Hip Chick NY: Part Two

I have to admit that my favorite part of New York City is the Upper West Side.  Yes, Chinatown rocks with its street vendors and authentic cuisine, and the Village is a hot spot for hipsters and bustling nightlife, although there's something to be said about the vibe on the Upper West Side; the restaurants are great, young families roam the sidewalks, and cute little parks are interspersed amongst the busy streets.  One delicious restaurant on the UWS, nestled on the corner of 77th and Columbus, is the Shake Shack, serving up good ol' American food with quality taste.  I can't recommend a time of day to go, since this place is always packed.  It's one of those places where you order, pick up your food, and then need to search for a table.  There's plenty of space to sit upstairs and a little section to sit downstairs.  I am not a huge hamburger person, so I opted for the 'Shroom Burger.  It was good, although I would have been much happier if the cheese was optional, rather than baked inside, due to the effects that follow said consumption; otherwise, I would have been like a pig in shit.  The 'Shroom Burger is a fried portabello mushroom stuffed

with muenster and cheddar cheese, which I ended up oozing out onto my tray to save myself a night of stomach pain and heartburn.  I wish they had a veggie burger option, but what can ya' do?  My brother and cousins got burgers and really enjoyed them, and I was rather impressed when my cousin Daniel scarfed down his double-pattied burger without instant regurgitation.  I never understood the concept of the double patties, but to each his own, right?  The cheese fries are much better than the regular fries and the milkshakes are thick, rich, and delicious.  Definitely stop by here for a quick, filling bite.  The line proves this place is not a let down.  

It's no surprise that when most people visit New York, they plant themselves in Manhattan.  Why would you want to be anywhere else?  Everything is at your fingertips.  When my family decided to buy a condo, we chose to branch outside of the city, infamous for its sky high rents.  So we hopped on the N Train to the north most tip of Queens in a place called Astoria.  Let me tell you, Astoria is the hidden 

gem of Queens.  "Why leave Astoria?" is what I say.  Diverse ethnicities inhabit the streets, incredible food, and opportunities to shop 'til you drop without the need to throw 'bows amongst the crowds of people you'd find in the city.  Since Astoria is so new to us, my brother and I spent a lot of time exploring the town and seeing what it has to offer.  My brother and I are quite technologically savvy, so he used his Crackberry and I used my IPhone to see what Yelp and Urban Spoon had to say about many of the places we passed.  

Iji Sushi was one of Astoria's few highly reviewed sushi joints, located on Broadway just north (or maybe east?) of Crescent.  My brother and I are sushi snobs, so of course we had to try it...and how happy are we that we did.  Iji has this unbelievable lunch deal, where you get three rolls, miso soup or salad, and unlimited green tea for $10.50.  $10.50?!  That's less than half the price I spend on my portion of sushi alone in West Hollywood!  The food was great, as was the service.  We will definitely be back next time we visit our east coast abode.  

Obviously, we had to get dessert after our sushi meal (and every meal, for that matter), so we walked up the street to Omonia Cafe, one of the many amazing Greek cafes Astoria has to offer.  Mind you, you can find bakeries and cafes every few feet in both Astoria and Manhattan, but this cafe boasts desserts I have only seen in Greece.  My brother's marble cheesecake was to die for (minus the crust, which tasted like a damp chocolate sponge) and my little chocolate-sprinkled chocolate nut truffle was incredible.  Dude, Omonia created the cake for "My Big Fat Greek Wedding!"  That's the real deal.  One of my favorite things about my trip to Greece was this one bakery we would visit at least once a day, and it's nice to know I don't have to fly across the world to find those sweet treats.  

I am already missing the "City that Never Sleeps" and the view of it from our beautiful home.  Don't worry, though, I'll be back soon.

**This week's blog is dedicated to my beloved cousins, the Robinsons, who always bring us good times and lots of laughter during our bi-yearly visits.  And a special shout out to Billy, who holds his jacket inappropriately and crop dusts amongst the crowded streets.  

Hip Chick NY: Part One

New York is my home away from home.  I am so fortunate to have so many loved ones here, both family and friends, that each time I come to visit, I never want to leave.  New York is such an incredible state -- a melting pot of ethnicities, filled with delicious food, amazing shops, foot traffic, and the ever-so-popular NY public transit system.  This place, among other things, is known for its thick-skinned population, pizza, and heavy "Coffee Talk" accents and, as Madonna so musically states, "If you can't stand the heat, get off my street." 

The newest place I've tried so far on this trip is Five Napkin Burger, located on the corner of 45th Street and 9th Ave., and a hop, skip and a jump from Times Square.  Great selection of drinks and everything we had was delicious.  We started with the hot spinach and artichoke dip, followed by burgers, fries, and messy, messy hands.  Pictured above is the Original 5 Napkin Burger (onions excluded) topped with gruyere cheese...yum.  I can't take credit for this burger, as it belongs to my friend, Maya, and when my friend, Jonathan, convinced me that their veggie burger is the best in town, I happily obliged.  The veggie burger was big, sloppy and delicious and perfectly paired with some delicious and crispy on the outside, soft on the inside french fries.  Don't expect to pay with change at this burger joint, yet don't expect it to break the bank.  Between cocktails, appetizers, and entrees, the bill ran $38 per person.  Not too shabby for a quality NYC eatery.  This is a great spot for small groups or dates.  Chill ambience, delicious food, and great location.  

I know I've mentioned previously that desserts are one of my weaknesses, although, I'm not sure if I told you that I eat like a five-year old.  I love rainbow sprinkles, colorful chocolate candy, loads of frosting, and all that nonsense.  If you look at the first picture, that glorious cupcakelicious piece of heaven had my name written all over it.  Rainbow cake, rainbow sprinkles, and buttercream frosting on top and in the middle, created by the little angels at Crumbs Bake Shop (real people don't bake this well, do they??) in Union Square.  I just couldn't resist the temptation amidst a beautiful day in New York City, even though Crumbs is a short drive from where I live in LA LA Land.  And, hey, I'm on a vacation, which includes daily workouts every morning.  This was quite possibly the best cupcake I've ever eaten.  My brother got the Peanut Butter Cup, although it wasn't nearly as delicious as his favorite, the Artie Lange (they were all out).  One of my best friends, Jenn, whose palate I trust wholeheartedly, also recommended the Baba Booey, calling it simply "amazing."  Each cupcake is a hefty $3.75, although well worth it due to the size and taste.  

I'm about halfway through my trip (already?!) and looking forward to new adventures in the "City that Never Sleeps".  Stay tuned...

When Good Classes Go Bad

The Thursday night Zumba class at the Porter Ranch YMCA is one of my favorites. The teacher, Corrine, pumps up the music and the energy to the point where I probably burn more calories than I do in some of my kickboxing classes. The music is great, the moves easy to follow, and new songs are infused weekly to change things up. Once I find a good instructor, I tend to stick with her, dreading the day she has a sub fill in. I truly believe that the teacher makes the class.

Ironically, I am a substitute teacher (anyone hiring for the fall?). I am fortunate to work at schools that frequently request my assistance, knowing that I will make the day fun yet still educational. I'm not saying this to toot my own horn; just going off of the buzz on the elementary school street. Such was not the case with my Zumba sub...

The sub was a woman named Rhea, who apparently teaches Pilates at the Y. I could tell by her soft spoken tone that this class would not be nearly as exciting as Corrine's. Boy, was I right. First of all, the music was way too low. If any of you have ever taken a workout class, working out in a quiet room is analogous to deflating the air out of a balloon; the life is nonexistent. Second, she told us that she prefers to exercise at low impact. Low impact? Sorry, lady, I don't pay $47 per month for low impact, nor do I own an AARP card. When I finish a workout, I want to be sweaty and grimy and feel like my ass just survived a severe kicking; or else, what's the point? She also could not keep the beat of the music, which is a downright shame when you are asked to teach a dance class. That's just added frustration during the hour when I should break free of life's stresses. If you're a workout instructor who can't sense the beat of the music, maybe you should question your career choice. Ouch.

About 25 minutes into the 60 minute class class, some of the girls who actually work at the Y and take this class decided to peace out. Five minutes after they bounced, so did I. I never leave classes, feeling empathetic for subs and trying to give them the benefit of the doubt. This time, though, Rhea gave me the runs and I opted for a treadmill instead. When I expressed my discontent to Corrine, she mentioned that Rhea usually teaches the "mature" crowd at Total Woman by the mall. Please, I could have told you that, as soon as I saw her step-touching instead of kicking it up to a jump. And she's not that old herself! Lazy? Maybe. Slow? Probably. Meek? Definitely. Girl just needs to move it out of the gym and into the retirement home.

Stay tuned for Hip Chick NY, as I move it to the east side for a mini vacay...

Flavor of Indian Love

For the past few weeks, I have seriously been craving Indian food.  Indian is one of my favorite cuisines and I could probably eat it everyday if the bill didn't break my piggy bank and the sauces didn't set my stomach in a tailspin.  So on Saturday night, when I knew the only person I'd be spending some QT with was my big brother, I suggested some tikka madness and my brother found a buy-one-get-one-free coupon for a place in the 'hood.  Love it.  We usually eat at Anarkali off of Melrose and La Brea because it is amazing and I want to bathe in their masala sauce.  This time, due to the coupon, we tried Flavor of India, just west of the Palm off of Santa Monica Blvd.  It's always strange trying a new place, especially when your palate craves specific flavors; the risk, though, was all worth it.  We ordered idli, chicken tandoori, chicken tikka masala (Dolly Parton's favorite), saag paneer, garlic naan, and rice.  Everything was delicious and the total, with the coupon and tip, came to $25 per person.  Valet parking is $5 or else you can test your luck looking for a metered spot along Santa Monica Blvd.

After dinner, we drove down the street to Angelina's for some frozen yogurt (Reminder: Please keep in mind that my brother was my date.  If this were a typical date, neither masala nor fro yo would have been involved).  Angelina's is a great frozen yogurt place, just west of Westbourne Dr. on Santa Monica Blvd.  They have their own parking lot and are open fairly late.  Nice service, great selection of flavors, and, most importantly, they put their toppings on top AND at the bottom of the cup.  Yesss!  The peanut butter is delicious and they have low carb crap for you super healthy overachievers.  This place never lets me down.

Notable mention this week to Oishi sushi.  I went there on a date last night (if any of you are keeping track, this is not the same date as the Lucky Devil night; he's long gone) and it was rather tasty.  Beware, though, there's a roll with crab, salmon, and gobo and that's wrapped in soy paper (something "burrito?").  As a part of its presentation, the roll is also wrapped in regular white paper.  THIS PAPER IS NOT EDIBLE.  Yeah, my new date learned the hard way.  Oh well, I guess it makes for a good first date story.