i ♥ ny

i'll start with a recap of the most important part of the trip - the food! like all of my trips, i managed to squeeze in as much eating as possible. since our train was an hour and a half late getting into the city i had about ten minutes to freshen up before ash and i headed out to dinner on friday night. luckily i'm a quick changer - we were out the door and in a cab before we knew it.

first stop of the night - megu. we couldn't get reservations at nobu, so we had to settle for this. but, the restaurant was gorgeous - the food and drinks were delicious - and the service was excellent - so i can't really complain.

after finishing every last bite (and drop) we headed uptown to rare. too bad we were stuffed because the burgers (and sweet potato fries!) at rare are to die for. since we had already eaten we skipped the restaurant part and headed straight up to the rooftop (and no, this one hasn't recently collapsed).

next up was the overlook right next to ashley's apartment. and despite the name - there is no view. the "overlook" is a sweet little deck in the back looking at brick walls. but, with the nice(ish) weather there wasn't much to complain about.

let's fast forward to the next morning. we had a 10:45 reservation at norma's for brunch. of course we forgot to set an alarm. i woke up at 10:15 - looked the clock - and then yelled at ashley that it was 10:15. yikes! we rushed to get ready and hopped in a cab. we walked into le parker meridien at 10:45 on the dot. and do believe the hype on this place - it's one of the best brunches i've ever had.

we were seated immediately and our waiter brought out a little sip of smoothie in a shot glass. it was delicious. and then came the coffee - they bring out a french press to every table. it was good, strong coffee (just how i like it). deciding on what to order is probably the hardest thing - pretty much everything on the menu looks delicious. we ended up getting the buttermilk pancakes and the gooey four cheese omelet. mmmmmm:)

after brunch we headed way downtown to soho to do some shopping. i really wanted to go check out topshop, but despite what the website says it is not at 35 howard st. - we checked. then we headed over to rivington st. to get cupcakes at sugar sweet sunshine. and unlike magnolia, these cupcakes were so good! definitely lived up to the hype i've been reading.

after we scarfed our cupcakes we walked back up rivington passing all the cute shops and cafes. then out of no where a guy and two girls walk out of a cafe and almost run into us before i realize who it was. adrian grenier! and yes, he's just as hot (no, probably hotter) in real life as on entourage. and he had two beautiful girls in tow. i really felt like i was in entourage for real. although i was just telling my coworker this story and he totally peneloped me by telling me about his saturday night - he was hanging out at fly and ran into damon wayans.

and after that we decided to head home to rest up for what we knew would be a crazy night. the night started out at morandi (the sister restaurant of pastis, balthazar - aka place i saw kate moss - and schiller's). instead of the french vibe that the other restaurants have this one is pure italian (although the tiled floors and the massive mirrors are still a theme in this one). the food was good, the wine was great and the crowd was gorgeous!

a loaf of bread, a carafe of wine and a whole lot of pasta later we decided to cab it uptown to the next stop of the night - the rooftop bar at 230 fifth. it's the largest rooftop bar i've ever seen - and it has a great view of the empire state building! too many rounds later we made our way back home. and you know it's been a good night when you find your friend passed out in her hallway gripping a pint of (just bought) sorbet. ooooh i love new york!

sunday morning was rough for ashley (for obvious reasons) but i managed to shower (on a sunday, no less!) and get ready for my trek to jersey. first stop - the world's slowest bagel place. i would have gone elsewhere but by this point i was so hungry i couldn't even be bothered to get out of the line. i met up with my cousins (while trying my hardest to avoid the puerto rican parade) and we made our way out of the city.

my cousin's graduation party was in a room at maggiano's - so no complaining on my end. and there's nothing better than dancing with all of my little cousins - they're all so cute! and i also got to chat with my cousin (who just happens to be the new ceo of discovery) about all the hot spots down in dc. i'm really hoping to get a spare set of keys to the condo he just closed on in the ritz carlton down in georgetown.

whoa - i'm getting tired just thinking about my weekend. luckily i get to keep the weekend of great eating going with nari's celebratory lunch at ceiba today. oh, and speaking of eating (aren't i always?) - they just announced dc's restaurant week will be august 6-12 this week. perfect timing for my birthday:)