday, Boston was too much in our minds, on the news, on the internet. But here, a brief synopsis of lunch at Rosa Mexicano with a dear old friend, Julia, who is (hopefully) temporarily relocating to Berlin. We ordered the rapidos lunch special, which was not even remotely rapidos. It took forever to get any service, and each time we almost had to shout across the half empty dining room. They paid no attention to our waving hands, asking, begging for service. We very much enjoyed the actual food itself, the rapidos lunch special is like a pretty bento box of Mexican treats. As much as we'd go back for that, I'm not sure either of us could bear such horrendous service again.

KoFoo, back of Four Seasons Cafe

Seems frivolous to talk about a hidden Korean food joint when more life threatening events are happening in Boston at this very moment. Social media is pretty amazing that way, something big happens and everyone is suddenly swept up in the conversation.
KoFoo, back of Four Seasons Cafe (no longer a Blimpie's), 67 W. 23rd St, NY, NY 10010 (closer to 6th Ave)

4:20pm oatmeal cherry cookie

Whenever I eat two things in a row that seem a little too sweet, I have to wonder if it's the cookie itself that is too sweet or my taste buds decided to have an unasked for sensitivity to sugar.
Made Fresh Daily, 222 Front St, NY, NY 10038 (btwn Peck Slip and Beekman)

Lenny's

Not to sound too harsh but we find Lenny's to be devoid of character and not the type of place we want to spend our lunch time away from the office. But we had heard from more than one source that their sandwiches are tasty, and we'll ultimately never turn down a chance to discover good eats. Well, that and the weather was nasty outside and we didn't want too go far. It took a long time to get my sandwich (the #1 Lenny's - hot pastrami & corned beef with swiss cheese, coleslaw and russian dressing, on a roll) despite it being before the lunch hour. It must have been all the people calling in their delivery order. It wasn't totally remarkable, but I have to give it credit for having good distribution of innards. That seemingly easy task is not easy to accomplish. It borders on overstuffed heavy but without becoming so, not too heavy and satisfying. I'd certainly be into trying more of their sandwiches.
Lenny's, 16 West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10010 (between 5th and 6th Avenues)

4:40pm apricot tarts

I love the way apricot tarts can look like an egg yolk has been cracked on top and is sitting pretty. Not in this picture though.
Tarallucci E Vino, 15 E. 18th St, NY, NY 10003 (btwn 5th and Broadway)

Mama Gyro

Ok Mike Winston, you are utterly responsible for our hopping on a train two stops south of Union Square for gyro's at Mama Gyro. I foolishly ordered the chicken, it was ok. The french fries were definitely yummy and they messed up M.'s order so it took awhile for the beef/lamb gyro's to come out, but once they did, we thoroughly enjoyed them. Next time we might have to order some yogurt to add a bit of sauciness to the pita. The entire venture took 1 hour and 10 minutes, that's not too bad.
Mama Gyro, 820 Broadway, NY, NY 10003 (btwn 11th and 12th St)

4:36pm madelines

I made this funny flickr set today called Coincidences of Us, all the times M. and I accidentally show up to work wearing color coordinated outfits. Like today, so wholeheartedly coordinated that I was almost embarrassed to be seen walking next to her in public. It did not stop us from going out to lunch or picking up these very good, though a little too sweet, madeleines from L.A. Burdick.
L.A. Burdick, 5 East 20th St, NY, NY 10003 (btwn 5th Ave and Broadway)

Choza Taqueria

We are deep in the midst of planning some future projects, which is basically a never-ending conversation about what this city needs/wants/is missing. Today we walked and talked our way over to Choza Taqueria, and then proceeded to be completely amazed about the percentage of blue oxford shirt wearing guys frequenting the little taqueria. I mean, seriously, amazed. At any given time, at least half the people waiting in line were guys in some variation of a blue button up. We both had bowls, there were reasonably good, nothing ooh aah sis boom bah, but good enough to return for.
Choza Taqueria, 66 Madison Ave, NY, NY 10016 (btwn 27th and 28th)

4:40pm cookies

The diamond chocolate chip shortbread cookie (or I'm guessing that's what is is) doesn't look especially enticing, but it is.
Bien Cuit, 35 Christopher St, NY, NY 10014 (near Waverly Pl)

BXL Cafe, with Tim

Oddly, if you want Belgian in the Flatiron District, you can actually choose from several options. We tried the newest one, just down the street from the office - BXL Zoute. The ceilings are low but with the doors wide open to this gorgeous spring day, it was the perfect place for moules frites, or saumon roti as shown here, with our favorite lighting rep, Tim.
BXL Zoute, 50 W. 22nd St, NY, NY 10010 (btwn 5th Ave and 6th Ave)

a Flatiron lunching map

We're pretty old school over here, relying on physical planners and sketchbooks to contain our ideas, meetings and memories. When we moved we started a new lunch list, basically a scrap piece of paper with all the lunch places we needed to try. It wasn't gelling for us though. But when I realized we had a gigantic whiteboard wall, I drew us a map of our new neighborhood with a 10 minute walking radius marked in black and a 15 minute walking band in blue. We're still proliferating the map with lunch options, but it's really starting to fill in and it's really helping us visualize where to go for lunch.

4:45pm pop tart

Seriously, I don't know how anyone could resist this adorable home made pop tart from Made Fresh Daily. We popped it in the toaster for a wee bit, it came out piping hot, and was devoured in a couple bites.
Made Fresh Daily, 222 Front St, NY, NY 10038 (btwn Peck Slip and Beekman)

Kunjip

Everyone is feeling spring today! Suddenly it's warm and sunny and pollen is everywhere! Yay! It's also the perfect day for a long lunch walk so we headed to Kunjip at the edge of our 15 minute walking lunch radius. Kunjip is a machine of dining, they hustle you at every moment, handing out menus as you wait for a table, hovering, always attentive, taking your order the instant you're ready and then bam! ban chan galore. As usual, Korean food does not disappoint.
Kunjip, 9 West 32nd St, NY, NY 10001 (btwn 5th and 6th Aves)

4:35pm chocolate chip cookie

Nobody warned us that walking into Toby's on a sunny Thursday afternoon would be like walking into a photo shoot for the prototypical life of a Williamsburg hipster. The tall ceilings and clusters of pendants combined with small details here and there were beautiful enough without the scattering of bright young things and their mac books. We already had a cookie from Bakeri but were unable to resist a second one. In the end they both turned out so different, it was hard to compare.
Toby's Estate Coffe, 125 N. 6th St, Brooklyn, NY 11249 (btwn Bedford and Berry)

L'Express

249 Park Avenue South, NY, NY 10003

Rating: 4 - Just Fine
Visit #: 1
In brief: It's open 24 hours and has nostalgic value, but the food is so whatever.

There is always a moment of silent appreciation when an old school place like L'Express manages to survive the years, despite it having been more than a decade since either of us has been. It was cheaper than either of us remembered, but then again we were much younger and more broke back then. The food is still nothing to write home about, but that's no reason to keep you from enjoying the atmosphere, plus the lunch menu is nice and affordable.
L'Express, 249 Park Ave S, NY, NY 10003 (at 20th St)

4:25pm cookie

Bakeri assailed our senses with savory scents coming from the open cooking area in the back, mingled with other sweetnesses coming from cookies or something just out of the oven. It took forever to decide because it took forever to slowly look at each tempting dessert, assess, and then choose.
Bakeri, 150 Wythe Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211 (near N. 8th)

Ramen Yebisu

If you have to go to Williamsburg, I highly recommend bright, sunny afternoons. Aside from the new towers growing up along the river, most of Williamsburg is still low, three to four story buildings, making for a fantastic outpouring of light during the day. We meant to run the one errand, have lunch and head back, but it was so easy to get there from here and then it was so beautiful there that we ended up walking around for a bit longer. I tried the soupless ramen at Ramen Yebisu, the Abura Soba while M. went with the recommended miso ramen. The poached egg coated the noodles with a slight stickiness that I very much enjoyed.
Ramen Yebisu, 126 N. 6th St, Brooklyn, NY 11211 (btwn Bedford and Berry)

4:30pm cinnamon raisin bun

Serious Eats makes some recommendations for new recently opened Breads Bakery near Union Square, though we forgot to listen and opted for the cinnamon raisin bun instead. It was perfectly nice, a wee bit too sweet, but still a quite lovely afternoon snack.
Breads Bakery, 18 E. 16th St, NY, NY 10003 (near Union Sq)

Chat n Chew

The grilled catfish sandwich from Chat n Chew looks pretty ho hum, I admit, but what you cannot taste in this photo is the perfectly toasted bread. It was lightly crunchy, the bread yielded easily with each bite and to top that off was a tangy tartar sauce and plumply grilled catfish. The "caesar salad", on the other hand, is precisely what it looks like - not worth ordering or eating for that matter.
Chat 'n' Chew, 10 E. 16th St, NY, NY 10003 (btwn Union Square W. and 5th Ave)

4:45pm coco-nut

Aside from being a little too sweet, the Coco-Nut cookie from Pret a Manger is pretty enjoyable. This was the third place we tried for dessert. First was the converted Limelight into shopping mall, which was just too depressing if you ever went clubbing there and sadly deserted if you did not. Then Crumbs, where the ginormous cupcakes paralyzed us into walking out again. Thank goodness for Pret.
Pret A Manger, 655 6th Avenue, New York, NY 10011 (between 21st and 20th)

Sala One Nine, with Lizz

We had the most utterly satisfying lunch today at Sala One Nine, both from a food point of view and from the company. It's been awhile since we caught up with Lizz, which means we had a lot of laughing and talking to do. Instead of the normal sharing between food lovers, we ordered individual sandwiches. Lizz liked her bonito del norte (spanish tuna) but M. and I were completely mesmerized by ours, the chorizo and lumo adobado respectively. The waiter cleared off three completely clean dishes a short while later. Another winning lunch.
Sala One Nine, 35 W. 19th St, NY, NY 10011 (btwn 5th and 6th Aves)

4:27pm brioche

I happened to walk by Mille Feuille this morning so of course I picked up a croissant for breakfast. The brioche in the window caught my eye, they always catch my eye. The big crackling sugar on top, the promise of a light fluffy bite - why are they so much prettier than they taste? Maybe when they are fresh out of the oven they are stupendous, but we have yet to catch one on its way out of the oven.
Mille-feuille Bakery Cafe, 552 Laguardia Place, NY, NY 10012 (btwn 3rd and Bleecker)  

Petit Abeille, with Hong and Kim

44 W. 17th St, NY, NY 10010

Rating: 4 - Just Fine
In brief: Gotta love those mussels.
Visit #: 1

Having not been to Petit Abeille in years and years, none of us four lunching ladies could gauge how or what to order to share. I guess 2 appetizers and 2 entrees was a bit much, the table was so laden with food we barely had room to eat. I love mussels mariniere but the real nice surprise was the potato leek stoemp and bangers, which M. and I already plan on returning for. And an added incentive, we finally found a non-crowded and relaxed dining room at Petit Abeille that we will be certain on frequenting again.