Levain Bakery

Levain Bakery has some of New York's most legendary cookies but I can't believe it took me so long to finally try them! But maybe its a blessing in disguise because if I knew how delicious they were earlier I would be the size of a small island by now. The cookies definitely lived up to its hype and I have been gushing about them to my friends since that first magical bite. These cookies really hit the spot because during thesis crunch time and M and I definitely needed this for brain fuel.

Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie
I've tried every flavor and my favorites are this one and the raison oatmeal! The peanut butter and double choco? is also very good but I think its just due toe personal preference. The cookies are so incredibly soft and fudgey it's truly every bit as delectable and scrumptious as the picture looks. 

Look at how big they were! (And ignore how big my eye bags were... it was finals season T_T) 

Levain Bakery 

167 W 74th Street

New York

NY 10023

Bar Kogi

I love korean fried chicken and Korean food in general so I was excited to try out Bar Kogi which is one of J's favorites places since he lives right across the street. We ordered a bunch of other stuff as well but I was only able to snap pictures of two of the dishes because I got lazy :p The wings were yummy but I still think Turntable Chicken has the best korean fried chicken in NYC.

Tekbokki with Extra Cheese and Ramen 
Carbs and cheese are my favorite things (and fries haha) and while we were told that this preparation was not traditional I really loved it. It was quite spicy but the sauce was balanced nicely as it was also very flavorful and sweet. The amount of cheese was ideal and I love the sprinkle of scallion on the top. 

Overall I enjoyed the fun and casual atmosphere of Bar Kogi and definitely would be happy to return. It is a great neighborhood spot for a quick and yummy bite.

Bar Kogi

952 2nd Avenue 

New York 

NY 10022

American Cut

As much as I love steak, American Cut has never been on the top of my list of restaurants to try for some reason. It was not until I saw an instagram post about its stellar Restaurant Week menu that I decided to book a table. American Cut is opened by Marc Forgione, who is an Iron Chef and the food definitely lived up to his reputation!

My party and I were a bit peeved in the beginning because we were told to sit at the bar even though we arrived perfectly on time and were not seated until 20 minutes later. The hostess did not give us any explanation until we asked her twice regarding the table and this definitely did not help that we were all incredibly hangry. The bartender was very professional and we enjoyed our drinks so that did calm us down a bit haha. One other issue was that the AC was broken so it was quite stuffy in there. But apart from these two small hiccups the food was PHENOMENAL and I had a great dining experience. Our servers were very sweet and professional and the dinner went very smoothly. We ordered two Restaurant Week Menus and also from the a la carte menu. I would definitely be happy to come back and try out other items on the menu. I've heard that the tater tots were amazing so that in itself is enough for my return :D

Everything Biscuits  
Good lord these biscuits were good. They were so fluffy, buttery, and flakey that I also asked for seconds but I knew I had to save my tummy for the main event.

Diamond Jim Brady Oysters - Champagne, Black Truffle, Cruola 
These oysters were slightly salty but still very yummy. The hint of truffle was perfect and the cheesy mashed potatoes also was a perfect compliment to the oysters. 

Bacon, Schaller & Weber - MF Steak Sauce, Black Onion
Bacon is always a good idea but this bacon was out of this world. It almost had a slightly short rib richness to it and the umami from the bacon and the black onion was spectacular. 

Hanger - 9 oz Pastrami Spice, Smoke 
The steak was cooked perfectly and I loved the pastrami spice. It really gave the steak an unique flavor and took the meal to the next level. 

Wild Mushrooms and Grilled Polenta, Sunchoked Spinach with Fontina and Smoked Salt, and Potato Puree "Robuchon" and Local Butter 
The wild mushrooms were cooked perfectly and had a lovely earthy flavor. The spinach was very creamy and decadent, and the potatoes were very smooth and buttery. Delicious sides! 

The New York City Cut - 20 oz Bone-In Ribeye, Pastrami Spices, Smoke
The steak was a tinsy bit more raw than medium rare but it still tasted amazing so we had no complaints. The rub once again was great and the crust was perfect. The meat was so juicy and had great flavor. 

Oh hell yeah 

Bell & Evans Chicken - Natural Jus, Chili
We decided to order the chicken from the Restaurant Week Menu since we already had two steaks. I usually would not order chicken at a steak house but boy am I glad we did! This was one of the most well done pieces of chicken we have ever tried. The flavors were very simple and allowed the impeccable taste of the chicken meat to shine through. It was very obvious that this chicken was of high quality and the execution was also on point. The meat was incredibly juicy and the skin was also crispy and not at all greasy. 

Cracker Jack Sundae - Popcorn Ice Cream
MAN this is good. The amount of caramel was just perfect and the texture of the popcorn was ideal with the ice cream. My only complaint was that it was too small even though I was full up to my eyeballs from this meal. The ice cream was also wonderfully smooth and creamy.

Blueberry Bread Pudding with Vanilla Ice Cream
This was probably the least successful dish of the night. It had a strange tart flavor to it and I really did not like it. 

I had such a great meal here and I am already telling friends all about it! My next steak destination is Delmonico or Bowery Meat Company but American Cut definitely left a great impression on me and I can't wait to return! 

American Cut 

363 Greenwich Street

New York

NY 10013

July 4th Festivities

I've never celebrated July 4th before as I was always back in Hong Kong for the summer so I was super excited to have my first July 4th celebration in the US of A. We had a BBQ and we also made a lot of sides and dessert.

Pilot and his little hat :)

Oooey gooey cheesy corn dip 

Wynonna's Roast Chicken Feast

My friend W always makes the most amazing food and I am so lucky to be able to shove my face with her creations all the time. She decided to make a roast chicken feast last week and here are the results. 

Whole Rotisserie Duck Ssäm at Momofuku Ssäm Bar

I've had the bo ssäm a few times but have never tried the other large format meals at Momofuku Ssäm Bar so was pretty excited when C decided to to do his birthday dinner there. The duck was quite good but I think I prefer the bo ssäm! We got a set dinner and were all extremely stuffed at the end of it. Pork buns were delicious as usual and we also had this yummy chicken liver spread that is not pictured.

Whole Rotisserie Duck Ssam 
The duck was flavorful and all the condiments worked together to result in a tasty bite, however, I preferred the bo ssam as it's more rich and I prefer the cutting style of regular peking duck as compared to this rolled up method. The chive pancakes were also a bit too thick. Therefore I think if I were to get a large format meal I would opt for the bo ssam and have roast duck elsewhere (like decoy) even if it's a slightly different style. 

 Momofuku Ssam Bar

207 Second Ave 

New York

NY 10003

Root & Bone

Root & Bone is a restaurant that is opened by Top Chef alums Jeff McInnis and Janine Booth and has been on the to try list for ages for me and I. Maybe we have been anticipating it for too long, but the restaurant did not blow us away. The fried chicken was really good, but most of the other dishes were only ok.

Super cute tea cup for my alcohol :)  

Fried Green Tomatoes 
These were very well done and I enjoyed them. The outer layer was well seasoned and perfectly crispy and the tomatoes were fresh and tart. 

Grilled Peach Caprese - Gooey Pimento Cheese Croquette, Charred Peaches, Pickled Green Tomatoes, Baby Heirloom Tomatoes, Basil and Molasses Vinegar 
I was actually really looking forward to this item but it was quite disappointing. The peaches were not quite ripe enough and therefore did not achieve the caramelization from the charring. The pimento croquette was also much too small and the pickled green tomatoes didn't really fit in with the other flavors of the dish. 

Grilled Corn - Sweet Summer Corn, Cornbread Butter, Crunchy Hominy, Lemon PopcornThis was really yummy and the corn was grilled nicely. However, while I thought the addition of the hominy and popcorn was a cute idea, in terms of flavor it didn't really add anything to the dish and I preferred just eating the charred corn by itself. 

Drunken Pickled Eggs - Pickled Roots and Chips
These tasted a little funny as it was way too sour. 

Shrimp and Grits - VA County Ham, Brooklyn Lager Jus, Gulf Shrimp, Red Onion, Local Upstate Grits 
The shrimp was very fresh and plump but I disliked the addition of the ham. It tasted like the Chinese ham that you sautéed with vegetables and it just stringy and a bit tough. The addition of the cherry tomatoes also didn't do it for me and the grits weren't smooth or creamy enough.

Crispy Free  Range Fried Bird - Sweet Tea Brined, Lemon Dusted, Spiked Tabasco Honey 
This was the best dish of the night. The meat was very juicy extremely well flavored. The skin and coating was also crisp and not greasy at all. I also loved the tabasco honey (it tasted like the Mcwings sauce haha), it really made the dish pop. 

While some of the dishes were only ok for me, I wouldn't say that I had a bad dining experience here at all. The fried chicken was very well done and the mac and cheese looked really good on Yelp. I would not be opposed to coming here again but if you were visiting this would not be a must try. 

Root & Bone

200 East 3rd Street

New York

10009