1. Finally, a day that Emily doesn't have to work! We headed to Milk + Roses, of course. We both had Americano's, and Emilia had a croissant with spinach, egg and balsamic. I had a bite and it was just as I thought it'd be....delightful.
2. Caffeinated and ready to go, we made our way to Em's old hometown, Chinatown. She had some errands to run, so I popped into Vanessa's for one final fix. For $2.50 I had a Sesame Pancake Sandwich w/ Vegetables and an order of Pork & Chive Dumplings. I ate til it hurt and there was still food leftover...all for under $3!!!
Corks and I continued to shop and bop. Well, Em did some shopping and I just did some bopping. I saw a bunch of stuff that I really loved, but simply couldn't {and wouldn't} afford. Plus, I don't think that I'll need a $325 vintage silk dress or $250 leather lace up boots in Cambodia, Laos OR Vietnam....
4. Em talked me into trying an "infused coffee" @ Randolph's. Well, I'm a coffee purist. Espresso, milk and a touch of sugar. Some may even say that I'm not a purist because I use cream and sugar. Anyways, this fancy $4.50 artisinal coffee was good....but I'm not quite sold on it. It was more like a strong tea than a good coffee. Anyways, always glad to try something new - and I'm glad I did.
5. Cruised a few blocks down to BABYCAKES on Broome. Rochelle turned us onto Babycakes, a fabulous ALL VEGAN bakery!!! Dad still is, and always will be, on {as I like to refer to it as} his 'brain tumor diet'. This is basically what's keeping him alive. Lots and lots of vegetables, and little to no sugar. The vegetables he doesn't love, but my mother makes him drink lots of fresh-made veggie juices. The no sugar....near impossible for him! I mean, we are talking about the KING of chocolate chip cookies, Drake's Cherry Pies and "White" ice cream. BABYCAKES is a blessing because they bake these deliciously complex healthy-alternatives that he can enjoy. Baked with spelt flour and agave nectar, they have a low sugar index and they still manage to be lip-lickin' good!! Check them out, they overnight orders if you aren't around the city!!
6. CAFE HABANA. Let me repeat that...CAFE HABANA. MmMmMmMm so f*ing delicious. Em and I were lucky enough to only wait 20minutes {at 3pm} for seats at the bar. We both had an order of their famous grilled corn....grilled, doused in butter, rolled in Cotija cheese, sprinkled with fresh cilantro and chipotle pepper powder, served with fresh limes wedges. Divine. Definitely not a food to eat on your first date, but Em and I go way back so we just dived in - devouring the corn and wearing the butter and cheese all over our faces. We washed it down with Michelada's {beer served with a salt rimmed glass, filled with ice, and a good serving of fresh squeezed lime juice - plus a shot of hot sauce} and MARGARITAS :)
There's no bein' neat when eating Cafe Habana's Corn!
7. Stuffed, and totally buzzed, we stumbled in and out of stores - stopping in UNIQLO because I had the genius idea to purchase JEANS. Now, let me tell you - I haven't worn jeans in almost a year. Literally, a year. No jeans. I find them to be constricting and completely uncomfortable. I have been living in stretch pants and jeggings. Woohooo! I walked into the dressing room with my jeans {which were even slightly stretchy!} and began trying them on. Well, I got up to my voluptuous thighs and had the epiphany, "What the fuck!? I hate jeans. Fuck jeans. Get these off of me...right now!". I marched out of the dressing room, and with a confused face Em said "Did they fit?". I stated that no, they did not fit, and in fact - I will never wear another pair of jeans so long as I live! I am trading in my jeans for cheese and beer and charcuterie! With that, we fled the crowdy shopping scene of Downtown and took refuge in a bar....
8.TOM & JERRY'S is a great, cozy bar in NoHo {On Elizabeth, between Prince & Houston}. I sipped a Red Stripe, and Em had a pint of Sierra. The bar was filled with drunk Santas from "SantaCan"....which is an annual event where thousands of people in NYC dress as santas, elves, reindeer, etc. and then tour the city, drinking as they go. We were having a good time, but then the Santas became too friendly, and a bit too obnoxious, so we decided it was time to leave.
9. Several hours and several more drinks after Cafe Habana, we find ourselves in another restaurant: my new favorite, BIANCA! Best pasta EVER. There was a very long wait for a table despite the late hour, so we sat in the bar next door {which is also owned by Bianca}. We ordered some food and they kindly delivered it next door - gnoccho appetizer, artichoke salad and the pasta. MmMm. Corks old roomate Paige met up with us and then we headed out to scope for sexy, available men.
Paige, Me and my new fabulous lipgloss from Sephora
10. Okay, so you'd think that sexy, available men would be in abundance in NYC....but, they are not. In a relationship or gay. Oh well, so void of bachelors we opted for the next best thing... Gin & Tonics! I forget what the name of this bar was...perhaps it was because I'd had too much to drink....
When in a {man} drought, drink gin!
11. The final destination of our evening was WINNIE'S. Winnie's Bar & Restaurant is a great Karaoke bar in Chinatown...Emily's favorite. It stunk like B.O. and was as darky and dodgey on the inside as it appeared to be from the outside. Tons of beautiful men filled the bar, though again - all were gay. There were a few eclectically dressed women accompanying them. Em, the Queen of Karaoke, sang a few numbers - and I even got up and sang Peggy Lee's "Fever". At this point I had switched to water and was a bit sleepy, but still managing to have fun. We hailed a cab and were home a little after 2am, and asleep by 2:15.
They are all so good, I couldn't pick just one...
...Emmy in all her glory!
Sooo much fun!! Let's do it again soon!
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