The Ultimate Day Off

It started in Chinatown (the Manhattan one) with a trip to Chanoodle, a cheap spot reviewed by Eric Asimov in 2004.  We ordered soft shell crab, now that the season has started.  One jumbo crab arrived tempura-battered with hot dried chilis and sliced hot green peppers.  It wasn't greasy.  Actually, it was near sublime.  

Steamed shrimp dumplings came wrapped in paper-thin wonton wrappers and with a ginger-soy dipping sauce.  Wonton soup was one of the best I'd ever have.  But the show-stealer was a plate of steamed clams served with sauteed ground pork, scallions, and thin green peppers. 

Next, we moved on to the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, where I indulged in a lychee ice-cream cone.  We walked up to Economy Candy in the Lower East Side, where I spent my savings on gummy strawberries, sour cherries, pez dispensers, old fashioned candy sticks, giant gummy bears, and wax bottles filled with candy syrup.  The store satisfied every childhood urge, even though I didn't eat any of the candy. 

My partner in crime swore that Rosario's, on Orchard Street, had the best slice in New York.  I didn't find it quite crispy enough but it was still a genuine New York slice. 

We walked across the Williamsburg Bridge into Brooklyn.  From the bridge, we could smell the steaks from Peter Luger, but it wasn't that kind of night.  Instead, we hit Dressler for drinks.  Dressler may be one of the most beautiful restaurants in New York, adorned with cast-iron chandeliers and detailing throughout.  I drank Cava with elderflower syrup and watched the sun set from the large windows facing Williamsburg.  

Then it was Marlow and Sons for dinner, where we shared oysters and mignonette.  We also had a brilliant take on breakfast: one large sunny-side-up goose egg with toasted baguettes topped with crisped pieces of fresh ham.  Two cheeses, a grassy Mixed Emotions and my personal heartstring tugger Pleasant Ridge, failed to impress with their boring place of bread and nothing more.  But the house-made fettucini, served with radicchio, grilled onions, lardon, and fresh ricotta, proved salty, sweet and bitter.  

Dessert was a chocolate tart stuffed with creamy caramel and topped generously with sea salt.  

All in all, it was a successful afternoon and a true exercise in seeing what New York has to offer, in the most gluttonous ways possible. 

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Chanoodle

79 Mulberry Street

New York, NY 10013

212.349.1495

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Chinatown Ice Cream Factory

65 Bayard Street

New York, NY 10013

212.608.4140

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Economy Candy

108 Rivington Street

New York, NY 10002

212.254.1531

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Rosario's Pizza

173 Orchard Street

New York, NY 10002

212.777.9813

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Dressler

149 Broadway

Brooklyn, NY 11211

718.384.6343

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Marlow and Sons

81 Broadway

Brooklyn, NY 11211

718.718.384.1441