As you probably know by now, I’m a girl who loves to eat. So when my mom came to the city to visit me for a couple of days the opportunity arose to try some awesome New York restaurants. I could finally fulfill my wish of actually visiting the amazing restaurants I have been reading about all summer.
First on our list was Costata, a new steakhouse by Michael White in Soho. It was of course delicious a filled with more food than my stomach should handle. However, I forgot to take any pictures of my epic meal.
On Tuesday we had 9:00 o’clock reservations at Restaurant Marc Forgione in TriBeCa. Since our reservations weren’t until later, we needed something to occupy our time. I perused the internet for a little and found a champagne lounge called The Bubble Lounge near our dinner spot. The Bubble Lounge had a 1920s speakeasy vibe about it, with big comfy couches and black and white photographs of New York on the walls.
The drink list was extremely extensive but my mom finally decided on the Champs-Élysées, which mixed prosecco, hibiscus and had a real hibiscus flower at the bottom. I settled on the Paris Blossom, which was prosecco and elderflower. It was a truly delightful and refreshing drink. We also ordered some appetizers of crab cakes and mini burger sliders. Both apps were extremely delicious.
After about an hour of drinks and food we decided that we should walk around TriBeCa for a little. We headed down the street when I saw a sign for a new restaurant, The Butterfly, I had been reading about on Eater that Michael White was opening. Of course I had to check it out.
My mom and I headed inside the packed restaurant and luckily found two seats at the bar. We soon realized (after asking one of the bartenders) that it was the opening night for the restaurant. Having never been to an opening night before I was beyond excited. The Butterfly had an old fashioned 1950s upscale diner type feel to it. The drink menu reflected that spot on with drinks like a classic martini, tom collins, boiler makers, and whiskey sours. I decided on the Paloma which was a tequila drink with watermelon, and my mom got a glass of prosecco.
Since we had been drinking a bit we decided to get a round of appetizers here as well. My mom got the shrimp cocktail and I got the spinach artichoke dip with fresh pita. I have to say mine was insanely delicious and the best spinach artichoke dip I had ever had. It wasn’t heavy like most dips are, but was fresh and lighter. The spinach wasn’t mushy but had a nice crisp feel to it. The artichokes were fresh which added a whole new tangy sweet flavor to the dip. My mom said her shrimp was delicious, but I didn’t get the opportunity to try any. (You could say she was shellfish! Sorry I had to make that awful pun.)
Since it was the opening night of the restaurant, chef Michael White, was making his rounds and we got the opportunity to talk to him for a bit. He seems so excited about The Butterfly opening, and we told him that we thoroughly enjoyed his food and drinks. I was even lucky enough to get a picture with him!
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| Chef Michael White!! |
After we finished our drinks we made our way to Restaurant Marc Forgione for dinner...FINALLY! You would think that after two rounds of appetizers and drinks we wouldn’t be hungry....but of course I could eat. Like my friends at college and I say, “I’m not hungry...but I could eat.”
We were seated and ordered some drinks (like we hadn’t had enough already). I ordered a pineapple sangria that tasted like summer in a glass it was so fresh. I was extremely excited about this restaurant since Marc Forgione is an Iron Chef and I had been working at the Food Network all summer. Our meal started off with a mini everything bagel and a “fancy” tuna salad type dip. Hands down best tuna salad I’ve ever had and I don’t even like tuna salad. The mini bagel was also delicious.
For dinner I decided to have two appetizers instead of a meal. My first choice was a chili lobster with texas toast. It was the perfect proportion of spicy but with the sweet lobster to mellow it out. It also came with two huge slices of fresh grilled bread to sop up all that delicious broth. My other dish was a foie gras in a jar with red pepper gellee, bacon, and black pepper brioche. It looked a bit weird since it was served in a mini jar and to be honest it kind of looked like dirt. But since foie gras (especially in pâté form is my favorite) I eagerly dug in. It came with a fresh strawberry jam that really brightened up the whole dish. The foie gras spread on some fresh bread with the jam on top tasted exactly what I imagine heaven to taste like. Insanely delicious.
With out tummies too full, my mother and I rolled ourselves home and fell into a deep deep food coma for the rest of the night. It amazes me that these three completely different restaurants are blocks away from each other. I guess that is what makes New York so amazing. After writing this I have the feeling I should join a gym ASAP. Until next time! xxx
