SLEEPING AND EATING IN NEW YORK CITY, JANUARY 2018

Last January we flew to New York during one of the coldest weeks on record to visit our son, who is living in Harlem and whose art was being featured in a show in downtown New York City.  

We left from LAX, where we were surprised to see the invasion of a New York City staple. I don't think LA has sent In-n-Out to NYC yet:

We thought we'd be adventurous and stay somewhere new. On our last couple of trips, we had stayed just across the George Washington Bridge in a nice hotel in Fort Lee, New Jersey. On this trip, we found a private apartment in The Bronx on Airbnb. We were quite please with it:

This was our view of Wales Ave. from our apartment window.

We were grateful to be there AFTER the snow had been shoveled. Too bad the temperature was only 1°,  just a little chilly for this California duo.

This particular trip was our best "Foodie Visit" to NYC so far.  Our son had been living there 3 1/2 years at the time of our visit, and he knows his way around some of the best food establishments in town.

1. NEW YORK CITY DELIS

Our first stop was Katz's Delicatessen on 205 E. Houston Street in the East Village. It was PACKED:

The men behind the counter kept a dizzying work pace:

We had this amazing hybrid Reuben sandwich: pastrami AND corned beef, sauerkraut, relish, and cheese on toasted rye. Heaven.

Then we went next door to Russ & Daughters on 179 E. Houston to eat a pumpernickel bagel loaded with smoked salmon and various accoutrements. Nirvana.

2. CHOPPED CHEESE IN THE BRONX BODEGAS

Our son told us that The Bronx is famous for its "chopped cheese" sandwich, which can be purchased in most of the bodegas, or corner grocery stores/delis, in the borough. That was all Bob needed to hear to decide he would taste as many different chopped cheese sandwiches as possible during our stay.

Our first one came from Guaba Deli Grocery about a block from our Airbnb on 149th Street and Wales Ave.:

Chopped cheese is made of ground beef that is "chopped up" on a hot grill and mixed with cheese that is included in the chopping process. The well-seasoned, gooey mess is placed on some sort of a bun with various garnishes and ends up looking like this:

Next we visited Dervin Deli Grocery on 147 Street and Wales Avenue. A mural on the side of the building depicts one of the fallen firemen of 9/11.

Their chopped cheese sandwich looked and tasted a bit boring:

Finally, we tried the chopped cheese at 543 Deli, located at 149th Street and Prospect Avenue. This one was Bob's favorite.

It even LOOKS the best:

3. CHOCOLATE

Chocolate is a food group, right? Before a movie one evening in the Union Station area, we visited Brenner Chocolate Bar. It was too crowded to stay and eat, but even being able to smell the delicious aroma made it worth the stop:

This sign says, "It is so simple, you just need to love chocolate." Wise words.

I need one of these:

4. CHINATOWN IN FLUSHING

The piece de resistance of all our food consumption was our visit to Chinatown, not the touristy Chinatown in Manhattan that we had visited on a previous trip, but the REAL Chinatown in Flushing, a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. Also known as Mandarin Town, Flushing is, according to Wikipedia, "one of the largest and fastest growing ethnic Chinese enclaves outside Asia, as well as within New York City itself." This is the real deal, a place with little English, few tourists, and truly amazing food.

We started by walking through the J-Mart grocery store in the New World Mall:

Our son led us to the food court, packed with Asians speaking unfamiliar languages:

Photo from New World Mall website

We stopped for some savory pork with fennel dumplings at Chinese Korean Dumplings and Noodles, a small restaurant front with seating in the food court

We also ordered this poppy seed roll, which was just as tasty as it was beautiful:

  Our next stop was at a tiny, crowded restaurant called White Bear:

We got #6, the Wonton with Hot Sauce. These thin-skinned wonders swimming in chili oil and topped with minced pickled vegetables may be the best wontons I have ever had:

Our next stop, Fu Run, specializes in food from Northeastern China, a region once known as Manchuria but now known as Dongbei. Itis known for its lamb, our favorite meat.

The three dishes we ordered here put us over the top, but it was so worth it, and we spent the day walking miles around Flushing, so that took care of the calories, right?

The Crispy Lamb with Chili Pepper comprised fatty, tender, melt-in-your mouth bits of well-seasoned lamb:

We also ordered their most popular, most famous dish: Muslim Lamb Chops, a rack of crispy roasted ribs that have been smothered in whole cumin seeds, chili powder, and sesame seeds. It was quite heavy on the cumin and not as tender as the crispy lamb, but it was still good:

We also ordered a side of Triple Delight Vegetables: potatoes, eggplant, and green pepper in a soy-based sauce:

 

5. GRAND CENTRAL STATION OYSTER BAR

What is a trip to NYC without a pass through Grand Central Station, which has 44 platforms, more than any other railroad station in the world?

When our son noted that there is an oyster bar in the station that has been a New York Institution for over 100 years, my husband was all over it. In fact, I think all he had to hear is the first syllable, "oy," and he was all over it. He loves oysters. We made our way into the brick-domed underground room and had a seat in those chairs in the foreground of the photo. We were lucky to be there at an off time with no wait:

Photo from Conde Nast Traveler

Bob pretty  much told the waiter to bring the "biggest ones you've got," and this is what arrived. Yeah, amazing.

Bob also ordered an oyster po' boy sandwich. He wasn't impressed--the oysters were too cooked, the bun was dry, and there wasn't enough sauce.

Not bad for a few days in the city, right? When it came time to go home, we had to be rolled onto the plane.

I'm looking forward to our next visit, but this time I'll lose five pounds first.