Foodie Friday: August 2022

Hi friends, welcome back to another edition of my monthly series showcasing all my delicious eats during the month. As you know, one of my favorite parts of living in NYC is the abundance of incredible food, and I’ve been on a mission to try all the best places and share my finds along the way. Disclaimer: these posts will cause hunger 🙂 If you want to stay up to date on all my foodie finds, you can follow my food Instagram here.

As usual, I went to Dominique Ansel to grab the monthly cronut flavor of Mango Jam & Milk Chocolate Ganache. I had very high expectations for this one because I love dried mangoes and milk chocolate. I was hoping it would taste like a chocolate covered mango, but I only tasted the mango flavoring with a hint of cream, no chocolate. It was different than I expected, but still a great flavor combo worth trying it out.

My ordering so far of most to least favorite: Salted Caramel Pretzel, Lychee Ganache & Mascarpone Ganache, Blueberry & Sweet Corn, Ube Ganache & Thai Coconut Ganache Cronut, Mango Jam & Milk Chocolate Ganache, Strawberry Poppyseed & Buttermilk, Honey Peach Jam & Graham Cracker Ganache, Almond and Fig, Passionfruit & Vanilla, Caramel Flan & Orange Marmalade, Green Apple Butterscotch, and Black Truffle & Caramel Popcorn Cronut.

My friend and I went to Mister Dips and I got my favorite flavor of theirs, S’mores. It melted all over the place, but I was prepared this time so it didn’t get all over me, just the pier.

I was invited to all of the following restaurants:

Nerai is an upscale Greek restaurant that feels like you’ve been transported to Santorini. The décor is cool, but the food is even better. We ordered the Saganaki, Sun Kissed cocktails, Pikilia (tzatziki, hummus, & spicy whipped feta), Astakomakaronada (poached Maine lobster over squid ink pasta), Paidakia Sti Skara (grilled Colorado lamb rack), and Chocolate Mousse. Everything tasted so delicious and I would recommend Nerai for a date night, dinner with friends, a place to bring your parents, and great for business lunches/dinner.

We checked out Seamore’s UES Location for a $28 for bottomless Mimosas, Bellinis, Bloody Mary’s, Aperol Spritzes, and Margaritas for 90 minutes with the purchase of an entree. We enjoyed a margarita, Yellowfin Tuna Poke, Lobster 🦞 Mac + Cheese, Lobster Benedict, and their famous Churro Ice Cream Sandwich. This is a popular restaurant in NYC with a few locations, but I think it’s a tad overpriced compared to other restaurants in the city.

Our favorite brunch of the month was at Cask. On weekends you can enjoy bottomless cocktails for $29.95, or try out their delicious brunch cocktails like their incredibly popular Espresso Martini. There is also a DJ playing and we had such a fun time here! The food is delicious, portions are large, and the drinks strong. Our favorite drink was the Cask Punch and they also let us try the Bloody Maria and Espresso Martini. For entrees we had the Bananas Foster French Toast and Pulled Pork Burrito. The brownie was the perfect way to end this lovely brunch!

Xeo Cantina serves Vietnamese food with a Mexican twist and it’s such a great flavor combination. The menu has a wide variety so there’s something for everyone and I’d recommend anything on the menu. My favorites were the Xeo Wings, Grilled Pork Chop Taco, Grilled Nem Nuong Summer Rolls, and Spicy Mai Tai. We also had the Fried Crab Spring Rolls, Grilled Chicken Lemongrass Summer Rolls, and Jon enjoyed the Fried Catfish Taco.

Handcraft Burgers & Brew is located near Bryant Park and serves smash burgers and craft beer. This was delicious and would be the perfect quick lunch/dinner. I also thought it was a great deal for the quality/taste. I tried the “OG” burger (Double Certified Angus Beef Patties, Sharp American Cheddar, Handcraft Sauce, Shredded Romaine Lettuce, Tomato, Brioche Bun) and it was one of the best burgers I’ve had in a while.

I went to a tasting at Plnt Burger and I was amazed at how much vegan food has improved in the last few years. Based on the above I’m clearly not a vegan, and I don’t like mushrooms or tomatoes, but everything I tried tasted so good! PLNT Burger’s signature Mushroom BBQ Bacon Burger made history as being the first vegan burger allowed to enter Rachel Ray’s Burger Bash competition. The event is sponsored by Pat LaFrieda Meats so Plnt Burger was allowed to participate in the competition, but couldn’t win because it isn’t made of meat. I thought that was pretty neat! They are working on expanding, but have 11 locations on the East Coast.

What caught your eye this month?

P.S. We are in Germany so it may be quiet around here for the next week 🙂