A few weeks ago, I was looking for a show on Netflix that I could put on in the background as I got ready, or if I just needed a brief distraction. Arrested Development popped up as a suggestion, so I went for it – unaware that a few weeks on I’d be a serious addict. I …
Read MoreCategory / Food & Drink
May 13, 2013
…went to Madison Square Eats
‘Tis the season for outdoor food markets and because I’ve obviously not done enough food posts recently, after work I headed to Madison Square Eats – a snug food market opposite the Flatiron building. I’d never heard of the market until Meghan, who lives close to the park, told me about it – and promised me there …
Read MoreMay 11, 2013
…fell in love with Japanese desserts
Today’s torrential rain cancelled a tour I had planned and left me craving some comfort. I decided to head to Minamoto Kitchoan, a Japanese bakery by the Rockefeller Center that I’d spotted on my way to the Easter Parade, and which I’d been saving for a rainy day. The store was ridiculously serene and lined …
Read MoreMay 6, 2013
…tried an egg cream
As Rachel and I walked home tonight, we made a stop at Gem Spa, a scruffy bodega in the East Village and just one of the many eateries in the city claiming to sell ‘New York’s best egg cream’. Even though we have zero experience to draw from, we decided to see what they had. Now, I’m still not …
Read MoreMay 4, 2013
…sneaked snacks at Smorgasburg
The sun is out, which means one thing in the summer: Time to head to Smorgasburg. Smoragsburg is a huge flea food market held every Saturday in summer along the East River in Williamsburg. There are food stands selling snacks to be enjoyed in the sunshine, while others sell beautiful jars and tins to take away. The …
Read MoreMay 1, 2013
…went to the world’s largest bake sale (and broke a world record)
Being back at work for two days is just too much. It’s time for some treats. This evening I pegged it up to Grand Central Station (you know how I love my activities there) for the World’s Largest Bake Sale – a one-day event organised by celebrity chef Sandra Lee, and co-chaired by other famous foodies, …
Read MoreApril 27, 2013
…toured a winery (and got very merry)
Because the 12 bottles of wine we bought for the cabin yesterday just weren’t enough, we spent the afternoon sampling the local alcohol. I’ve never had Colorado wine before. And now I can understand why. First up, we went to Valley of the Wind Winery in Estes Park, where we selected five wines each for …
Read MoreApril 23, 2013
…celebrated St George’s Day in New York
I’ve been going all out with my New York experiences, but today I got the day off: Today it was St George’s Day, and time to celebrate the motherland. To be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever actually celebrated St. George’s Day in England, but this year, being so far from home, I was really keen …
Read MoreApril 17, 2013
…ate an ice cream on the High Line
New York weather doesn’t know what it’s doing. While it’s not quite warm enough for bare legs, it’s definitely about time for the first ice cream of the season. Tonight after work, Helen and I walked to the West Village and picked up some sickly sweet cups of ice cream – strawberry for me, chocolate for her …
Read MoreApril 15, 2013
…paid my respects to Boston at a Red Sox bar
Today has been a tough one. The Boston bombings are horrifying. They’ve shaken me like I’ve not been shaken while working on a story before. As I watched the tragedy unfold, I grew fearful for my friends running the marathon. And at work, I had the job of scrolling through graphic image after graphic image in our picture system, swiftly …
Read MoreApril 12, 2013
…celebrated National Grilled Cheese Day
Gooey cheese squished in a sandwich used to sound like my worst nightmare, but since semi-overcoming my fear a couple of months ago, I was ready for National Grilled Cheese Day. Plus it’s pretty much America’s national dish. This is New York, so of course they have specialist restaurants for these sorts of things. After …
Read MoreApril 11, 2013
…was a barista
Today I headed back to one of my old favourite haunts for coffee. But rather than doing the drinking, I was doing the making. This was something different for me, but I did really enjoy it. A lot of times, I am making my own coffee at home using my new coffee machine. I have …
Read MoreApril 8, 2013
…ate at an African restaurant
Tonight was my monthly goss-a-thon over dinner with Katia. Whereas last time we gave so-so Malaysian food a go, this time we hopped across a continent or two to Africa. Now, ‘Africa’ obviously encompasses a lot, so I didn’t really know what the menu at Ponty Bistro in Gramercy Park would look like. As it turns out, it had …
Read MoreApril 7, 2013
…played Rebel Bingo
By the early hours of this morning, I sported some pretty impressive body ink: an anchor, a bowtie, some barbed wire – and I’m sure there was an obligatory pecker somewhere too. This was the aftermath of Rebel Bingo, a twist on the original game usually associated with blue rinses. The rules are the same …
Read MoreApril 5, 2013
…bought Girl Scout cookies from a Chinatown troop
What better to line my stomach for a Friday night out than a batch (or two) of Girl Scout cookies. That’s a good way to teach these girls about responsibility. After work I headed to Chinatown, where Troop 3197 were selling cookies at the True Light Lutheran Church. They were such a brilliant bunch of girls …
Read MoreApril 2, 2013
…ate a horned melon
As per usual, I took a jaunt to Gourmet Garage in SoHo for lunch today. But amid the soups and sushi palettes, there was something new – a display of bizarre-looking fruits. The horned melon caught my eye, so I took one back to the office, where no one else seemed to have seen one before …
Read MoreMarch 31, 2013
…made Cadbury’s creme eggs
I don’t want to over-egg the Easter puns, but today was an eggstravaganza. One festive activity was making treats that nearly resembled Cadbury’s creme eggs with my friend Meghan (‘Megghan’). As devotees of Buzzfeed, we’d come across this cracker of a recipe a couple of weeks ago and decided to give it a go. It involved …
Read MoreMarch 26, 2013
…bought dinner for a stranger
I’ve been spending like a maniac recently. Today I paid for rent, phone bills, airline tickets and vats of cheese crackers. It means I have about $23 in my U.S. account until payday. Which I will no doubt spend on beer tonight and then coffee tomorrow or something I convince myself I really need, like …
Read MoreMarch 23, 2013
…fermented vegetables
Today I headed back to the Brooklyn Brainery for a class on vegetable fermentation. I decided to go because I’ve enjoyed my other cookery sessions and because it was vegetarian. If I’m honest, I knew nothing about fermentation – or what it even was, really – before going along today. It meant that, for the …
Read MoreMarch 16, 2013
…cooked an Indian Banquet
Since living in New York, Seamless has taken a hefty chunk of my pay check. But today I rekindled my love for cooking with a course in London. And there’s no modesty here: The results were impressive. Mummy Warren and I headed to Acton to create an Indian Banquet under the instruction of Angela Malik. …
Read MoreMarch 10, 2013
…ate haggis in Glasgow
When in Rome Glasgow. This morning I arrived in Scotland for a few days and soon stocked up on some traditional Scottish food. Or traditional Scottish scran, as the natives would say. Among my shopping was haggis, a dish that seems to be the stuff of folklore. It’s a mixture of sheep’s pluck (heart, liver …
Read MoreMarch 9, 2013
…had a personal juice bar tasting
One of my roommates came home early this morning wearing work out gear, carrying a dubious-coloured smoothie and grinning from ear to ear. She told me I had to try the juice bar around the corner and seeing as I’ve a grim head cold and needed to squeeze in a quick ‘new thing’ today before …
Read MoreMarch 6, 2013
…had a PB&J
Us Brits may be superior at tea and socialised healthcare, but Americans have really nailed the sandwich. So while I was munching on jam sandwiches in front of Sesame Street 20+ years ago, my genius U.S. counterparts had thrown some peanut butter on theirs. There have been audible gasps when I’ve dared to admit I’ve never had a peanut butter …
Read MoreMarch 5, 2013
…went to a listening party
Hear hear, who knows what a listening party is? Well, tonight I found out. You sit in a bar, drink far too many cocktails and celebrate new music. In this case – Dylan’s. Okay, okay, so this ‘new thing’ feels like I’m cheating a little bit. But I’d never been to a listening party before. Dylan (under the guise of Swampboots) is …
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