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Gigantic Pizza, New York


Gazebo Central Park, NYC

What a time to plan to trip to New York, right in the middle of winter I knew it would be cold but we arrived soon after one of the biggest blizzard's to hit New York City. Although it hadn't snowed for a few days prior to us arriving it was still evident everywhere but thankfully we were able to get around uninhibited and we had beautiful clear blue skies for most of our stay.

SEE MY VIDEO BELOW - Inside the restaurants

We hadn't been to NYC before, so being first timers we wanted to hit the best eating spots we could manage in our trip, but sometimes it comes down to convenience, and I know at some stage we'll do another trek back. There were loads of places I missed - Katz Deli, Russ & Daughters and Syliva's homestyle food in Harlem and many others, but we just didn't have the time.

Large thin based Pizza in Brooklyn, Family style dining at Carmines in Manhattan
However, the places we do go, were fantastic. First up is the amazing Pizza joint we went to under the Brooklyn bridge (Brooklyn). We were I guess a bit optimistic ordering this large white styled Pizza in NYC, and I managed to eat two slices while the Chic Geek ate double my lot, we didn't do too bad. It was great tasting, the base - and they do this with pasta, they call it a white sauce, its basically olive oil and loads of garlic. This was topped with lashings of mozzarella and Italian sausage.
We spent some time walking the Brooklyn bridge and taken the Ferry Over to Staten Island - this city really doesn't sleep. The Ferry runs every half hour, 24/7 and it is free but you may to be mindful as there were a lot of folk who don't have the benefits of regular housing and were using the ferry terminal as shelter. Don't blame them because it was freezing in NYC and the terminal was very clean, spacious and warm.

French Tapas - I Love Buvette, Waffle with bacon & eggs, I Love Buvette

We visited a great family dining restaurant spot near Times Square called Carmine's - it was very busy and very popular. You order one dish, they are mainly pasta and it is served 'family style', one large plate for the table and then the staff dish you your serving from that. We had shrimp with white sauce - again that lovely garlic and olive oil based sauce and nicely sized shrimp. I really like the pasta and pizza style in NYC - it is very similar to the pasta and pizza we had in Hvar, Croatia - which incidentally is very close to Venice and in is hugely influenced their food. You can't get Pizza like this in London. 

Good Kai on Brooklyn Bridge, Grays Papaya Hot Dogs, NYC
Before we hit the more sophisticated dining genre we went to a few popular NYC eats and headed to Grays Papaya Hot Dog shop near broadway and 72nd. This very basic place reminded me of the burger bars we used to have back in New Zealand. Nothing fancy but they have the best hot dogs in NYC - I don't know how to explain it, but its something with both the bun and the frankfurt, they were really delicious. Also we tried a popular hipster cafe called I love Buvette and had the most decadent waffles with bacon, egg, cheese and maple syrup. Buvette is a trendy spot serving small plates of classic French food in an what looked like residential part of Manhattan.

Scallop Starter - Jean Georges, NYC
For the more posh nosh we checked out 3 Michelin restaurant Jean Georges. They have a very reasonably priced menu compared to other establishments in the genre and the chef had a oriental influences with his dishes. The scallop amuse bouche was outstanding, served in cranberry pickle broth. The goat cheese and custard was a delicious composition of hot and cold, sweet and savoury with differing textures. He had generous portions with his scallop dishes, couldn't fault one dish.

Scallops, 'Prawn Cracker' - Jean Georges NYC
After all was done, I truly felt that I didn't have enough time to experience all of NYC and I still felt that I hadn't really settled in to really get my feet wet. We will definitely be visiting often but its going to be hard finding new places because I am already wanting to go back to the places I've already been. Until then, I will definitely be missing one of those hotdogs and the family style dining and pizza ..... Also for a look inside Carmines & 3 Michelin Jean Georges and more check out my video below.

Dessert, Goat Cheese starter - Jean Georges, NYC




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