Going to New York for Dinner

I don't need much prompting to jump on a plane, let alone one headed for New York. So, when Manchego suggested we go to NYC for the weekend, it seemed like a plan. Except that it was Thursday, and last minute flights are hard to come by these days... especially on Porter. I checked for flights, just to see how insane the price would be, and I was shocked to find flights for $95. It was clearly a sign... except to Manchego who bailed and decided to spend the weekend relaxing. Lame.

We didn't make it to the High Line on our last trip, so after breakfast we walked up to the Meat Packing District to check it out. It was the highlight of the trip for me. I love public spaces, and this is an incredible example of how cities can reclaim, and adapt abandoned land. The HL passes under two buildings, the one shown here is the new hotel The Standard. Swank.


After walking most of the afternoon, we stopped into Fatty Crab for a PBR tall boy and a Chupacabra.


Chili Crabs are the specialty of the house, and normally that's what I would order, but after watching our neighbour eating them, I decided I really didn't want to get up to my elbows in sauce. Instead we ordered pickled watermelon and crispy pork. It may not look appetizing in this shot, but the hot/cold, salty/sweet, crunchy/soft contrast of the ingredients was a magical mouth tour.


After first dinner, we headed to the patio at Pastis to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather and watch the outfits stream by. An hour into the fabulous people parade, we decided to see where they were all going. Lesson learned—follow the outfits to fun. We ended up down the street at The Standard Beer Garden, under the high line. It's an open air patio, with two bars and ping-pong tables! There's nothing better than watching drunk ping-pong, which should be called "where's the ball?" Because usually the ball was floating around the floor between fashionable footwear.


For second dinner we headed to Macau Trading Co., a not-so-secret restaurant, behind an unassuming metal grate, marked only by a red lantern. Despite the elaborate interior design, which usually makes up for a weak menu, the food and drinks were on equal footing. It was too dark to take pictures, and almost too loud to talk in the downstairs room, but not too dark for drinks. I had the delicious Mr. Ho, and Fusilli ordered the Dr. Funk. The Macanese /Portuguese menu was full of small snacks, and each dish we ordered was better than the last. Olive oil poached octopus with potatoes and fennel, chicken dumplings in chili oil and mushroom & truffle croquettes.



There's only one breakfast in NYC that's worth traveling 70 blocks, and lining up for 20 minutes when you're feeling hung-over. Barney Greengrass.


The sun was out, and it felt like summer, so after breakfast we headed through Central Park towards the Whitney museum to see the Georgia O'Keefe exhibit. I've been through the park many times, but I've never walked through the Ramble. At certain points, the city pokes dramatically through the trees, highlighting how amazing it was to be standing on a bridge over a stream in the middle of the city.


The Ramble just gets better the further you explore. I was completely lost at this point, but who cares when you've just had breakfast at the Sturgeon King and your only job that day is to make it to your next meal. Welcome to the magic forest.


In an effort to cram as much into two days as possible, we got last minute tickets to the Sufjan Stevens concert at the Bowery Ballroom. I think I would have enjoyed the concert more if my feet weren't so tired.


One last meal before a quick nap and an eaaaaarly flight home.


Pasta and Frisse Salad at Balthazar.