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Small Shops

Midtown, Restaurants, Small Shops
Big Bowl Noodles & Noodles 36 - NYC
10.27.08 | Permalink | 3 Comments

Not so strangely, Ying Du is closed again. This time it’s for renovations. I don’t think it’s DOH-related since they aren’t listed on the main DOH site, but who knows. Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt. I just hope they aren’t planning another price hike. I don’t need ambiance at a Chinese take-out restaurant.

Fortunately, there are other places to get authentic Chinese in Midtown. My favorite is Hing Won, but recently with the cold weather, I’ve been trying to stay west of Fifth Avenue and south of 42nd Street, which is closer to work. Also, I notice there tends to be less suits south of 42nd St, especially west of 7th Avenue. It’s not exactly downtown, but there’s definitely a different vibe, which is nice. I see enough suits and khakis at work. The two places I’ve been going to a lot recently are Noodles 36 and Big Bowl Noodles. MORE »
Hell's Kitchen, Midtown, Small Shops, Street Eats
Tacos Tacos Tacos - NYC
10.14.08 | Permalink | 2 Comments

David and I were talking last week, and considering the global financial markets are all in the crapper, the DOW is at an all time low, and the US dollar is not worth the paper it’s constantly getting printed on, we decided that it might not be a good idea to go on another vacation this year. Sigh…. He also said we’d be entering a severe depression soon and anarchy and mayhem would erupt everywhere like Mad Max and this week we were going to learn how to operate a machine gun so we could defend ourselves when the time came. This part I chose to ignore, because call me stupid, but I have a bit more faith in mankind and my fellow New Yorkers. And besides, my purse is just not big enough for a machine gun. In any case, no vacation doesn’t have to mean no exciting culinary adventurous, especially living in a city as diverse as New York. So last week, as it started getting colder and I started dreaming about warm waters and white sugary beaches, I did the next best thing and ate tacos, many, many tacos. MORE »
DUMBO, Restaurants, Small Shops
Sweet & Savory in Dumbo - NYC
09.24.08 | Permalink | Comment?

On Sunday, David and I were walking around LES, when out of the blue, he suggested we go to the Brooklyn Bridge Park (technically the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park) in DUMBO rather than Tompkins or Washington Square Park, like we normally do on Sundays. The previous week the grass was pretty dismal and sparse at Washington Square, so we hopped on the F train and made our way to DUMBO, looking for greener pastures. MORE »
Chinatown, Small Shops
Rollerblading to Sheng Wang - NYC
09.20.08 | Permalink | 4 Comments

What do you do when your boyfriend forgets your bike at the office and then leaves for a company outing in the Hamptons? Well, first you bitch and moan, because, god damn it, it’s a nice day and you wanted to ride your bike! But then you get over it and rollerblade to Sheng Wang for some freshly hand-pulled noodles.

When you first get to Eldrige Street looking for Sheng Wang, you may initially be confused because it only says Sheng Wang in English at the very end of a awning mostly in Chinese. And if you aren’t Chinese, this will probably intimidate you. Two years ago, after the Sietsema article in the Village Voice about Sheng Wang came out, I decided to go try it out. However, after seeing the awning and the short, but dark steps, down into the subterranean restaurant, I decided to skip it, and went elsewhere. At the time, the fact the name of the restaurant in English was added seemingly as an after-thought, made me feel that they wouldn’t be very welcoming. This time I wanted noodles, and I didn’t care if I wasn’t welcome. MORE »
Flushing, Restaurants, Small Shops, Whitestone
Labor Day Fun Outside of Manhattan - NYC
09.10.08 | Permalink | 2 Comments

I was never a big fan of kids until my brother had a baby three years ago. Little Adam was born exactly three years from yesterday, and since then I’ve been infatuated with him. Yes, I love him even though he tells me to go home when I go visit him. Once he even told me to get out of a moving vehicle on the way to the park. Nonetheless, I find him adorable. So when Labor Day weekend was approaching, I rented a Zipcar, and made plans with my bro and sister-in-law, Hannah, to take Adam to the beach. On the night before the day we were supposed to go, I called Hannah to confirm and she said no one wanted to go anymore because they thought there was going to be too much traffic. Can you believe it? I was stood up by a three-year-old! I guess I’m losing my touch with the boys. MORE »
Midtown, Small Shops
Roast Duck @ Ying Du - NYC
09.04.08 | Permalink | Comment?

Roast Duck over Rice @ Ying Du

Ying Du is one of those places that makes working in Midtown more tolerable. When I tell people I work in Times Square, people always ask what I eat. Yes, it’s true, Times Square is tourist central and there are a million of overpriced restaurants that cater to tourists that don’t know any better. Everyday, I have to fight the swarm of slow moving tourists to get in and out of my office building. No offense to tourists, I know what it’s like to be a tourist. You’re confused, discombobulated from a stressful flight, and you want to take it slow, but please, “Can you look at your subway map on the left or right of the sidewalk instead of smack in the middle of a busy street?!” In any case, among all this madness, a few blocks away in the Garment District, there are small restaurants like Ying Du that exist soley to feed the midtown masses, in particular the Chinese masses. Meaning, don’t go to Ying Du if you want General Tso’s Chicken or Sesame Chicken. MORE »
Midtown, Small Shops
Tres Tacos from Tehuitzingo - NYC
08.13.08 | Permalink | 4 Comments

Barbacoa (Goat) Taco from Tehuitzingo

I feel like the Internet has been going Mexican crazy the last few weeks. I’ve been reading posts about Mexican food left and right. So last night, right before I went to sleep, I decided to to eat tacos for lunch at Tehuitzingo (Yes, that’s right, I think about lunch right before I go to sleep, I’m not ashamed to admit it.).

Before I left for Tehuitzingo, I checked MenuPages and I knew what I wanted. Pig ear! I mean, I never had pig ear in a taco before, so it just seemed logical. I also got a Barbacoa (Goat) Taco and a Carnitas (Pork) Taco, just for good measure. MORE »