Lunch at the Plaaaaazahhhhh

Friday marked (drumroll please) my last official day at Billy's Bakery before I leave for business school in July. So to celebrate, my coworkers MB and CC and I met for lunch at the Plaza's downstairs food court.

If you've never been, the space is really cool-- it kind of reminds me of Harrod's food halls in a way. There are different "stations" around the room, all intermixed with seating; you're seated anywhere and can order from any of the vast number of options populating the menu. Pizza? Sushi? Raw bar? Tater tots? You got it. Usually such a melange of different foods in one place spells disaster, but here it actually works.

MB and CC shared three dishes, starting with the prosciutto and fig pizza, about which they raved. It has a very thin crust, charred in places, but if you like that style this will be right up your alley.

Translucent pig

Also a favorite was the mac & cheese, complete with pulled pork, caramelized onion, and gobs of melted cheddar. It came in a whimsical cast-iron pan and looked alluringly cheesy. Though this was positioned as a side, it's more than enough for a shareable appetizer or even a small individual meal.

A whole meal. Of food.

Less successful were the chicken dumplings, which were reported to be bland. They were also, curiously, not served with any dipping sauce; rather, there was a tiny squirt of pesto decorating the plate (not sure if that's supposed to be for dipping or just for garnish). They did, however, come with a complimentary dish of super-spicy kimchi on the side.

Pretty, though

Mmm, spicy

My choice-- don't laugh-- was strawberries. And darn it if these weren't some of the best strawberries I've ever had. They were ENORMOUS but rather than being the flavorless, mealy kind of enormous strawberries, they were fragrant, juicy, and succulently strawberry-y. Plus it was quite a generous portion.

Superlative strawberries

We were also graciously comped a sampling of the desserts, which (being three employees of a bakery) we demolished. I loved the red velvet cake, particularly the admirably tangy and thick cream cheese frosting. MB and CC preferred the extra-chocolatey chocolate torte. The apple tart was somewhat less successful, although I did eat all the beautiful apples off the top, so who can complain?

Decadently delicious

Dark and mysterious?

Like a tiled roof, that is

It was a lovely lunch to cap off an amazing experience at the bakery. Though I'm excited for my next step, I'm definitely sorry to go!

Plaza Food Hall
Plaza Hotel
One W. 59th Street, Concourse Level
212-986-9260

Sweeter than sweet at Kyotofu

Okay, I admit it: I went back to Kyotofu. Despite my love-hate relationship with their service, their soymilk soft serve is just so darn tempting. And this past week, they had Vanilla-Strawberry as one of their flavors... well, game over.

First, I tried the swirl of Vanilla-Strawberry and Matcha (green tea). It was pretty much as gross as it sounds. The Matcha is super, super bitter, almost surprisingly so, and it didn't do anything for the Vanilla-Strawberry. I really wished they had chosen chocolate as the partner for V-S that week!

So I ended up with a small cup of the Vanilla-Strawberry with mixed berry compote. In retrospect, the compote was probably not the wisest choice with the V-S, since it made the concoction incredibly sweet. The whole effect was one powerful punch of sweet, with sugary compote layering onto the sweet berry flavor of the soft serve. For its part, the soft serve was quite good, with a blushing pink color reminiscent of rose wine and an incredibly airy, whipped texture that made it bizarrely fun to eat. I'd return for this flavor again, but next time I'll go with a different topping... caramel, anyone?

Looks like Mister Softee!

Kyotofu

705 Ninth Avenue, between 48th and 49th Streets
212-974-601

Mr. Softee, a celebratory treat

Last Friday wast the last day at my former job... starting today I'm moving on to a new and very different adventure. To celebrate my transition, I decided to treat myself to something sweet after dinner on Friday. So after reading about the new "Mr. Softee," on Midtown Lunch, I decided to make my treat a delightful Mr. Softee sundae.

I trekked through the wilds of Times Square to find the truck parked at 39th and Broadway, as promised. I used the special limited-time-only code (ahem, "Midtown Lunch") to grab myself a $4 strawberry sundae. Mr. Softee, a.k.a. "Billy Gunnz," was incredibly friendly and glad that I'd read about him on Midtown Lunch. He dispensed a large, perfect soft serve swirl and topped it generously with strawberry goo.

My hand is buried under the mountain of napkins

After paying my nominal fee, I took the giant, sloppy sundae and walked carefully but quickly to Bryant Park. The strawberry syrup sloshed everywhere, coating my fingers and oozing dangerously onto the paper towel and stack of napkins Billy had thoughtfully provided. I found an empty table on the West side of the park and commenced people watching and attacking the sundae. Mr. Softee-- the actual soft-serve, that is-- is a funny thing: the texture is less creamy soft-serve and more whipped marshmallow, almost. And it's not really all that cold. Not sure how they make that happen, but it really isn't that cold, which means it doesn't melt that much. That could be good or bad, depending on your perspective (probably best for little kids to reduce the likelihood they'll get the stuff all over their clothing). The strawberry sauce was surprisingly good-- not too fake-tasting, super sweet, and packed with chunks of real strawberries. The syrup definitely rescued the rather bland soft serve, providing for a satisfying treat.

It was really enjoyable, eating a sundae while sitting in Bryant Park in near-perfect weather, watching the late-Friday crowds pass by. Needless to say, the sundae was so huge I didn't come close to finishing it, packing as much in as I could before my stomach cried uncle. Once I was done, I did my best to mop up my sticky face and hands before waddling home. Ah, the joys of summer.

Mr. Softee, a.k.a. "Billy Gunnz"
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A quick bite at le Pain Quotidien

Early afternoon on Monday found me at Le Pain Quotidien in Bryant Park, grabbing a bite with my mentor at work. As usual, the place was bustling-- loud and a bit warm and humid inside. Also as usual, the treats all looked tempting, but we managed to make some choices. A tartine with black bean hummus, avocado, and spicy tahini spread for her; a cup of berries for me. Both were fresh, tasty, and delicious.

Open faced sandwich with delightful garnishes

Berries were admirably fresh and tasty

Le Pain Quotidien
70 W. 40th Street, between 5th and 6th Avenues
212-354-5224

Kicking it up a notch... and a bit of food beauty

Since our week of waking up and being happy to be alive wrapped up on Tuesday, yesterday MS and I decided to take things to the next level. For one week, not only would we wake up and be happy to be alive, but we'd try to change our behavior accordingly. If we wake up grateful for our health and strength, then we'll go running. If we wake up thankful for our family, we'll tell them we love them. Note to readers: this is harder than it seems.

So far today I've been thankful for my strength and energy, so I did go to the gym and even did a bit of running on the treadmill, which I hate. I'm also extremely thankful that I can eat-- my stomach has not always allowed such things at different points in my life-- so I bought myself some strawberries to celebrate. And when I sliced them up to bring to the bakery for my afternoon snack, they were just so beautiful, I had to share them with the world. So I leave you this fine Friday with a bit of food beauty. Be thankful it's strawberry season-- they're pretty, healthy, and delicious!