learning my abc's.

A few weekends ago I was invited to join a couple of friends at ABC Kitchen – a place I had been dying to go for quite a while now. I used to work a few blocks from the restaurant, which is located within the AMAZING home goods store, ABC Carpet & Home. The store has the most amazing collection of chandeliers – I can often be found standing below them with a glimmer in my eye juts wishing I could bring one home... then the salesperson turns to me and tells me I either need to purchase one or take my creepy self away before she calls security. Ah, the life of a dreamer.

Back to the food... To begin with, it was a pretty big deal that we could even get a table at ABC Kitchen considering reservations are usually booked weeks in advance. To give you an idea, you can ask for a reservation a month prior to your requested date and my friend called exactly 30 days prior to our dinner and the earliest time she could get was 10pm. So, even though I had been at a work event since 6:30 that morning and thought I would be dead by 10 that night, there was no way I was passing up the opportunity.

In accordance with the store it's housed in, the restaurant is decorated with fantastic pieces that give an eclectic yet homey feel to the dining room. The lighting is kept low, the chairs and tables are perfectly simplistic and all of the dinner plates, silverware and glasses on each table are different, providing an almost rustic vibe (nevermind that the plates probably cost $50 each). I truly think it is one of the most expertly designed dining spaces in Manhattan.

Unfortunately, I can't speak so highly of the food. Everything we ate was wonderful, of course, but nothing stood out to me in the way I had hoped. Now, I have to caveat this by saying that I don't think we ordered the best dishes on the menu. I was with two friends who don't have the most adventurous tastes and since we decided to order multiple small dishes and share, I think this might have altered the experience.

We kicked the meal off with Crab Toast with Lemon Aioli, which was actually one of the best parts of the meal. The crab was piled high on thick-cut bread and was a wonderfully decadent way to start the evening. We then had a squash dish that was good, but not memorable, and a ravioli that was topped with a classic yet flavorful tomato sauce. Of course, I recommended that we order brussel sprouts and while they were good, they weren't anything I haven't had elsewhere. My favorite part of the meal was a Black Mission Fig, Arugula and Ham Salad, which combined simple ingredients in a way that was executed in the most spot on fashion. The way each of the flavors complemented each other was spectacular. Honestly, one of the best salads I have ever had.

Okay, I know it sounds like I actually had quite an amazing meal, and I did, I guess I was just expecting to be blown away, and, unfortunately, I wasn't. I do hope to go back though – there are too many amazing sounding dishes on the menu not to give it another chance.

One of the most exciting parts of the night was that the chef, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, came out from the kitchen and sat with friends at the table next to us. It was amazing to see such a talented man drinking wine and laughing with good friends. If we had been smart, we would have demanded the waiter bring us everything that was being served at that table!

This is the worst picture ever, but I had to stealthily snap Jean-Georges

sitting five feet from me! Can you see him in his white chef outfit??

taco declaration.

Brace yourselves, I'm about to make a serious statement.

I have found the best taco ever. yep, you heard me, most delicious tortilla-wrapped meal of all time.

And here's the kicker – you purchase it from a mobile vehicle and eat it on the street. That's right my friends, the best taco in the world comes from a truck. Specifically, the Tacos Morelos taco truck in the East Village on the corner of 2nd and B.

A friend and I were on our way out of a karaoke bar (a strong love to be discussed at another time and place) late one night and stumbled upon this unassuming truck that would soon change my life. I ordered a chicken soft taco and was served something fresh and simple – a welcome change from the overwhelming flavors often found in mexican food. The meat was cooked to order and the taco was assembled before my eyes with lettuce and homemade crema topping off the lightly seasoned chicken.

Look, I know, it sounds like your regular old taco, but you are just going to have to trust me on this one - BEST TACO EVER.

So, fiesta on the corner of 2nd and B next weekend?

sayonara summer.

It's officially September, which means the end of Summer, the beginning of another school year and time to put away your favorite white pants (and espadrilles, and linen tops and breezy sundresses.... sigh). While it may be the end of everyones favorite season, it's the beginning of something new, and actually the time of year that I generally look forward to most. Fall always feels refreshing, doesn't it?

Anyway, all that to say that last Thursday night I met a friend for a lovely, pre-Fall Birreria night, and it was fabulous. I hadn't yet been to the rooftop restaurant that is attached to Mario Batali's Eataly, and since the weather was insanely gorgeous – still warm enough but without Summer's humidity – it seemed like the perfect choice. Because it's attached to Eataly, which is constantly crowded with both New Yorkers and tourists, the wait to get a table on the roof is usually pretty long (ours was a little over an hour) so don't get there expecting to go straight up. Those elevators to the roof are coveted and highly guarded by the no-funny-business hostesses. However, it's attachment to Eataly proves beneficial in that you can spend your wait time perusing the store or enjoying a glass of wine (or doing both at the same time as Eataly is one of the only grocery stores I've ever encountered that allows you to sip wine while loading your shopping basket with pasta and cheese – major plus!). Obviously, we chose to drink while waiting, so we ended up standing at a tall table in the middle of the store and ordering a few glasses of vino. Not surprisingly, the hour seemed to pass pretty quickly.

Once the iPad wielding hostess texted us that our table was ready on the roof (so tech-savvy), we headed upstairs and were led to the perfect two-person table on the perimeter of the space. As I mentioned, the weather could not have been nicer and we were already primed with alcohol, so we were truly happy campers. Along with more wine, we ordered a kale salad, quail (a sampling first!) and fried shiitake mushrooms with sage (OMG). Everything was super tasty and we waved goodbye to Summer feeling happy, full and little bit drunk, leaving me with the feeling that this Fall is going to be a good one...

enjoying the view from Eataly's Birreria

excess & old timers.

hi! Remember me? (oh wait, if I'm the only who reads this, does that mean I am asking if I forgot myself? never mind then.)

Anyway, I've obviously been eating in the last few months, so get ready for a serious download of all the fab places I've been. Well, there will at least be two new posts coming up...

On Friday, I met up with an old friend at Yuca Bar in the East Village. I got there a little early and it was happy hour, so I posted up at the bar and ordered a margarita. I was served a glass of tequila with a squirt of lime juice and salt on the rim – just the way I like it. Once my (drinking) companion got there, we sat at a table and she ordered a pitcher of sangria for us, which turned out to be about 8 glasses. Did I mention I had already downed a glass of tequila? Don't judge, it was a million degrees on Friday and I needed a few ice cold drinks! (water, you say? nope, not as hydrating as tequila and red wine.) We also ordered a slew of tapas – calamari, a mushroom quesadilla, Spanish bruschetta and meatballs. All were good, but the quesadilla was the agreed table favorite. Once we ate everything in sight and STILL hadn't finished the sangria, we did the classy thing and discretely poured the leftover into my friend's water bottle. Again, this is a judge free blog.

On our way to the subway, we passed McSorley's, New York's 'oldest operating saloon,' and since my oldest brother is oddly obsessed with the old-timey bar, I decided we had to go in so I could finally answer "yes" to his frequent "have you been there yet?" question. It was awesome. Seriously, who doesn't want a bunch of ancient shit surrounding them while drinking beer that is served in two small mugs with each order? (I have no idea why it's served that way, but it makes you feel that much more legit) While there, I read a framed newspaper clipping from after the Titanic sank, decided our waiter looked like Tim Riggins from Friday Night Lights (an obsession of mine I will not address here as it will exceed far beyond a normal person's attention span) and speculated about the possibility of a cowboy walking in and demanding someone meet him outside for a shootout (odds were pretty good).

Overall, it was a good night!

Me, at McSorley's, looking like a douche.

a blonde and a brunette at the redhead.

I'm going to just skim over the fact that it has been months since I last wrote... (sorry, guys!)

After reading a review of The Redhead on my favorite foodie blog, The Whole Plate, I decided I had to go (the cocktail menu alone had me sold). Now, nothing against redheads, but up until this point, the only one I have ever wanted to visit was Prince Harry (don't deny it, he is cute!). So I recruited my blonde friend Aggie to meet this brunette after work last week and we took on the fiery red restaurant.

First of all, the place is this dark and cramped space in the East Village that just felt so welcoming on a cold winter night, especially since Aggie and I were able to walk right in, grab a tall table by the bar and warmly look out over the snowy sidewalks. Aggie started off with a thyme margarita. She said she had a little trouble tasting the thyme but it was gone pretty quickly nonetheless (and followed by another if I recall correctly...). I ordered a revival – gin, lillet and triple sec in one drink, yes please – and loved it! We hadn't originally planned to stay for dinner but were so comfortable and happy with our drinks, we easily changed our minds. I ordered the kale salad, which was literally one of the best salads I have ever had. It had a tart dressing and thin apple slices that created the perfect combination of flavors when put with the hearty kale. Aggie decided on the low country shrimp served over grits. I'm not a shrimp fan, but the grits were tasty and Aggie was pleased. The best part of the meal were the homemade snickerdoodle cookies that were brought with the check. They were the such a satisfying end to the meal, and any restaurant that works to add that kind of personal touch is pretty much a favorite on my list.

This restaurant really got me thinking that redheads have a bit of an unfair bad rep...