Coney Island and delicious food

I haven't been keeping up with my blogging recently, but I thought I would start again, beginning with two weekends ago. It started on a Friday night, when I was feeling hungry and decided to indulge my craving for Japadog. Part of the reason I had been wanting to try Japadog was the mention of the restaurant in Psych. I guess that marketing worked on me. Anyway, I hopped on the subway and headed to East Village for the most unique hot dog I've ever had.

I decided to go for an Oroshi hot dog, with a side of wasabi fries. The sauce made for a unique, tasty hot dog, but the best part of the meal was the wasabi fries. Even though they were very hot, I got through my whole serving and was still craving more. I gave in and ordered another hot dog, this time going for the Japadog signature, the Terimayo. I enjoyed the delicious combination of teriyaki sauce, mayo, and seaweed down to the last bite.

The next day, my friend Elliott came to visit, so we made the trip out to Coney Island. The weather wasn't as good as we were expecting, but that meant there wasn't anyone there. We were able to ride the famous Cyclone wooden roller coaster, as well as a cool ride called Soarin' Eagle. While it's unfortunate that the park doesn't have something like a day-pass, I'm very glad that I rode both of those roller coasters. Cyclone featured some exciting drops and a much lengthier ride time than I expected.

For the second day in a row, I enjoyed a delicious hot dog, this time a chili cheese dog from Nathan's Famous at Coney Island. The meal wasn't as filling as I was expecting, but it was a very solid hot dog. However, I'm going to make a bold statement and say that Japadog is better than Nathan's Famous. I enjoyed the unique flavors really enhanced the hot dog at Japadog.

After a long train ride back to Brooklyn Heights, we discovered it was raining hard. After taking some time to let our lunch settle and wait out the rainstorm, Elliott and I decided to get some barbecue for dinner. We first checked if Wildwood had any open reservations, but it was very busy, so we decided to go to The Mighty Quinn's, a casual barbecue restaurant in East Village. The line was out the door when we arrived there, so I figured that we had made a good pick.

At The Mighty Quinn's, you can get the meat on a sandwich or just the meat, along with a small side of cole slaw. I went for a serving of spare ribs, with a deliciously tangy barbecue sauce and a sprinkling of salt. The meat just fell off the bone, and I savored every bite of those delicious ribs. The Mighty Quinn's is definitely the best place I've been in New York. While the atmosphere isn't fancy, the prices are reasonable and the food is absolutely amazing. If you're ever in New York, try the ribs and thank me later.

Sadly, Elliott had to get back to New Jersey that night, but we managed to grab some frozen yogurt after dinner. I enjoyed a combination of crema de Barcelona and coffee. 

Even though Elliott had to go back to New Jersey that night, but we had some more adventures just a week after that. I'll save that for my next post. 

Mord Fustang concert and Brooklyn Nets game

I'll admit that this entry is being posted a little later than usual, but I was in Boston this weekend and I've been distracted by learning to use Ableton. Anyways, I went to a Mord Fustang concert on Friday, April 12th at a club called Pacha. I've been thinking about this, and it's a little weird to call it a "concert", because it's more of a DJ set. Regardless, Mord Fustang was the main act, and after listening to him at home and as the opener for Feed Me back in February, I decided that he was a must-see.

Given that this was my fifth concert in New York (5 concerts in 3.5 months, crazy), I knew the drill, and got to Pacha at about 11:40 pm. One of the amazing things about taking part in the nightlife of New York is seeing the sheer number of people out and about in the city at 11:40 pm. It's a far cry from the sleepy suburb that is Shoreline, WA, my hometown. The first thing that I noticed was that there weren't as many people at the club, because Mord Fustang is still up-and-coming compared to Knife Party or Madeon. I was happy to see that the second floor was open, as there is a good vantage point of the DJ booth and its not usually as crowded as the main dance floor.

The opening DJ's selection ranged from good electro house to appalling selections such as "Gangnam Style", which I was hoping had faded away months ago. I guess we're not quite there yet. He also had the bad habit of yelling out "hands up!" or "New York!" very often, which got annoying quickly. I'm not opposed to a well-timed vocal sample or shout to pump up the crowd, but if you use something like that more than twice in your set, it loses its impact.

Soon enough, Mord Fustang took the stage and played a great 2-hour set. He's a mysterious Estonian producer who still hasn't revealed his real name and produces a unique style of music that combines a few genres. Many of his songs have the pronounced kick drum pattern of progressive house combined with the loud, energetic synths of electro house. Others are even harder to classify, mixing in elements of dubstep or even moombahton. No matter what his music is classified as, it's all awesome, and his set on Pacha's excellent speakers really brought that to life. The set even featured a remix of The White Stripes' hit "Seven Nation Army".

From the second floor, good view of the mystery man himself, Mord Fustang.

Blurry, from the second floor.

From the main dance floor, near the stage.

The highlight for me was the heavily featured "Lick The Rainbow", which is my favorite song of his, and has a really unique sound with a cool bass line that was awesome on the speaker system. His remix of LMFAO's "Sexy and I Know It" was a surprising hit, and a good lead-in to a final mashup of many of his other songs to finish the set. All in all, it was a great show and I look forward to hearing what he produces in the future.

I bought a Snickers bar on the way home (because at 3:15 am, I couldn't resist), and didn't get to sleep until a little after 4. Somehow I managed to wake myself up for an eventful Arsenal match that ended with a great result. The rest of the weekend was filled with teaching myself to use Ableton and watching The Masters.

However, the next day I attended a Brooklyn Nets game through Northeastern's Co-op Connections department. The tickets were subsidized heavily, and I am very grateful to have gotten the opportunity to go to a game at the great price of only $15. It's been a long time since I've been to a basketball game, and while the Nets (or the Celtics) can't come close to filling the gaping hole in my heart left by the departure of the Sonics, it was nice to attempt to get back into the NBA, at least for a night.

Walking in.

It's certainly a unique building.

"BROOKLYN PRIDE!" Or something like that.

The Nets, unfortunately, decided that they needed to play music during every one of their offensive possessions, which is blasphemy to me. I went to watch basketball, not hear clips of songs playing. Isn't there enough of that during halftime and timeouts? Besides that, it was a great experience. The Barclays Center is a funny looking building, but it's a very nice arena and the Nets managed to pull through with a comeback win. The end of the game was very exciting, as Nets forward Tyshawn Taylor hit a clutch three-pointer with about 22 seconds left to put the Nets up by 4. That essentially sealed the win for the Nets.

This weekend, I'm hoping to attend day three of the NFL Draft, which shouldn't be as crowded as the first two days and will still be a cool experience for a lifelong football fan. I'll be wearing blue and green that day for sure, 12th man stand up!

4/6/13 - Mets Game and the Spiciest Thing I've Ever Had

Sorry that I have waited so long to post about last weekend. I blame the release of Age of Empires 2 HD. Anyway, my friend Elliott visited on Saturday, April 6th and we had quite a day. We made plans ahead of time to go to a New York Mets game, and get dinner afterwards. I had never been to a Mets game before, but had heard good things about Citi Field, so I was very excited.

The Mets played the Miami Marlins in a day game, starting at 1:10 pm. The subway was packed with other people going to the game, and the stop is very convenient to Citi Field. We had beautiful weather that weekend, making it a great day to see a baseball game. Our seats were in the first row of the upper deck in left field, which gave an excellent view of the field. Obviously they weren't the best seats, but they were perfectly good for just enjoying the weather and some baseball. Elliott enjoyed seeing all the airplanes landing at LaGuardia Airport, as he is a bit of a flight aficionado. The upper deck provided an excellent view of that.

A beautiful day.

For lunch at Citi Field, we got sandwiches from Blue Smoke, a delicious barbeque place. My pulled pork sandwich was excellent, with a great tangy sauce that left me wanting more. The seasoned fries were very solid as well, though they left me wishing for garlic fries from Grounder's at Safeco Field (can't fight my Seattle bias). The game was fairly uneventful until the Mets scored 3 runs in the 7th inning and 1 run in the 8th to win by a score of 7-3. On a beautiful day like last Saturday, going to a Mets game is a great way to spend the afternoon.

Yum.

After the game, we stopped at Jamba Juice near Times Square before taking the subway back to Brooklyn. We decided to go to the Brick Lane Curry House for dinner, at the Lower East Side location this time. I first learned about the restaurant from Man vs. Food, which featured an insanely spicy curry challenge that the host managed to finish. The "phaal" curry has 10 different kinds of chili peppers in it, including the dangerous Thai chili. I was debating with myself whether or not I should attempt the challenge the whole way there.

When we got to the restaurant, I had to make my decision. Because I was feeling adventurous  being an idiot, I decided to go for it, ordering a mango lassi to help with the spiciness of the curry. After ordering it, I immediately thought, "What have I done?" I knew it wouldn't be easy. The curry came and I let it cool for a couple of minutes. The first bite immediately hit me hard, and my mouth felt like it was burning up. My face was sweating and my eyes were tearing up, much to the amusement of Elliott. After a few bites, I would take a break, only to take a few more. The mango lassi provided some temporary relief, and the water provided the tiniest bit of relief, but it was really just a matter of sheer determination. Slowly but surely, I managed to finish all of my curry. My mouth felt like it was burning up afterwards, but I got my certificate of completion and a free mango lassi (on the house).

Worth it? I say so.

After we left the restaurant, I felt extremely full and sick to my stomach. I felt like I was going to throw up, but somehow I managed to hold it all down. After we got back to Brooklyn, I had to go get some Pepto Bismol to help calm my stomach. Despite all the discomfort and suffering, I think it was worth it. I have a story to tell for a long time. The day ended with me saying goodbye to Elliott, who was headed back to New Jersey. We managed to pack a lot into the day, and have the story of the time I ate all of a spicy curry from hell.

Thierry Henry - Legend

It is hard to talk about Arsenal without mentioning Thierry Henry, the club's all-time leading scorer and an integral part of the modern era of success at Arsenal, including his huge role in the club's unbeaten season in 2003-04. As I've probably mentioned before, I'm a big fan of Arsenal and have become very loyal to my club. Thierry Henry is legendary to me, and I've always wanted to see him play in person.

What does all of this have to do with New York? Well, Thierry Henry is now the star of the New York Red Bulls, one of the most talented teams in the MLS. This Saturday, I got the chance to see him in person. My friend John, another devoted fan of Arsenal, came to visit this weekend, so we decided to go to see the Red Bulls play against the Philadelphia Union. This is known as the I-95 rivalry, and the geographic proximity of the two teams (plus Sebastien Le Toux leaving New York to play for Philadelphia) makes this a fairly heated rivalry. Granted, nothing in the MLS comes close to the Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers rivalry, but I was pleasantly surprised to see the passion of the home fans.

Saturday started off like a normal day during English Premier League season, with me watching the Arsenal match. Arsenal thoroughly dominated Reading, leading to a 4-1 victory and edging closer to the sliding Chelsea in the table. After that, John and I made a stop at Tim Horton's for breakfast, enjoying some good donuts and coffee. My large iced capp was a bit too large to finish before we left for the Red Bulls game, but I saved it for later (sort of... it got rock solid in the freezer and when I thawed it out later it wasn't the same).

Getting to Red Bull Arena, which is in Harrison, New Jersey, is very convenient, as you just take the subway to Fulton Street or Park Place and catch a PATH train a couple blocks away. The PATH train stops about 5 minutes walking distance away from the stadium, and we arrived just in time for the national anthem. Our seats were 3 rows up on one of the corners, which was really cool because we got to see players setting up to take corners up close.

The first half was fairly uneventful, other than ruthlessly booing Sebastien Le Toux (former Sounder and Red Bull) for going to Philadelphia. Thierry Henry didn't start, so John and I were worried that we might not see him play. However, we saw him start to warm up on the far sideline early in the second half, and immediately starting to get excited for him to enter the game. Soon after, the Red Bulls went up 1-0 on a beautiful flicked-on volley from midfielder Dax McCarty. The players ran over to the corner flag right in front of us to celebrate, which made it more exciting. The stadium was buzzing with energy after that goal.

McCarty celebrates.

Thierry Henry entered the game soon after, and John and I were quick to join most of the stadium in giving him a standing ovation. The man is a legend, not really any other way to say it. Unfortunately, the Union equalized soon after, and New York fans got nervous that it might end in a draw. Thierry Henry had a thrilling bicycle kick shot attempt in the 75th minute that went just wide, but we cheered him for the great skill he showed. In the 81st minute, Henry came through in an absolutely thrilling fashion. He made a great run into the box and received a cross, which he volleyed up with his right foot, and smashed it into the goal with his left. It was a beautiful show of skill that everyone has come to expect from Henry, and John and I were going crazy. He shows such grace and skill with the ball, and seems to glide elegantly as he runs, making it wonderful to see him play.

Legend.

The game finished at 2-1 Red Bulls, though not without excitement at the end. Philadelphia appeared to have equalized again in stoppage time, but one of their players was called (rightfully so) for a foul on New York's goalkeeper. There was a collective sigh of relief, and we soaked in what turned out to be a great win. It was truly a dream come true to see Thierry put on such a show in person, capped off by the game-winning goal.

When John and I got back to New York City after the game, our next stop had to be Katz' Deli for a delicious sandwich. John enjoyed the classic corned beef reuben, while I was given a corned beef sandwich (though I ordered a reuben). Not to worry, though, the corned beef sandwich, which was piled high with the juicy and tender meat, combined very well with the spicy mustard. We left feeling very full.

Nom.

Bottom line, it was another great soccer-filled day, and one I won't soon forget.

PAX East 2013

Last weekend, I took the bus up to Boston to join my friend John and his brother Joe for PAX East. For those of you who don't know, PAX is a video game convention that started as an annual event in Seattle in 2004. Now there's a PAX East in Boston, and a PAX Australia coming up this year, but let's be honest, PAX Prime in Seattle is where it's at. Granted, I'm just grateful that I was able to attend any of them. The reason why it's such a big deal is that it's a chance for average gamers to check out what games publishers have coming up in the next year or so, and talk to representatives from the developers or publishers. PAX is really dedicated to providing gamers with access that normally only games journalists get.

I know this blog is supposed to be about life in New York, but I'm counting a trip to Boston for PAX East as part of life in New York. It's a huge opportunity for me to attend it, either in Boston or in Seattle, and many people from New York thought the same way as me and made the trip.

My alarm was set 8:30 on Saturday, because I wanted to get out to the convention center fairly early. I convinced John and Joe to plan for an early day, and they were happy to get out to the convention center early as well. I made sure to bring a backpack, because you want a place to store a coat and all the free swag you get. Plus, I was able to leave my 3DS on sleep mode in the backpack. All three of us made sure to bring our 3DSs, because there's a very cool feature that allows you to share your Mii with other people's 3DSs that are on nearby. It does this automatically, and Streetpass (the name of the feature) proved to be a huge hit at the show for us.

The first game we went to play was Transistor, the next project that Supergiant Games is working on. Supergiant is the studio behind Bastion, one of the games of the year in 2011 and just an all-around incredible game. Transistor looks to follow in Bastion's footsteps while branching out in some new ways, including a cool combat system that is a mix between real-time and turn-based combat. The line to play it was a chance for us to use Streetpass, and get closer to our goal of getting a Mii from every state and many different countries.

A beautiful Bastion poster I purchased. Love that game.

After walking around the show floor for a while longer, we decided to go see round two of the Omegathon, a tournament held at PAX every show. The game selected for the second round was NBA Jam: On Fire, which is a favorite of mine for its crazy gameplay and entertaining multiplayer. Every time someone in the tournament played as the Celtics, they were cheered for, while teams playing as the Heat or Lakers were booed relentlessly. Unfortunately for all the Boston fans, neither team playing as the Celtics was very good, evidenced by them selecting an Allen/Pierce lineup instead of an Allen/Garnett lineup. We decided to leave after 4 games had been played

By that time, it was 2:40, and we were hungry. The convention center in Boston is near the waterfront, meaning it is relatively isolated and there is very little food besides what was available at the convention center. We decided to take the T to Downtown Crossing and go to Five Guys. On the silver line bus there, we all got a Mii from the tiny British territory of Anguilla, which is an island east of Puerto Rico. AJ from Anguilla, you're kind of a legend to us!

The Five Guys location had a Coca Cola freestyle machine, so I was able to enjoy some peach Fanta with my burger. Try it and thank me later. We headed back to the convention center and wandered the show floor for a while before going to the PC freeplay area. They had a couple hundred PCs set up with a good selection of games for people to play. Before, we had discussed making our names in-game the same as famous sports commentators and using their catchphrases in-game to troll everyone. I chose to impersonate Gus Johnson, which I did by yelling into the mic the player's name whenever someone was killed in Team Fortress 2 (what we were playing). Joe summoned up his best Dick Vitale impression, yelling "Yeah babay!!!" and "Upset city babay!!!" among other great Dickie V lines (and typing #dickievpicks in the chat). We were all laughing the whole time, and it summed up the sort of goonery (I'm making that a word) with friends that I love about PAX.

I didn't get as much sleep as I wanted that night, but thankfully there was a 5 Hour Energy booth with free samples outside the expo hall, which we had been stockpiling. After waiting in line for bag check, as I left for the bus straight from the convention center, I had gotten a lot of new Miis through Streetpass. By the end of the show, I had gotten someone from every state on the east coast!

We checked out the new Pokemon Mystery Dungeon game, which just left me wanting to play a Pokemon game from the main series, before heading to the show floor. The Nintendo booth on the main show floor was poorly organized, so we left without playing anything, though we did get lots of Streetpass Miis from the great state of Washington. Nvidia was showing off a handheld gaming platform they were working on, so we tried that, but it just didn't seem ready to compete with the 3DS. Maybe with the Vita though.

Google Maps on WiiU?

Finding a place to eat lunch was an adventure, because we saw this deli on the map, but didn't know where it was. Turns out, it was in the Boston Globe building near there, but it was closed! We ended up taking the silver line to South Station and getting Regina's Pizza there. The day ended with us spending a lot of time in the handheld lounge and laughing at the random Streetpass Miis we got. Somehow, I had someone from South Dakota before I got to PAX East. I would guess that was at PAX Prime in Seattle. We picked up Miis from Japan, the UK, and Nova Scotia. Unfortunately, most of the Canadian Miis didn't have a province specified, so we lamented them not just SAYING they are from Nunavut or the Northwest Territories. How else am I supposed to get a Mii from there? Oh well.

PAX went by way too fast and was very exhausting, but the chance to hang out with friends, laugh, and enjoy our shared passion for video games was great. I can't wait to go to PAX Prime in Seattle this August!

Knife Party concert

The best thing about living in New York, for me, is being able to see so many of my favorite producers live. It's still hard to believe that in less than two months' time, I've seen Feed Me, Porter Robinson, Madeon, and Knife Party. Plus, I've got a Mord Fustang concert coming in April. I really feel like I am experiencing the most exciting things for me, because above all, I love music and sports.

My passion for electronic music has developed in the past year, but I had quickly fallen in love with a group called Pendulum. Nominally, they were considered drum 'n bass, and their first album reflected that, but their second and third albums took influences from electro house, rock, and other genres. Their third album, Immersion, is easily one of my favorite albums of all time. It's just an incredible work from start to finish.

Sadly, Pendulum broke up a couple of years ago. The two main producers from Pendulum, Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen, formed Knife Party, and have been producing a unique mix of electro house, dubstep, and even some moombahton. They've created a very unique sound and have released a lot of loud, epic songs that I grew to love. Some of their songs use some quirky vocal samples, like "Centipede", which talks about giant tropical centipedes. Knife Party's music is definitely something of an acquired taste, but as someone who fell in love with electronic music through Feed Me's unique mix of electro house, progressive house, and dubstep, I have come to love Knife Party.

I knew that they wouldn't actually take the stage until 1:15 or 1:30, so I didn't get to the club until about 12:10 am Saturday morning (Friday night, whatever you want to call it). The opener used a nice mix of electro house, and didn't get caught up in producing as insanely loud bass as possible while ignoring musical quality, which I appreciated. The second floor of Pacha (the club), where I stood for the Madeon concert, was VIP only for Knife Party, so I was stuck on the first floor. I thought I had found a little bit of space near the stage to stand, but this obnoxious group of bros and bro-ettes (whatever girls hang out with bros) were standing there too. I didn't really care, but then more of their obnoxious friends came and pushed and shoved in near them. I was livid, because I was standing there first and minding my own business when they intruded in the small bit of space I had been standing in like they owned it. The worst offense was the girls in the group continually getting pictures of themselves taken, for which they needed to carve out a large swathe of space so they could get maximum likes when they posted it to Instagram.

I am a very tolerant person, so I wasn't going to do anything, but it was infuriating. I kept wishing that I could just have a little bit of space somewhat near the stage in which to stand. Having some sweaty bro's back pressed up against you is not comfortable. Whatever. I wasn't going to let them ruin my night, because I was seeing Knife Party and that's all that really mattered.

When I saw two guys nearing the stage, one with a hat, I knew it was time for Knife Party. Gareth was wearing his signature hat, of course. Rob Swire looked just as awesome as expected. I wish I could grow a goatee like his. The concert reinforced my veritable man-crush on Rob Swire, he's just too awesome. I wish I could rock a midi-guitar like he did in the Pendulum days.

Anyway, they had an epic setlist of loud, bass-heavy songs that got the crowd pumped up. Their song "Tourniquet" came on early in the setlist, and the catchy electro house tune was great to hear live. "Fire Hive" was another one of my favorites, with loud bass and a unique rhythm that mixed dubstep and moombahton. They mixed in their remix of Swedish House Mafia's "Save the World" and a little remix of part of Swedish House Mafia's hit "Don't You Worry Child". While the songs almost all had a loud, driven bass line, it wasn't overpowering and exemplified their ability to produce catchy songs with epic bass.

Until they kick us out... until they kick us out...

They saved their song "Bonfire" for the end, and what a way to finish. The crowd yelled the word "Bonfire!" whenever it came up in the song, and the crazy bass drops of the song left my ears buzzing the whole way home. If they had played any Pendulum in their setlist, I think the world would have exploded from awesomeness overload. Ok, maybe that's just me, but it was an amazing concert nonetheless. Those two crazy Aussies know what they're doing.

Lunch in Midtown Manhattan

This weekend was pretty uneventful for me, other than seeing my beloved Arsenal suffer a brutal, agonizing defeat to our bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur. I'm still mad about that and likely to be so for quite a while, but I figured that I would write a post about my experience getting lunch at work in Midtown. As I mentioned in a previous post, I think that going to get take-out for lunch is a significant part of the experience of working in New York, and after nearly two months here, I've developed a bit of a routine.

Hale and Hearty

Sometimes I'm just in the mood for a good cup of soup, especially when I'm feeling a bit under the weather. Hale and Hearty has a wide variety of delicious soups, sandwiches, and salads, and the comfort and convenience has made this a big hit for me. Today, for example, I enjoyed a turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce, lettuce, and aioli, along with a cup of split pea soup (high on the list of looks gross and tastes delicious foods). Their sweet corn chowder with chicken is another one of my favorite soups, with just the right combination of the different ingredients. I like that they give you a piece of bread with your soup, because I can always go for dipping fresh bread in soup. Hale and Hearty has become an established part of my rotation of restaurants for lunch.

Chipotle

What's there to say about Chipotle that hasn't already been said? It's awesome and there's a location just over a block from my office, so I've gone there a fair amount. In fact, I went there 4 days in a row back in January. Nowadays, I've gotten a little more adventurous, and I like to keep some variety in my lunch routine, but I still go to Chipotle once a week. My go to order, in case you were wondering (which you probably weren't, but you can read it anyway), is a chicken burrito bowl with pinto beans, brown rice, hot salsa, corn, lettuce, and cheese. An excellent combination with a little bit of spice, though sometimes I go for a burrito. Bottom line, Chipotle is awesome.

Toastie's

I discovered this wonderful sandwich shop when I was browsing Yelp for good places to get lunch near my office. They have a large selection of delicious, unique sandwiches, as well as a create-your-own salad station. I have not ventured to try the salad, because I'm a little worried that I would have no idea what to put in my salad, but the sandwiches have served me well and given a nice array of options whenever I go to Toastie's. The Popeye sandwich was the first I tried, which is a chicken sandwich with mozzarella cheese, spinach, alfalfa sprouts, roasted red peppers, and honey mustard. That's certainly a unique combination, yes, but the honey mustard really brings it all together. The Alice sandwich is another favorite of mine, which is a delicious turkey sandwich with brie cheese, sliced granny smith apples, romaine lettuce, and honey mustard (there's a pattern). I do also enjoy sandwiches that don't have honey mustard on them, these just happen to be two of my favorites.

Pongsri Thai

I discovered this nice Thai restaurant a few weeks ago on 48th st, between Broadway and 8th Avenue. They have a nice lunch special with about 7 different options, though I usually opt to go for the chicken pad thai. They serve it with some vegetables on the side, which I make sure to eat because I worry that I don't eat enough vegetables, and it's solid pad thai. It's a nice option now because I know exactly what to expect and have a good go-to menu item. The Sriracha fried rice is next on my list of dishes to try, however.

Chef Pho & Peking Roast Duck

While this Vietnamese/Chinese restaurant has an odd name that combines two popular dishes from the two countries, it's only a couple blocks from my office and they have a huge lunch menu. I only first tried it a week ago, but I was delighted to find that it tasted very good. The chicken with garlic sauce and vegetables was delicious (even the broccoli, surprisingly), and I got rice and a spring roll with it. I will definitely be going back there, I love some good Chinese food!

Majestic Deli

This deli is very conveniently located, and have a nice selection of delicious hot paninis. I enjoyed the charcoal chicken and the Tabasco chicken paninis, served with chips and a pickle. New York seems to be obsessed with pickles, I see them served a lot at delis or diners. Nothing against pickles, I just find this obsession kind of funny. Anyway, they make excellent paninis at Majestic Deli.

I've tried out some other places as well, but these restaurants have become my rotation. I'm always looking to add to it, perhaps an Indian restaurant or a Mediterranean restaurant. The delis that have serve-yourself hot and cold food of every variety, along with sandwiches, are not my favorite, because the food usually isn't that good. Some people like this, but it's not for me.

That's all I've got for this week, thanks for reading!