Weekend Minus Diesel « 2 for 1 Sale

Last Books Read

(T) This Perfect Day - Like a blast from the past, I felt like a 10 year old again reading this 1970 Ira Levin sci-fi. How life might be if everything around us was controlled to be efficient and healthy. Surprisingly, nakedness and sex plays a big role...
***

(T) In Defense of Food - Eat food. Not so much. Mostly plants. An informative read on why Westerners spend so much time trying to eat right and almost always get it wrong.
****

(T)Are You There Vodka? It's me, Chelsea - The ramblings of Chelsea Handler. Pretty funny. Good candy.
****

(T) Namesake - I didn't enjoy this book. At all. I do now crave Indian food.
*

Latest Restaurants

Enoteca Barbone -Still awesome Italian/Babboo rip-off. I really like the owner, prices and pasta.
****

Slurp - New Vietnamese restaurant in LES. We were the only ones there. Comparable to Compuchea, but better and cheaper
**

SavorNY - A FoodCandy article on the wall! Tapas from around the world. Pretty good
***

Taisho Yakitori - Best in groups, Taisho is maybe my favorite restaurant in the city, currently.
*****

Clinton St Baking Company - An LES brunch favorite, the pancakes and crab cakes are some of the best we've ever had, but the line outside on a weekend make it something only worth it on the weekday.
***

Chickie Pig's - Literally across the street, Chickie Pigs servers up thin, oval-shaped pizzas in a brick oven. Focus is on the crust and not the toppings.
**

Banjara - Finally! Good Indian. Embedded in the 6th St Indian madness is Banjara with delicious curries, dosas and samosas.
***

The E.U. - A new chef prepares European comfort food including a thick and rich cassoulet, braised short ribs and Chicken and Dumplings along with a wide assortment of european beers. Very good.
***

Falai - Modern Italian. Homemade Pasta. Creative Dishes like Beet & Lobster Risotto. One of the best meals had in NYC so far.
*****

Cafe Glechik - A Ukrainian cafe in Brighton Beach known for their dumplings. Try the veal and the Siberian.
***

Rosario's Pizza - A tourist favorite of the LES, we read about this in one of our guide books. Pretty good pizza, but nothing special. Stay with the cheese.
*

Trattoria Spaghetto - Also mentioned in our guidebook, this Italian eatery actually turned out a better than expected lunch.
**

NY Noodletown - A decent Chinatown stop for Shrimp Wonton Noodle Soup. Reminds me of Canton Wonton Noodle House in Seattle
**

Weekend Minus Diesel

Posted on April 7, 2008 by kelch25

With Diesel still on his snowboarding trip, I got my last chance to spend some time with friends this week and do whatever I wanted to do. Don’t get me wrong, I miss him, but when he’s not around I get to do stuff that annoys him without being pestered. Things such as sleeping on the futon in the living room after watching Felicity or shopping for hours and only getting two things (a scarf and a shirt at H&M).

On Friday I met up with Rose and Jimmy in Koreatown for dinner. We took a risk by ordering something other than Korean bbq. Nothing we got was what we expected, but the food was pretty good. The two of them had to leave early at around 9, so I decided to walk around 34th Street a little more and found out that the shops are open until 10pm! Only in NY!The next morning I went on a run with Shelley, who very nonchalantly recounted her meeting with Vogue’s editor Anna “Nuclear” Wintour. It was a nice day–even warm, actually–for a run, and we had great time. Afterwards I did the laundry and cleaned the apartment because the in-laws are going to be in town, and my mother in law is very clean.

Then I met with my French tutor (more about this soon) and after making a stop home, I went to them movies with David to watch Run Fat Boy Run, which I thought was better than expected.

Some new food places I tried this weekend:

S’mac - Seno had raved so much about this place that when he suggested we go there for dinner, I got excited. I had to be lame and ordered the standard four cheese mac and cheese but didn’t regret it because it was super yummy.

Ceci-Cela - I had read all sorts of things about this patisserie in Noho, with several people on both Yelp and Chowhound discussing the merits of the shop’s croissants as one of the best in town. I had gone by it several times, but either after a big meal or just in passing, but today, after missing my subway stop (I was absorbed in my latest book club’s book), I found myself literally in front of Ceci-Cela’s door. I was determined to try the croissant and end the croissant debate myself, but upon seeing the little strawberry tart, I just had to order it. It was delicious with a “oh, just perfect” almond crust, and plump strawberries sitting in a delicate custard. I ended up getting another one for Diesel (to go) as well as two croissants for tomorrow (one of them I had to steal a bite of, since it had just come out of the oven). I’ll definitely go back.

Here’s a pic of my tart taken with my cell: