Rush Hour (Foodie Edition) Part III: From Fast-Food to 3-Stars, We have it all

Finding food in New York City can be very easy and daunting at the same time. The choices you have are so tremendous that it might become overwhelming and confusing, which is why it is important to have a strategy and the necessary tools to narrow down the choices in search of food.

My strategy - Since there is an abundance of food choices, I'll plan my food according to the places of interests. So in the case of my 3-day rush, I'll always find recommended food around the area (e.g. Lower Manhattan, SoHo, Upper East Side, etc) and plan my time and route accordingly.

My tools - Friends and Yelp. Obviously having a friend recommend places gives me a sense of security and an assurance that at least someone has liked it enough to recommend it. If I run out of friends' recommendation, the Yelp application is also another useful tool that has proved to be successful most of the time.

Lets start with the first meal of the 3-day salvo.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

The first day saw us rushing like man men and our breakfast was basically take-aways which I didn't document or photograph at all (breakfast was from some random Bagel stall while lunch was from another random Kebab mobile stalls, all near Central Park). They were pretty decent food but I'm pretty sure you can find similar ones all around.

Entering Five Guys Burgers & Fries

For dinner, we had a little time while waiting for the sky to turn dark for our ascend to the Top of the Rock, so we decided to give the highly-recommended Five Guys Burgers & Fries a try. 

We went to the one at 3rd Avenue & 44th Street (I have no idea why we skipped the two nearest ones to Rockafella Center), but there are at least 6 other joints in Manhattan, so this fast food chain is pretty much accessible from any place in Manhattan.

Menu

The menu itself was pretty much the standard fare - Beef or Bacon Burger (with 2 different size), dogs with different toppings, sandwiches and fries. As the name goes by, we were told that they were famous for their Fries. So we ordered their Cajun Fries and I had the Cheese Dog to go with it.

Cajun Fries

First up - the Cajun Fries. What is "Cajun" actually? Truthfully, even after googling, I wasn't too sure. I always thought it was some special spices but it turns out to be a specific cooking style that has French, Canadian, African and Native American influence. I'll put a pin in that one for now.

Read on to see how good the fries were and for my take on 3-Michelin Star Restaurant Daniel

Rush Hour (Tourist Edition) Part II: Round the Cities of Cities and onwards Liberty

After a week of job hunting, commencements and photo shoots, I finally have time to finish up my USA blog posts. So here's part II of our tale in the Big Apple which includes the famous Circle Line Cruise, the iconic Statue of Liberty, the magnificent Intrepid Air, Sea and Space museum and King Kong's Empire State Building.

New York City

The Circle Line Cruise


Usually, I'm not a fan of tour buses or city cruises. I always believe that they are huge tourist traps and seldom give you a good enough in-depth view of the city/town. However, this circle line cruise might just have turned my view around. We took this tour as it was included in our 3-day pass and it looked like a really good deal - a 3-hour long cruise around the whole of New York City worth USD$38.

Circle Line Tour

 I can't claim that this cruise will literally take you around the entire New York City, but due to the city's size, this cruise does just enough. The 3-hour long cruise could be tiring at some point (having to stand up in order to take nice photographs and withstand the wind ) and a longer cruise would have been an overkill.

The tour brings you through several boroughs of New York City, including Manhattan, Brooklyn, The Bronx and Queens which was pretty comprehensive (by my standards). Notable sites include Statue of Liberty (you can't get off the cruise ship), Ellis Island, The Yankee Stadium, Harlem... etc.
A little tip: Make sure you stand on the right side of the boat (they don't do a 180 degrees turn), so basically right side of the boat before liberty and left side of the boat after liberty.

Read on for more pictures and other sites

Rush Hour (Tourist Edition) Part I: The Day of Museums & The Night on the Rock

The last 3 days of our New York leg saw us utilizing our 3-day New York pass. For this section of my travels, I'll be blogging it in a slightly different way. Instead of the usual day-to-day journalling, I'll split this 3 hectic days into 2 portions - one for the tourist attractions that we managed to squeeze in (Tourist Edition) and the other for the foodie spots (Foodie Edition).

Before I get started with the lowdown on the sites that we visited, I'll give a brief description of how the New York Pass works (and thus explaining the mad rush). The New York City Pass (not to be mixed up with similar sounding passes like City Pass) gives you access to more than 70 sites, including the Empire State Building & The Statue of Liberty Cruise, and comes with their very own guide book (thus I suggest getting the book early). 

Your pass and guidebook

The pass is activated on the first day you use it and has to be used consecutively. Furthermore, it does not work on a 24-hours basis and end on the midnight of your final day (so do not activate it in the night). Some of the site passes give you access to the fast pass and some doesn't, so check it out in the guidebook or on their website before heading down. In addition to the passes, you can top up $45 for their hop-on bus services. I recommend that you skip this as a 7-day unlimited transport pass for $29 is better as it covers more grounds and is available for longer hours.

The New York MetroCard

Here are the different prices for the NY pass:

1 Day Adult Pass - $80

2 Day Adult Pass - $130

3 Day Adult Pass - $140.25 (Discounted) $165 (Original)

7 Day Adult Pass - $178.50 (Discounted) $210 (Original)

Some information that might be useful:

1) You can either order online and ship (postage applies) or collect it in person at various locations including one in Time Square (Planet Hollywood).

2) An average attraction will set you back from $13 - $25 (excluding fast pass). So plan your day(s) properly to make sure that you fully utilize your pass.

If you need more information, you can always visit the New York Pass website

Personally, I am not 100% sure as to whether this is the BEST deal in town. However, after doing some calculations and comparison, we concluded that we easily saved at least $50 by getting the pass at the cost of rushing around the sites. So my advice: If you want to take your time, you might want to consider another pass. If you don't mind the rush, this pass is for you.

To our first stop: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Read on for the MET, Natural History Museum and many other sites

In the Streets of NYC - 5th Avenue, Central Park, La Esquina & Eileen's Cheesecake

Today marks the halfway mark of our journey through the amazing city, New York. We decided to take it slow on this day and simply head to Central Park and chill out. Though things didn't really turn out as planned (we were rushing to get to Central Park to actually have our lunch there and we underestimated how big Central Park could be), it was still quite an experience and I do look forward to heading to Central Park again.

We decided to take the 5th Avenue route towards Central Park, so as to kill 2 birds with one stone (which didn't turn out as well, because we ended coming back here a few more times). Along the way, we visited the New York Public Library. Flanked on both sides by lions, the New York Public Library's exterior as well as interior are equally impressive. Beautifully designed, the interiors are filled with long hallways with several lovely reading rooms. Unless you are an avid fan of books, it wouldn't take long to tour the entire place. Please take a peek into the New York Public Library if you are around the vicinity.

Entrance of the New York Public Library

Lions Flanking the Entrance

Grand Hallway of the NY Public Library

Going through the history to the library

One of the many reading areas

Exhibition Area

After exiting the public library, we took a short (albeit rushed) walk down the famed 5th Avenue. This esteemed avenue (especially between 49th to 60th street) is known for its prestigious shops and is one of the most expensive shopping districts around the world. Naturally, you will find shops like Tiffany and Co., Bottega, Salvatore Ferragamo, Louis Vuitton, etc. So shoppers, beware, because this street deserves more attention than the 1 - 2 hours that my group had given it. Oh, and for the Apple fans out there, the iconic apple store is located at 5th Avenue, near the entrance of Central Park (sadly, I didn't go in and take a look).

Welcome to Fifth Avenue

Streets of 5th Avenue

Lots and lots of these Kebab Stands

Side view of the Trump Tower

Trump Tower

Apple Store

Past the Apple Store lies the entrance to Central Park. As aforementioned, we underestimated the size of the place and it took us longer than expected to get into the main park itself. Here are a few pictures of Central Park from the entrance to the reservoir.

One of the many entrances of Central Park

Zoo in the park 

Sneak peek into the zoo

One of the many rest stops

Walking up towards one of the picnic areas

5th Avenue by the lake 

Alice in Wonderland - one of the many statues erected

This looks straight out of Don't Mess With the Zohan

Baseball Pitch

The Jacqeline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir

The Jacqeline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir

After the long park through and around Central Park, we finally decided to get out of there and have our first proper meal (we had a takeaway bagel for breakfast and a kebab cart takeaway for lunch). We headed to a place suggested by Andre - La Esquina.


The place wasn't too hard to find once we figured out the correct station (was a breeze actually). It was situated in a corner of the Kenmare Street & Lafayette Street and very noticeable from far.

Note: They have 3 different locations (in the same area) - first one is their "Taco Shop" or Taqueria which is at the corner of Kenmare & Lafayette, the second one is their upscale restaurant or Brasserie located in their basement and requires reservation (there's where you will most likely find the often spotted John Mayer).

We took our seats in their last location, which is their Cafe, where its in between their upscale restaurant and their Taco Shop, and it doesn't require any reservations.

Shop front of La Esquina

Simple interior design

As you can see, the interior of the shop ain't big at all (the picture was taken with me at the front door), so if you want a seat here, come early. Alternatively, you can always make a reservation for their Brasserie.

The easy part of recollecting my memories of this restaurant is remembering how good the food is, the tricky part is actually recalling exactly what food I ate. This is a testament to the quality of the food being served here.

La Esquina (if you haven't known by now) is an authentic Mexican restaurant that claims to sell only the freshest of products. This well-known place is also famous to be one of the hang-outs of the renowned singer John Mayor.

We looked around for inspiration and got 2 pointers from our fellow guests. Firstly, the portions are huge--so sharing is the way the go. Secondly, everyone seemed to be ordering the sides Yucca Fritas, so that was one dish decided for us.

Yucca Fritas

If you don't already know, Yucca comes from the root of the plant Yucca and actually taste like Tapioca. The plant itself can be used for many medical purposes. The Yucca was fried really nicely but was rather chunky for my liking. It goes very well with the Creama Mexicana sauce. This side dish can be quite filling.

We were recommended the Tinga De Pollo (Pull chicken stew, tomato, chipotle, cinnamon, avocado, cabbage & tortilla) and the Bistec Tacos (Char-grilled skirt steak, charred onions, cilantro, salsa de chile de arbol). Note that I am actually guessing the dish from the looks of it for now, so there is a high chance that I might be wrong (but the type of meat is definitely right).

Our dinner for the day

Steak Tacos 

First and foremost - A disclaimer: The food looks better than it looks. I apologize to the fantastic restaurant for making their food look bad. 

Lets start with the Bistec Tacos (Steak Tacos). The skirt steak was nicely grilled. The onions and cilantro (a.k.a Coriander) blended perfectly and didn't overpower the taste of the beef. The salsa de chile de arbol (a.k.a Red Salsa) was SPICY!!! It was a little too spicy but I can't blame them - its Mexican food afterall. Love this dish - wouldn't mind a take out if I were to be back.

Pulled Chicken with Black Beans, Rice and Veg

Next up - Tinga De Pollo (Pull Chicken Stew). This is one dish that has many things happening at once. You have the white rice as the base, the stew chicken for taste and the black beans for texture. The cabbages and avocado slices just add that "cooling" effect to this mildly hot dish. Nice blend of flavors that makes me crave for more mexican food.

Happy Customers - Andre & Dawn

Final Verdict: I would definitely return to this place for more Mexican food. I wouldn't go as far as to say this is one of the best Mexican places in town (due to my lack of knowledge in Mexican food) but La Esquina does make me want to take it a step further. A solid 8/10.

Corner Street

After dinner, we went to Eileen's Cheesecake, which was conveniently located opposite La Esquina and recommended by our dearest Dawn.

Shop Front

This was as big as this place could get

Their menu was really extensive

The shop is very small (3 - 4 small tables), so I would recommend a takeaway. We ordered the shop's signature Oreo Cheesecake and the popular Strawberry Cheesecake. 

Oreo Cheesecake

Strawberry Cheesecake

Personally, I'm not a fan of cheesecake in general. So I can't be the best judge of cheesecakes. But judging from how much Andre and Dawn enjoyed the cheesecake (and the fact that we came back a few days later), I believed that this is definitely worth trying out. I took a bite or two and found it to be pretty tasty too (though the "cheesy" taste did put me off - i hate cheesecake). Do try out this cheesecake place, especially if you are around the area. Good stuff!

Maybe thats why they are so good 

So here are the recommendations of the day:


1) La Esquina 
114 Kenmare, New York, NY 10012
(between Kenmare & Lafayette)

2) Eileen's Cheesecake
17 Cleveland Place  New York, NY 10012, United States


Find more pictures on my Facebook Page: Click Here

Taking a Bite into the Big Apple Day 2 - Chelsea Market, Time Square & Shake Stack

Day 2 of the trip started with an early morning breakfast at the Chelsea Market. This former National Biscuit Company factory complex (where Oreo was born) isn't your typical weekend Markets, but rather an enclosed shopping mall with various food stalls, flea-market type shops and offices within it.

Welcome to the Chelsea Market

Obviously, I was most interested in the food selection there. I knew beforehand that they have a wide selection, but I didn't know it was going to be THAT many choices. I was pretty much at a loss on what to start with. Oddly, we chose proximity over the natural palate progression (bread - mains - desserts). We started with desserts - Elena's Cupcakes. Located near the entrance, the colorful array of cupcakes and cookies caught our eyes and we were naturally drawn inside.

Cupcakes

Cookies

Gift Boxes

We ordered the Chocolate Ganache Cupcake and the Red Velvet Cupcake. The red velvet was a pretty decent but nothing to rave about. However the Chocolate Ganache Cupcake was awesome. The chocolate ganache is so rich that it overwhelmed me on the first bite. Despite its richness, the texture is thick (yet it doesn't become the usual chocolate) enough to ensure that I don't get sick of it on further bites. A certain must-try!

Fine Selections

Chocolate Ganache

Red Velvet

Elenis

Next up, we headed to the famous Amy's Bread where they make their own bread and pastries right inside Chelsea Market. It was pretty interesting to see the bakers at work.

Fresh bread all-day

Bakers hard at work

The selection of bread and pastries was amazing. I'll let the pictures do the work.

Take your pick...

Alright, they might not have as much pastries as they have with bread, but the selection is still pretty amazing. We tried their special Amy's Bread special bread. I would say that the freshness of the bread and the quality of their bakery is certainly reflected in the bread. However, it's definitely not a life-changing experience that will win any bread-haters over (maybe it'll win some hearts of the neutrals). All bread lovers, you have to try this shop.

Our Order

Amy's Bread 

 The last place that we went is the famous The Lobster Place. Everyone has been telling to try the soup here and I should never leave Chelsea Market without exploring this place. And the moment I stepping into the shop, I knew the reason behind all the hype.

Lets take a tour...

Entrance to the Lobster Place

Cashier

Sushi Section 

Menu for the day

Overview of the place

Here are the food selections... (We tried the clam chowder and it was really good. It was hot and creamy and a perfect way to start any meal).

Clams and more clams

One of the many fish stations

Lobsters Galore

Raw Salmon

Dragon Roll

 After our breakfast, we made preparation for our 2nd activity of the day - Broadway Musical. We headed down to Time Squares to get our tickets and took the chance to walk around.

This is basically the 3rd time I'm taking a walk around Times Square and it still feels the same as my first time. The energy in this place is amazing and it seems to renew itself repeatedly. There is always a sense of expectancy is this area, like everyone is waiting for something to happen. It is the energy and this sense of expectancy that keeps drawing hordes of people back to this place. Simply hanging out in the middle of Times Square is already an experience on its own. 

After Times Square, our stomach brought us to the Shake Stack which is famous for both its Milkshake and Burgers (i.e. Stack). The long queue didn't deter us and we joined the queue expecting to wait for at least an hour. However, the staff were efficient and we got our food is less than 1/2 hour. 

Front of the Shop - Shake Shack

Crowded at Lunch Time

The Menu itself was easy to understand and pretty much self explanatory - choose a burger, grab a fries and pick your shake. The only bad thing is that there is no set meals, so basically everything adds up to a pretty expensive price for a set meal. The good thing - you can choose not to have one of the selection if ain't feeling too hungry. Oh and they have their daily special Shakes flavor, so do find out beforehand on their website if you are there for their shakes. 

Drinks Menu for Shake Stack

I ordered their Shack Stack Buger, which is basically a combination of their Cheeseburger and Vegetarian Shroom Burger. It comes with a patty of of beef and a patty of Vegetarian Portobello filled with melted Muenster and Cheddar cheeses. This was the first time I was more impressed with the vegetarian patty than the meat patty. The beef patty was so-so but the portobello and melted cheese combination was so good that I was so tempted to get another vegetarian burger. The melted cheese adds a tasty flavor the mushrooms and the crispy outer layer puts a wonderful icing to the lovely burger. A double must-try for all. 

Shack Burger and Cheese Burger

Shared a Plate of Cheese Fries

The Vegetarian Patty of my Shack Burger

After a quick meal at Shake Shack (which we were very tempted to come back again), we went for our Spiderman Musical. My advice for all musical-loving people out there - DO NOT GO! The musical is a good show for Kids looking for action, with the Spiderman stuntmen zipping around the theatre fighting the green goblin. But as a musical, it fails in many levels. The singing was below average, the plot was worse than any movies that was produced and overall it was a bore throughout. As my friend Andre puts it: "If this was a side show in Universal Studios, it would be worth the time, but as a Musical, its a no-go." Here are some photos:

Interior of the Theatre 

Souvenirs for Spidey Fans

Spider Man, Turn off the Dark

Foxwoods Theatre