Insomnia Cookies Are A Midnight Treat

Insomnia Cookies - Upper East Side
237 E 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022

Can't sleep? Milk and cookies might do the trick.

After listening to Allegra Levy (vocals) and Seán McCluskey (piano) at the basement bar, Tomi Jazz, I emerged ready for a midnight snack. Something about late evening hours makes cravings cut deep and calories seem irrelevant.

Insomnia Cookies is next door and open late. Walking into the store means relaxing into a sugar coma. Strong smells of sugar sedate the salivating insomniac. I was seduced by the chocolate peanut butter cup cookie; it was love at first sight.

These cookies are big, and they're served warm. Breaking off a piece, the cookie didn't flake, crumble, or snap. In addition to this perfect, malleable texture, Insomnia Cookies are packed full of flavor. The warm chocolate and chunks of peanut butter may have been enough in other cookies, but to achieve this flavor the bakers must have folded peanut butter right into the batter.

I only wish I'd ordered a glass of milk.  

Have A Bluesy, Boozey Night At Tomi Jazz

Tomi Jazz - Upper East Side
239 E 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022

For a bar, Tomi Jazz provokes a price reflex: $10 minimum + $10 cover. You mean, I have a $20 tab and I haven't even ordered anything yet?

But it's cheap compared to what a concert might cost. This dark, basement bar is a Japanese Jazz club with sake, ramen, cocktails, and singing. A favorite regular of mine is Allegra Levy, frequently accompanied by the tall, lanky piano savant, Seán McCluskey.

After an ironically festive mojito for a bluesy joint, I simplified my cocktail to a whiskey sour. The blank-faced waitress smiled as I placed my order. She repeated it back to me, which I repeated back to her, hearing her hesitancy. We executed this exchange two or three times, each time with her voice ending in a high question tone, and each time mine responding in a stern, flat whiskey sour. 

Five minutes later she returned with a whiskey soda.

At that point it wasn't even worth it. I stopped another waiter and asked for a few limes rather than going through all that again.

Still, it was a great night. Captivating music beats staying home on a Friday night (which was nearly the case). So, double win.

Upper East Side Chinatown Restaurant is Japanese

Chinatown Restaurant - Upper East Side
1650 3rd Ave., New York, NY 10128

A friend invited me and my roommate to a restaurant called Chinatown Restaurant to celebrate his birthday--with 12 other friends. Aside from smirking at the simplistic name, we assumed we would be eating Chinese food, maybe squeezed around a Lazy Susan.

We walk in to the crowded restaurant, wood paneled and minimalist like many Japanese restaurants, past the sushi bar and down the hall to a private room. However, I overheard the waitresses bantering in Mandarin. The restaurant has split personality syndrome.

Chinatown Restaurant is a sushi house: an all-you-can-eat, all-you-can-drink sushi house. Dining with a big group felt like the right way to tackle this culinary monster. We ordered platters full of almost every sushi variety, pitchers of beer, and silver kettles of sake. For $33 you can eat and drink all your iron stomach can handle--in two hours.

After the first order the waitress brought the check, half-joking that sometimes patrons would forget to pay after too many sake bombs. I don't know about the rest of the crowd, but I felt it was a prudent yet still mildly offensive gesture. An addendum on the menu stating that all leftover sushi would be charged at a la carte prices provoked a similar prickly feeling. When the waitress practically ordered us to pay as our meal was winding down, I knew this was not the type of establishment whose bottom line is to put the customer first or make the customer feel at home.

Despite the service flaws, it was an enjoyable evening. The sushi was presentable and colorful, made from fresh sticky rice and ripe avocado. Thought the waitress warned that the sushi orders may be delayed slightly, we received our food in a timely fashion. All in all, this was a nice way to celebrate our friend's birthday. We ate, we laughed, we drank. 

Where's The Best Cheap Food In Manhattan? Chinatown.

Prosperity Dumpling - Chinatown
46 Eldridge Street, New York, NY 10002

I--along with every other New Yorker--bemoan a lack of good food in Manhattan at a price that doesn't make me feel like I'm being stabbed in the back as I buy it.

Chinatown is the only neighborhood in the city I know that sells most of its food under black market prices. And in Chinatown, I recommend Prosperity Dumpling.

It's a hole-in-the-wall dumpling joint--anything but glamorous. The floors are dirty and the menu mounted to the wall has been updated using black Sharpie. I squeeze through the doorway and stand quietly, shoulder-to-shoulder with the other patrons like a gang of meerkats.

But ten minutes after I place my order, I walk out with a mound of dumplings, an egg pancake, a few pork buns, and a tub of noodle soup. Dinner and leftovers for two just cost me less than $10.

Unlike at many Chinese-American restaurants, the dumpling skin is not too thick here. The veggie dumplings are packed full of exactly the chopped carrot and cabbage flavors I used to order late at night in Nanjing. Everything tastes a bit nostalgic. 

Man's Best Friend Shops At Trader Joe's, Too

Grom's Whipped Cream Is Like Crack

Grom - West Village

233 Bleeker St., New York, NY 10014

While out with a friend, I ran into an acquaintance in the West Village. When he heard we were scoping out dessert options, he pointed to a well-lit shop on the corner. This man is a clean-cut southern gentleman and music composer, so his words surprised me:

"Order the whipped cream--it's like crack cocaine." (His words, not mine.)

Obviously, I did. 

Grom is a gelateria. Presumably their gelato is great, but on a mild winter eve I ordered a small hot [dark] chocolate with whipped cream. The cocoa is not for the faint of heart. My friend and her mom ordered a small, and between the two of them they did not make it halfway through the cup. It's not because it's bad--it's simply so rich. The viscous cocoa coats the sides of the cup and lingers on the plastic spoon. The whipped cream is just as pure. As though scraped off a spatula, the whipped cream hangs off the side of the cup. It didn't fall in or drip down--only the bottom slowly melted away, forming white rings in the black sea beneath. 

While I did manage to finish my cup, I feel that the optimal way to enjoy Grom's delights would be to have an espresso-sized hot cocoa with whipped cream and a single scoop of vanilla gelato. As I've learned, it's the best balancing act. 

So, next time I must try the gelato. 

Smorgas Chef Masters Hollandaise Sauce

Smorgas Chef - Financial District
53 Stone St., New York, NY 10004

There is a large birch tree in the middle of this restaurant. Even with a tree sticking up from the floor, the most memorable thing from this restaurant was the eggs Benedict trio. Three eggs, each perfectly prepared, each with a different garnish.

This dish often calls to me, but too often I am disappointed. The Hollandaise sauce is congealed; the English muffin isn't fresh or warm; grocery store meat sits under my egg. My standards for eggs Benedict are high, but when all the ingredients are fresh and fine and the eggs and sauce are artfully prepared, it is worth the treasure hunt. Next time I must try the crepes--they looked good even from my food coma.

The Oldest Tavern in New York City

Fraunces Tavern - Financial District

54 Pearl St, New York City, NY 10004

Walking in to the dimly lit, wooden tavern I felt like I was back in Vermont. The oldest tavern in New York City is landmarked as a historical building. Beer fans may enjoy the wide lager selection. Personally, I enjoyed a nice, fat steak. Well cooked (medium rare), well seasoned (sauces on the side), and well worth the protein overload. 

Otto is Like Being Wrapped In A Warm Italian Blanket

OTTO - Greenwich Village / Washington Square Park
1 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10003

As a dining mate said, walking into Otto is like being wrapped in a warm Italian blanket. It was hollow and windy and freezing outside, and then I walked in to a heated, crowded, lively Italian restaurant with rusty orange walls. There were more children and families there than I'd seen in most restaurants of that size and caliber in New York. While I was duly impressed with the service--we had both a knowledgeable sommelier and a prompt and informative waiter--the food wasn't quite what I was expecting. My friend's pizza with egg was perfectly thin and fresh, made from the best dough, but the sauce hinted more strongly at tomato paste than fresh vine tomatoes in summer. I ordered the Goat Cheese Agnolotti, a fresh pasta dish with lemon, butter, and tiny pasta pillows of goat cheese The food was good, but the presentation lacked--anything. The dishes, garnish, plating--all lacked imagination.

But to be honest, the reason you come to Otto is for the homemade ice cream. Three scoops, though they seem small in their silver goblet, are more than enough to satisfy any sweet tooth. I ordered caramel, crème fraîche  and dark chocolate. The crème fraîche is made with eggs, so it is thicker and richer than the rest--and quite heavy. The caramel and dark chocolate were both exceptionally flavored and all three were remarkably smooth. I ordered a hazelnut hot cocoa, too, and it was one of the best I've had. Period. I wouldn't give the overall restaurant a five-star rating, but this restaurant is more than reasonably priced ($8 for three scoops of homemade gelato; $15 for homemade pasta) and very friendly. It's a good, solid find. 

Five Points Has Better Churros Than Spain

Five Points - NoHo

31 Great Jones Street, New York, NY 10012

A lovely brunch spot with a modern garden feel from the potted plants lining the walls and a carved log as a garden trough running through the restaurant. We started with churros dipped in hot chocolate. The chocolate was not as thick and dense as the warmed cocoa my family and I had in Madrid, so it did not serve dipping purposes, though the taste and consistency were perfect for regular American hot-choclate. The churros, however, were better than those we had in Spain, which were harder and more oily. By contrast, the Five Points churros resembled hot, fresh doughnuts rolled in cinnamon and sugar.

The main meals were well plated and tasteful. The stuffed french toast stood tall as the favorite dish. A pitcher of mimosas and helpful waiters made for a pleasant brunch. All was delicious, and we plan to return for the Monday evening $24 lobster special!

Great Pizza Sauce on Short Benches

John's of Bleeker Street - West Village
278 Bleeker Street, New York, NY 10014

John's of Bleeker Street, a small pizza joint in the West Village, is an institution founded in 1929. Tonight was my first meal partaking in the tradition. The room is small and unpretentious. The dark wooden paneling and benches are stripped to the flesh from thousands of initials carved into the surface. The seats comfortably fit two, but only if you're prepared to sit on the edge of your tuchus for the evening. I sat down and I thought I might slide off the bench, which was at least 6 inches shorter than booth benches at other restaurants.

We received prompt service from a knowledgeable waiter. He did bring out the wrong pizza but realized his mistake immediately and served the correct pie soon afterward. It was half meatball and half ricotta. The former was too meaty for me but appeared to be prepared well. The ricotta was light and creamy, sitting in dollops across the pie. This was a well-prepared pizza. The crust was crisp but not crunchy; the sauce was present and fresh.

Skip the six slice small and just go for the large. For a $16, eight slice pizza, I highly recommend it.

Cash only.