Mr. Coleman Can’t Compete With @momofuku Ramen

Mr. Coleman Can’t Compete With @momofuku Ramen

We recently discovered Mind of a Chef on Netflix. The show is great, but there’s one big downside of watching it — it leaves you wanting to eat food you may not have easy access too. We don’t all have a noodle shop down the street 

This is How You Fish Fry: Doug’s To Go

This is How You Fish Fry: Doug’s To Go

The New York fish fry tradition is strong enough to warrant a mention on Wikipedia. Upstate New Yorkers love their breaded and fried haddock sandwiches. Lisa’s favorite? Doug’s in Cortland. Problem is, we’re never in Cortland. Luckily, there’s Doug’s To Go, a traveling fish fry-mobile that sets 

Shake Shack vs. Five Guys (vs. In-N-Out and Culver’s)

Shake Shack vs. Five Guys (vs. In-N-Out and Culver’s)

In New York, we dined at Shake Shack, and when I say ‘dined,’ I mean we fought bitterly for a table to balance our drinks on while we shoved our food into our faces as fast as possible to escape the too-crowded restaurant. But some 

$70 Breakfast at the Station Diner with a Side of Free Hotel

$70 Breakfast at the Station Diner with a Side of Free Hotel

Things are expensive in New York. We spent $70 on breakfast one day in Brooklyn at the Station Diner, plus tip. Insane? Or the best deal ever? You decide. Breakfast included all-you-can-drink coffee and a cup of orange juice. Options were limited, but I opted 

Three Places to Stroll in New York

Three Places to Stroll in New York

We love walking around New York. Every time we visit, we probably cover 8 miles a day. Or more. Here’s where we strolled on our last visit: The High Line Park The way-western side of Manhattan is interesting. There are empty lots. There’s new construction. 

The Greatest Website in Queens

The Greatest Website in Queens

The greatest website in Queens is the Sunnyside Food blog maintained by our buddy Mikolaj. It’s so popular that there’s a Tumblr site that mocks it. Now, I can’t speak much about the rest of Queens, but I can testify that it exists as a 

Papaya King and the Tourism Hype Machine

Papaya King and the Tourism Hype Machine

Anthony Bourdain likes Papaya King. Kramer likes Papaya King. Ted from How I Met Your Mother likes Papaya King. Everybody likes Papaya King. But will I like Papaya King? I do like hot dogs. I liked the Mexican hot dogs I had in Tucson. I like 

The Dinnertime Dance in New York

The Dinnertime Dance in New York

It’s dinnertime in New York and we’ve got a plan. We’ll grab a glass of wine at Bar Jamón, then get dinner at either ABC Kitchen or Beecher’s or Cafe Mono. Easy. We jump in a cab and head to Gramercy Park. It’s still a 

The History of the Half Moon / Black and White Cookie

The History of the Half Moon / Black and White Cookie

I grew up eating Half Moon cookies. But I had never had a NYC-style Half Moon cookie (OK, OK: a Black and White cookie) until last weekend. NYC is so good at so many things: bagels, pizza, overwhelming crowds of people. How could it get the 

Three New York City Neighborhood Dive Bars

Three New York City Neighborhood Dive Bars

It’s been a while since we visited New York. We’ve missed it. New York is a really great city. Times Square, however, is terrible and crowded. We managed to get stuck walking through Times Square three times even though we were committed to avoiding it. 

We Spot the Seneca White Deer

We Spot the Seneca White Deer

We were just driving along, minding our own business, when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. Looked like a mountain goat. Couldn’t have been a mountain goat. The Finger Lakes region isn’t mountain goat country. “Did you see that?” I asked 

United States of Hot Sauce: Frank’s, Tapatio, and Tabasco

United States of Hot Sauce: Frank’s, Tapatio, and Tabasco

Two regional food things surprised me on the trip: beer and hot sauce. Beer is much more regionally varied than the Bud Light commercials suggest — try getting Kokanee in South Carolina … or Yuengling in Yosemite … or Dixie anywhere outside New Orleans. Same with hot sauces.