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 Apple & Rhubarb Jam with Mascarpone ganache. I was disappointed with this one because the flavor was so subtle. My friend and her husband also thought the same thing, so I didn’t just have it on an off day. The idea was there, but the execution was lacking.
My ordering so far of most to least favorite: Salted Caramel Pretzel, Cherry Jam & Cappuccino Ganache, Peach & Cornbread Ganache, Lychee Ganache & Mascarpone Ganache, Pumpkin Pie & Brown Sugar Ganache, Blueberry & Sweet Corn, Ube Ganache & Thai Coconut Ganache, Strawberry & Olive Oil, Lemon Curd & Graham Cracker Ganache , Blackberry Jam & Coconut Ganache, Early Grey & Okinawa black Sugar, Mango Jam & Milk Chocolate Ganache, Strawberry Poppyseed & Buttermilk, Raspberry & Pistachio, Honey Peach Jam & Graham Cracker Ganache, Almond and Fig, Apple & Rhubarb, Matcha & Coconut, Passionfruit & Vanilla, Peanut Butter & Banana, Caramel Flan & Orange Marmalade, Pineapple & Oolong, Green Apple Butterscotch, and Black Truffle & Caramel Popcorn Cronut.
We dined at the iconic and recently reopened Delmonico’s with our friends and it did not disappoint! Delmonico’s was the first fine dining restaurant in the US and they’re famous for the house special, Delmonico Steak. They’re also known for inventing Baked Alaska and Eggs Benedict. We enjoyed the Caesar Salad, Caramelized Bacon, Signature 18oz Delmonico Steak, and Baked Alaska. The meal was delicious, but quite expensive compared to other places in NYC and the portions were very small (each piece of bacon was probably 1 inch wide and 4 inches long).
Places I was invited to:
Alligator Pear is a New Orleans inspired restaurant with fun cocktails, a delicious menu, and a great vibe! The menu features southern classics like gumbo, jambalaya paella, beignets, po’boys and you can even try some tempura alligator bites (they tasted like fried chicken). We enjoyed everything we tried including: cornbread, blue crab beignets, Nola style jambalaya paella, Newport steak, and we ended with amazing Nola style bread pudding.
Alidoro is a delicious sandwich shop with multiple locations around NYC. We ordered the Fratelli and Il Sole on semolina bread and they both hit the spot. These sandwiches are massive and you can choose from the menu or build your own. They also have hot and cold sandwiches depending on your mood and the weather.
Levain Bakery brought back their Fall Chocolate chunk cookie and launched their Pumpkin Ginger Spice Cake. Both were the perfect fall treat, but I surprisingly thought the bread was better. I’m a sucker for pumpkin bread!
Jon and I stopped by the last day of Dragonfest, a street food festival featuring Chinese shops across the city, and it was worth the crowds! We were a little overwhelmed at first by all the delectable smells and long lines, but once we got our bearings, we made a delicious game plan. We started with some Xing Fu Tang Brown sugar boba milk. This was my first boba experience, I used to be afraid of the little tapioca balls coming up the straw, but once I tried them I liked them.
Some Hunan special cold noodles from Fortune Cookies Snack House, these were really flavorful!
We ended with dessert from Smoove Ice Cream, an Ube boba float & Jasmine ice cream.
Bonne Maman sent me their new Hazelnut Chocolate Spread and it was amazing, but I got a sugar rush after a few bites. I put it atop some pumpkin pancakes. It’s just like Nutella but without all the artificial ingredients.
I went to Aperi Bar for a happy hour and I loved their appetizers. My favorites were the Margherita pizza, arancini, and meatballs. They also have an intimate Italian restaurant worth checking out.
What caught your eye this month?
I think they made a mistake with this month’s cronut. It should have been strawberry rhubarb. Apple is too subtle to pair with rhubarb. We are sad that rhubarb season is over for another year and we did not get enough feeds from our plants. Those panino look to die for, so much better than subway. Vancouver has an Italian sandwich shop making sandwiches on whole focaccia round loaves. Gotta get back there. That bread pudding looks to die for. Thanks for sharing Lyssy. Allan
You’re right, strawberry would’ve been better. Maybe they need a flavor suggestion box. I don’t think I’ve ever had rhubarb by itself. Can’t beat a good sandwich, especially with fresh bread. I can always find some room for dessert 🙂
The other day I read a post about a Danish experiment which revealed that you can satisfy your appetite just by looking at pictures of food. I don’t remember how they reached the verdict, but I can safely say that your post didn’t trick my brain into feeling full. Quite the opposite, right now, I could devour half of my fridge content! In Ireland, we can find plentiful Bonne Maman jams, but I have never seen a Hazelnut Chocolate Spread – I should look into it as I love nothing more than a good sugar rush. Thanks for sharing and have a wonderful day 🙂 Aiva xx
That’s an interesting study, it never seems to work for me either. When I see food I get exponentially more hungry. I think the Hazelnut Chocolate Spread is new so hopefully you’ll be able to find some soon. You’ve been warned that it’s dangerously good! Hope you have a great weekend!
Those chocolate chip cookies looked awesome Lyssy. In fact most looked fantastic because of your wonderful photos, my stomach is now grumbling!
The cookies were delicious, especially when the chocolate was melted. Thank you!
Now, I am jealous
Oh boy; everything looks so delicious! I often feel so overwhelmed with food choices at food fairs that I tend to get nothing at all. Weird, I know..
I know exactly what you mean, you get so overwhelmed you can’t decide. That also happens when I get hangry, it’s not pretty haha.
All delectable but think I like the bread pudding the most Lyssy!
That bread pudding was delicious, good choice!
I’m so glad you tried boba for the first time! My family’s from Taiwan, and I grew up drinking it a lot! I don’t have boba as much as before, because I want to cut back on sugar, haha, but it’s a real treat: you can’t go wrong with an OG milk tea with boba!
That is a nice treat to grow up with! It was a hot day and the boba was such a refreshing treat. I am sure it had a lot of sugar haha but it was worth it 🙂
That Delmonico Steak looks absolutely delicious, as well as everything in this post!
The steak was one of the best we’ve had in NYC!
What caught my eye this month? All of it, especially your meal at Delmonico’s. As always, I am now hungry and would love to have one of those fall chocolate chunk cookies!
Love the look of the Chinese noodle dish. I miss Chinese food so much, would love to visit a street food festival with lots of different Chinese shops.
Droooool as always! I could eat it all but I’m taking Delmonico’s Baked Alaska as my first choice to stuff in my face 🙂
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I’m not sure I’d like a rhubarb cronut even if the flavor wasn’t subtle. Kind of an acquired taste there. Your criticism of this month’s flavor was deserved. Delmonico’s looks too rich for my palate (if not my wallet) but the Baked Alaska does look exquisite. The blue crab beignets at Alligator Pear were probably wonderful too (we had hush puppies with shrimp stuffing recently – delicious!) And I had the same reaction as you the first time I tried boba (in the food court in the basement of The Plaza, coincidentally). Didn’t expect to like it but the added taste/texture made it very appealing.
These cookies 🍪 are so delicious. Anita
Sign me up for that pumpkin bread! Also, the sandwiches look super tasty. As usual, I’m impressed with the number of places you managed to visit this month.
I’m a fan of all things pumpkin, so naturally my interest piqued at mention of the pumpkin ginger spice cake and pumpkin bread. Mmmm. Sounds delicious.