We are in New York for a couple of days (amidst a visit with family in PA and before a short trip to MA in a week). And while, yes, we have been enjoying lots of good time with family and friends over the last 10 days, it is the FOOD we have eaten that I find most bloggable. This is largely because we are deprived. Living in NE Wisconsin, far away from urban life and subsequent food venues, R and I do a good job of getting by. We make almost everything we eat, and seldom eat out ('cause, frankly, we can do it better). But all year we anticipate the five days we will spend in NYC as this blissful nether-worldly immersion into food culture. We have been talking and planning for months. And on Monday, the festivities began.
Let me tell you a little bit about what we have been eating.
On Monday night, after a long day at work, Maggie was noble enough to pile us into the car and drive us to Flushing to eat at Kum Gang Sang an enormous restaurant that one reviewer comments "is starting to resemble the closest thing to Disneyland- complete with entertainers and waterfalls- that the borough can cough up." The 곱돌 비빔밥 , or, Gop Dol Bibim Bab was delicious. Hollis and I asked for the vegetarian versions (I know, it is practically a sin to ask for vegetarian Korean dishes) while Mags and Rhonda ate the cow. These hot-pot dishes came to the table sizzling, and the kimchee, sweet potato, and seaweed salad were heaped into the bowl. I greedily filled my to-go container with every scrap.
The next morning we walked from Bergen St. (where M & H live) to Joyce Bakeshop on Vanderbilt where lattes were procured (very good, but not a Seattle latte). We couldn't stop to taste the pastries, because we were off to the Brooklyn Bagel Meccaa -- Bergen Bagels -- where we ate untoasted bagels (everything for me and poppyseed for R) oozing with cream cheese.
Our next goal for our food day was Vietnamese sandwiches and bubble tea. We walked around Brooklyn for several hours with the goal of burning off the bagels and becoming hungry again. It was a lovely, sunny day, and the walk was perfect. Hollis showed us around the neighborhood, we poked our head into a few cute shops, and talked and walked. Finally, we made it to a new place that Rhonda found on a "cheap eats" page of citysearch (Hollis had never been). Hanco's was delicious for two girls completely deprived of vietnamese sandwiches for a long, long time. The tofu was a bit too soft for my taste (yes, we all ordered tofu) but the carrot slaw was awesome. We also had taro bubble tea to boot.
After Hollis and Maggie headed off for skiing adventures, Rhonda and I ventured out for our final adventure of the day -- a quick slice of pizza at Antonio's on Flatbush. We totally disregarded the advice of this pizza critic who said that better slices could be found in Park Slope. Instead, we opted for what was cheap, greasy, and totally delish.
