Yay to our first sister trip ever and it is in New York City!!! We woke up super early before 5am to make our 720am flight from LAX – NYC. We landed at 330pm New York time. The first thing we did was check into our hotel, which was a very old building that has been remodeled while keeping the antique style. There was snow everywhere!!!! I forgot how beautiful the city looks covered in snow. Magical and beautiful but crazy cold.
After we settled into our hotel and got cozy in our 80 degree thermostat, we bundled ourselves up to venture out into the cold, icy darkness to Joe’s steam rice roll. It was located in an indoor food street that is modern and hip. We got there near closing time at 6pm. They required vaccinations and had social distancing tables. We ordered their two specialty rolls:
Joe’s Signature. Beef, beef sausage, pork, dried shrimp, eggs, 3 vegetables. Surprisingly, this was our favorite of the two. Usually at dim sum, we love to order the shrimp rice rolls. However, the beef and pork was very savory and juicy. The egg was such a nice added touch also. The soy sauce added a lightly sweet taste and the chili oil a spicy.
Shrimp Party. Shrimp, dried shrimp, eggs, 3 vegetables. This rice roll was also very good. Even though. Our specialty rolls listed 3 vegetables, we didn’t see nor tasted any vegetables!
After we ate dinner, we took the subway to our first bar called ANALOGUE. The decor was more antique and old school, but cozy. We went for one thing only: this matcha cocktail that we saw on Yelp that caught our eye.
MATCHA GOT THERE. Suntory Toki Whiskey, Skinos Mediterranean Liquer, egg white, matcha, lemon, honey, vanilla, hibiscus powder. This was listed under spirit forward. There is a strong alcohol taste with a contrasting tang. I also enjoyed the egg foam.
After getting a nice buzz to stay warm, we walked to get pizza. However!! On the way we noticed a very brightly lit chocolatier shop. We stepped inside merely to seek warm ness, but Truc got distracted by the chocolate bars they had. It’s called Venchi and ironically, I remembered to be the chain chocolatier shops that Vince and I saw everywhere in Spain!!
We got some pistachio, latte and crema chocolates to try at our hotel later.
Artichoke Basille is a chain pizza shop with multiple locations. It was on Truc’s bucket list so we walked to the nearest one to order some pizzas.
ARTICHOKE. Spinach cream sauce with artichoke hearts and a blend of cheeses. THIS WAS THE BEST PIZZA OF ALL 3! The crust dough is thick and thin and crispy and crunchy at the same time. It was so creamy and savory. I lovedddd it!
CRAB. Surimi crab stuffing with lobster sauce and fresh mozzarella cheese. This pizza was my least favorite to be honest. It was imitation crab and I didn’t taste any lobster. Still a good pizza but loses to the artichoke.
MEATBALL PARM. Cooked tomato sauce with a blend of cheeses and homemade meatballs. Delicious classic red sauce pizza.
It’s 11pm (New York time) and we’re back at our hotel all washed up and cozied in our bed to start our movie marathon with Spanish chocolates and leftover pizza..
