NYC Tastes

After our lovely afternoon in Beersel we trekked back into Brussels.  Mr. T said he felt well enough to check out one more place so I took him to Moder Lambic which he missed out on the day before.  We grabbed a table outside and took a look at the bottle list.  I had been so psyched about all the Cantillon's on draft the day before this thought hadn't even occurred to me.   Oh my goodness that list...there were beers on there I never thought I would see in this lifetime.  We were both floored and quickly started formulating a plan to justify the expense of one of these gems.  Well Mr. T really hadn't eaten anything since we got to Brussels and I skipped dinner last night in favor of macaroons.  It seemed that we had actually been saving money so it was only right that we treat ourselves to one of these beers.  See how wonderful that worked out:) We began with an incredible rarity from Drie Fonteinen the Millennium Geuze.  ...

Our second day in Brussels Mr. T was feeling a lot better and actually left the hotel room.  YAY!!!  I had been so worried he would miss out on a trip to the countryside, more specifically to Drie Fonteinen, a brewery I was absolutely ecstatic about visiting. Drie Fonteinen is about a 30 minute drive from Brussels in the center of  Beersel.  It began in 1887 as a geuzestekerij, a place where old and new lambics are blended together to produce geuze, and still operates as that today with the addition of a brewery to produce lambic.   We began our day in the Drie Fonteinen brasserie where the motto is "the ideal place to get away from it all and recapture the spirit of yesteryear".  I have to say after about 10 minutes lounging in the garden staring at the gorgeous fourteenth century church out front I was definitely a million thoughts away from anything 2014 or NYC based. The menu consisted of local Belgium dishes like a hearty Flemish...

Mr. T and I just returned from an incredible 10 day trip overseas.  As usual we packed as much eating and drinking as possible into our vacation along with some sightseeing here and there. I'll begin on day one in Brussels where we've visited once before. I spent the majority of that trip in bed with a terrible stomach virus.  Well apparently we take turns in Brussels because now it was Mr. T who was sick in bed.  He got off the plane and went immediately to the hotel room while I scoured the city for various health remedies.  Once I had stocked our room with as much juice, water and medicine as I could possibly carry I set out to grab a drink and a bite to eat. Just about a five minute walk from the Grand Place sits Moeder Lambic Fontainas, a bar known primarily for its 40+ taps and cheese/meat platters. I was only planing to have one or two but it was so nice and sunny at the outdoor tables I found myself slowly making my way through the incredible Cantillo...

A little something sweet is always needed in the middle of the week.  I love when that little something comes in cupcake format like this Banana Cupcake from Sprinkles. Yep you heard me correctly...banana.  Super moist banana cake that actually has  real  banana flavor, topped with a thick vanilla icing that will certainly tame any sugar craving. It's just what I need to get through the week :) Sprinkles Cupcakes

This was a fabulous weekend to do a little tippling around the city. The spirit Industry's biggest event of the year, the Manhattan Cocktail Classic,  descended upon the city.  There were hundreds of fantastic events around town and a two day trade conference hosted at Convene downtown. Saturday Angostura Bitters took center stage at Convene mixing fabulous brunch cocktails like this Bloody and Bitter made with Mango Nectar and Tamarind Chutney. They also put out a pretty nice spread of food like these Angostura Deviled Eggs and some delicious Bitters Glazed Nuts. This was the first time the Invitational was held at Convene downtown and the space was awesome.  There were two seminars almost every hour discussing everything from The Development and History of our Palate to Everything You Wanted to Know About Rum.  If only every conference could have topics like these :) There were so many great spirits on display but one of...

It seems like everyone has been talking about the Montreal Style bagels from Black Seed down in SOHO. They've been selling out every day since opening and the lines have been reaching epic proportions on the weekend.  Saturday morning I awoke at the crack of dawn for some reason so I figured this would be the perfect opportunity to try out the bagels and hopefully skip the madness. I arrived right before 8:00 am and there were only two other people in line.  I had time to do a quick survey of the menu and then it was time to order.  Black Seed currently offers about eight different kinds of bagels with an array of quirky combinations on top like tobiko spread and beet cured salmon.   If those don't sound appetizing you can also build your own sandwich with the usual suspects of lox, cream cheese and butter. I decided to do a little bit of both...first I tried two bagels on their own and then went for a full on sandwich. Montreal Style bagels are much s...

I've been following the on-going saga of this Union Square restaurant opening for years. Ever since my very drink inside the now defunct Luna Park I've been itching for something good to fill the empty space. Imagine my surprise when wandering through the park Tuesday, seriously jet lagged from my 10 hour flight, I see bright orange umbrellas waving in the breeze and people who seem to be dining right on the empty patio. Pavilion had finally opened! The main floor of the park has about 10 four person tables for dining in the front. Then up the stairs to the second floor there were even more tables for dining and a fresh, colorful bar area. It looked so nice and inviting I decided to stay and have a drink. There were some gorgeous looking cocktails listed on the menu. The Pavilion 75 seemed to be a favorite of the crowd made from Honey-Thyme Syrup, Gin and Sparkling Wine. I decided on a crisp glass of white from local favorite Dr. Frank. I had just c...