Celebrating Jon’s Birthday 2022

Hi friends, welcome back! We recently had the best time celebrating Jon’s birthday! He had an especially great day because his birthday fell on a Saturday. We started the day off our favorite way, by going out for coffee. We were hoping to try out a new coffee shop in our neighborhood but they weren’t open at 10 a.m. on a Saturday, so we grabbed some New Orleans coffees at the tried and true Blue Bottle Coffee. We walked around sipping our coffee and found a shady spot in the Seaport District to sit down and take in the morning.

Jon chose Jack’s Wife Frieda for brunch and we got a table outside under a big fan (it was almost 90*!). This was my second time at the restaurant, but first to this location, and it was just as good as I remembered! I opted for the Rosewater Waffle topped with Lebanese yogurt, mixed berries, and honey syrup. Jon ordered the Duck Bacon, Egg and Cheese Sandwich with duck bacon, scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, and tomato jam.  We also shared the Kefta Kebab persian meatballs with tahini and pine nuts. This meal was surprisingly quite filling.

We went shopping at Brookfield Place after so Jon could pick out some birthday presents and then we walked home, cooled off, facetimed with family, worked out, and then it was time to head out for dinner at Scalini Fedeli. This restaurant was INCREDIBLE! It wasn’t the type of place to take pictures, which was quite difficult for me, but I had to get at least one picture of the dessert. This restaurant had a five course prix fixe meal that was $79 a person, but we both thought it was an incredible value based on the service and amount/quality of food served. We could pick the first course, second course, and dessert, but the appetizers were selected by the chef.

For our appetizers, we were brought fresh bread and butter, smoked salmon on bruschetta, fried zucchini, and perfectly cooked shrimp.

For our first course Jon and I both chose the Tagliatelle “Bolognese”, a traditional meat sauce with crispy sage & whipped ricotta. It was some of the best pasta we’ve had, and we’ve had a lot of pasta! It was so good that we couldn’t help but eat every last bite.

The second course was protein, and I ordered the Genovese – Toasted pignoli (pine nut) crusted salmon in a white wine sauce finished with fresh basil, over pecorino and zucchini puree. It melted in my mouth, but I was so full from the pasta dish that I could hardly eat any. Jon ordered the San Domenico – 14 oz. roasted pork chop in a mascarpone – vodka sauce with chives and he thought it tasted excellent. We definitely underestimated how much food was included in this prix fixe.

The first dessert was a lime & coconut sorbet with rum glazed pineapple. Everyone received this dish and it was very light and refreshing.

For my dessert, I chose the “Panino”, crisp pistachio and hazelnut caramel wafers layered with hazelnut gelato. The rich gelato paired with the delicate and sweet wafers tasted heavenly.

The birthday boy chose the warm flourless chocolate cake topped with fleur de sel (rare sea salt) served with pistachio gelato and amarena cherries from Emilia Romagna, Italy. As you can see, the quality of ingredients and presentation of the dishes was top notch! We both thought this was possibly the best meal that we’ve had in NYC. If you are celebrating a special occasion, Scalini Fedeli is the spot to go!

We finished the night opening presents and in a food coma. We had the best day celebrating Jon’s birthday! Here’s to many more!!

28 thoughts on “Celebrating Jon’s Birthday 2022

  1. Happy belated birthday to Jon. Looks like you made a very special day for him. The food looks incredible. A coffee shop that does not open before 10 AM….on a weekend….do they have a death wish? Happy Thursday Lyssy. Allan

    1. Thank you! He said it was one of his best birthdays 🙂 The coffee shop says it opens at 10 on the weekend so we waited, but now they said they aren’t open on the weekends but didn’t change their sign. Seems simple to me to put up a piece of paper saying they aren’t open on the weekends… Happy Thursday!

  2. Sounds like the coffee shop is on siesta time. I have seen some crazy hours signs in Europe. One read something like. We open when we get here, we close when we leave. Not a good business model. 🙂

    1. Thank you! He had such a great birthday 🙂 There’s no shortage of delicious food around here. Glad you enjoyed!

    1. Yes, when we are so full we can barely move. We definitely ate enough that day to gain a few pounds!

  3. Your waffle looks scrumptious, as does Jon’s flourless chocolate cake (and I don’t use the word “scrumptious” very often). I’ve never heard of “duck bacon” but with “turkey bacon” in mind, I guess it’s not so crazy. I couldn’t help noticing the menu bits peeking up from under your waffle (“Tofu”) and from Jon’s breakfast sandwich + fries (“Salads”) as if to say, “Make healthier choices!” – heh. Finally, I stand corrected on “mascarpone”. Always thought it was “marscapone”. Either way, a delicious mouthful 🙂

    1. The cake was definitely scrumptious! I don’t think I’ve ever heard of duck bacon either, but I would guess it’s more flavorful than turkey bacon. The cafe is a bit on the healthier end. Last time I was there I had a chicken kebob bowl with quinoa that was quite delicious. That’s funny, in my head I read it as marscapone.

  4. Happy Birthday to Jon! It must be nice having birthday so close to the 4th. l of the food looks scrumptious. My favorite is the waffle. I’ve never tried one with yogurt, but would be happy to. 😋😊

    1. Thank you! It is nice having a summer birthday 🙂 That waffle was so delicious and surprisingly filling!

  5. Happy belated birthday to Jon! Sounds like an absolutely lovely day. That’s a lot of delicious food and another exquisite dining experience for you. I just celebrated my birthday 🙂 with a walk and dinner by the river. Tomorrow is Sladja’s birthday. Tell me that you are a July child as well.

    1. Happy birthday to you and Sladja!! 🥳🥳 sounds like you had a wonderful birthday! I just missed july, my bday is august 2nd.

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