A Fork And A Suitcase

Our own piece of Italy, right on 23rd Street!  Stepping inside Eataly really feels like being in a food court in Italy but with the benefit of not having to mangle the Italian language. This place has everything you would like for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack and dessert.  It is a true Italian paradise with temptation around each corner.  They also offer cooking and baking classes, I'm thinking of signing up for the tiramisu class.      They have a phenomenal cheese selection.  Sweets, jams, chocolate, candy and cookies The breads are freshly baked and are of excellent quality  The produce department looks like an Italian market  Cheese and cured meat department  Fresh pasta being made  There is a section of Eataly that resembles a very well stocked supermarket  an unbelievable selection of pasta  There are a few restaura...

Dominique Ansel, of the cronut fame, has worked as a long term executive pastry chef at Daniel.  That alone should speak to his talent level.  He also seems like a genuinely decent person who puts great emphasis on charity. I have been a customer at his bakery for a few years now but those cronut crowds in the morning and the cookie shot people in the afternoon, are making it difficult to enjoy a visit to this once quiet pastry shop.  You will, thankfully, not find a cronut at the D. A. Kitchen.  What you will find is a solid selection of savory foods and some spectacular desserts and baked goods. This is a bakery/restaurant where more than 70% of the menu is finished in the open kitchen.  The decor is very sleek, modern and very creative.   The photos, well actually, negatives are displayed in vintage x- ray light boxes.  The menu is in these laminated pouches that hang on a rod like a shower curtain.  This...

Nom Wah first opened at 13-15 Doyers Street in 1920 as a bakery and tea parlor, supplying the neighborhood with Chinese baked goods, steamed buns and dim sum.  In 1968  they lost their lease and the restaurant moved to 11-13 Doyer Street.  It soon became known for their almond cookie with red bean filling.  The Tang family bought the business in 1974 and they own it to this day.  The restaurant has a very comfortable, casual and relaxed atmosphere.  It can get a bit loud during the busy time, there is usually a long line for the table but it goes fairly fast and the food is decent .  I understand that there is a lot of hype surrounding this place, and like with everything else, some will love it and some will not.  I thought that the food was very good, some dishes were a bit greasy but this is not upscale Chinese dining.  This is a fun experience and the food is on par with a solid neighborhood Chinese restaurant.  I think that what ...