Lunch from Prato Bakery in Jersey City, NJ

We felt like eating sandwiches so ordered from the Italian bakery - Prato Bakery in downtown.  The food took forever to arrive, so the by the time it came we were kind of beyond hunger.  I think had it come earlier or had we gone there in person, I would've liked it a lot more.  Their foccacia and bread in general is obviously very good, but it was kind of cold so not that exciting.

Dan got the Siena Sandwich - Prosciutto cotto Rovagnati (ham), tomatoes, mozzarella cheese.  Delicious combo

Pizza Prosciutto di Parma and Pizza Margherita.  I should've gotten a sandwich.  The prosciutto was literally just meat on bread with a teeny bit of sauce

Pizza Margherita - you can tell its not melty but cold

Home-made chicken adobo and broccoli

Dan butchered two whole chickens so decided to make adobo using the drumsticks.  I didn't marinate them beforehand but the chicken was still super flavorful and perfectly cooked.  I steamed some broccoli with it and white rice since the sauce has so much flavor I didn't want to overpower with the accompaniments.  Still perfecting my exact balance but this was probably my most successful adobo dish thus far.

Chicken adobo, white rice and steamed broccoli

Forgot I also fried some shrimp lumpia.  The last batch in the freezer womp womp

Brunch at The Black Ant in NYC

Went to the Black Ant for a catch-up ladies brunch.  Unfortunately no one was drinking heavily, but they do have a good bottomless brunch deal.  The food was tasty though nothing I had would make me run to come back.  My sandwich tasted good for lunch the next day though, which is a definite plus.

Peaches and Cream Toast - brioche manchego toast, roasted peaches and cream, pistachios, and lavender honey.  Debbie got this and seemed to enjoy it.

I ordered the Carnitas de Pato - duck carnita sandwich, chino poblano salsa, cucumber, and sal de gusano fries.  Really great flavore dmeat.  Bread had a nice texture and the fries were well spiced

Sejal got the Huevos - scrambled eggs, black beans, queso fresco, and chiletomato.  I think it was good but nothing spectacular

Brunch at Joe's Shanghai in NYC

We went with my parents to Joe's Shanghai as my father wanted some non dim sum Chinese food.  Fortunately we didn't have to wait to be seated, because usually there would be a wait on a Sunday around noon.  Of course, we got two kinds of soup dumplings - one pork and one crab and pork and everyone loved them.  The rest of the food was solid too, but I prefer going to C-town for dim sum than not.

Scallion pancakes were well fried and not too greasy

Soup dumplings :)

Spicy shrimp dish

Beef and long beans.  Reminded me of a chinese-filipino fusion

Table shot

My contribution to ordering was the salt and pepper pork chops.  Always a good order

Dinner at Mathew's Food and Drink in Jersey City, NJ

Dan and I went back to Mathew's for dinner and had an amazing meal.  The drinks were on point as usual, and I had to get my 80s glam again, resulting in my lips looking like I was an 8th grade girl.  We had some special dishes.  The truffle pasta was incredible and only $18 which large shavings of pasta.  We also got some delicious lamb and pork meatballs, which were a special, and very juicy chicken.  The desserts were a bit excessive but we enjoyed them.

Mat-hattan and 80s Glam

Special pasta dish with black truffle shavings

Another special.  Lamb and pork meatballs, fried polenta, and basil ricotta.  Perfectly balanced

Cool Rummings and Peas and Thank You

Roast half chicken, peas and carrots, roasted garlic whipped potatoes, and pan gravy.  Super juicy chicken and all the accompaniments were delicious 

Sweet corn fritters with rock shrimp, pimento cheese and herb salad.  Great mix of sweet, salty, and spicy

Some kind of donut dish with dipping sauce.  I remember thinking the caramelization put it over the top

Can't really remember what this chocolate dish was.  I think I was just stuffed by this point so I barely had anyway, but I'm sure it was good because all of their food is

Dinner from Sawadee in Jersey City, NJ

Whenever we can't seem to decide what we want to eat, we tend to order Sawadee because the food is always delicious and we don't feel gross after.  We got two kinds of fried rice but both were super flavorful and didn't seem like too much rice.  Of course got some staples - dumplings and chicken satay.  My only negative is the $30 minimum, but the food always comes quickly and hits the spot that I can't complain too much.

Entire order - fried pork dumplings, holy basil fried rice, Yong Chow Fried Rice, and Chicken Satay

Holy Basil fried rice

Yong Chow fried rice.  Love Chinese sausage

Pork dumplings.  Not greasy but look like it because some of the dipping sauce spilled

The best chicken satay

Brunch at Cafe Luluc in Brooklyn, NY

Debbie and I trekked out to Brooklyn for supposedly the best pancakes in the city.  They didn't take reservations so we had to wait a little while, maybe 30 mins.  The pancakes were definitely some of the best I've had, but not THE best.  They were thick but very fluffy and had good flavor.  Even tasted good the next morning since I couldn't finish everything.  I don't think personally worth it for me to go all the way to BK, but if I lived in the area I could understand the popularity.

Pancakes with a side of bacon

I requested no bananas so they added extra berries which was nice

Dinner from Chicken Factory in Jersey City, NJ

Tried to order from bonchon and for some reason it was not available on grubhub,etc. so I ordered from Chicken Factory in Hoboken instead.  Their soy garlic is pretty close to Bonchon.  The spicy is too saucy and hot for me so we just got regular, as well as a bibimbap bowl that was pretty delicious and light as well.  Solid meal when you're craving korean fried chicken.

Small order of wings and drumsticks in soy garlic

Bibimbap bulgogi w/white rice and miso

Dinner from El Rinkoncito Peruano in Jersey City, NJ

We ordered take-out from a Peruvian place in the Heights.  The chicken was pretty delicious though a little dry.  The steak was definitely the better dish of the two - very moist and sides were great with it. The meal was also inexpensive and came quickly via Fastboy.  I don't know if I would say it was particularly memorable, but a decent meal.

Churrasco a la Pobre with white rice, fries, and sweet plantains

Half chicken.  Great flavors but a little dry 

Brunch at Marta in NYC

Had book club brunch at a Danny Meyer joint - Marta in midtown east.  They offered us complimentary hot chocolate - spiked or regular - which was really cute.  My pizza, which I had been looking forward to for awhile, was tasty but a wee bit salty.  It was still good the next day though.

*PATATE ALLA CARBONARA •Potatoes, Guanciale, Black Pepper, Pecorino, Egg

Dinner at Barbuto in NYC

Barbuto is my other fav Italian place, and it's just as popular.  We showed up at 6 and were told there was an hour wait for the table!  So we sat at the bar, and like L'Artusi, had excellent service and just as excellent food.   Finally got to try the chicken, which was delicious but not necessarily the best chicken I've ever eaten.  Their gnocchi is though!

gnocchi stagionale: sunchoke, parsnip, chestnut & dandelion pesto 

Even without meat, easily the best gnocchi of my life

gemelli con salsiccia: spicy sausage, tomato & pecorino.  Super delicious with a definite kick

patate: potatoes, pecorino & rosemary.  Great side for the chicken.  Just  wished there were more large pieces.  Lots of little bits there were totally crispy but not much potato/mush

pollo al forno: jw chicken & salsa verde.  Great flavors but found out next day when we ate it that it wasn't fully cooked inside :(

Bread pudding.  Delicious but I was so full that Dan had to eat most of it.  He didnt mind

Dinner at L'Artusi in NYC

Jordan, Dan and I went to L'Artusi for lunch.  Even though we went early right when it opened, they said it would be awhile for a table, so we decided to sit at the bar so didn't have to wait.  While not quite as comfortable as a table, service was great and we had the same delicious food.  Definitely in my top two Italian restaurants in NYC.

Roasted Beets with whipped ricotta, kohlrabi, orange, and seed crumble.  Good but not as memorable as the other dishes

Hamachi - lemon, grapes, ginger and basil.  We got this last time and it was just a delicious

The Best Spaghetti in NYC - garlic, chilies and parmesan.  Apparently I forgot to take a pic of another pasta dish we had :(

Olive Oil Cake - golden raisin marmellata, vin santo, and creme fraiche mousse.  Sooo good and moist and all the flavors marry perfectly

Brown Sugar croissant bread pudding - apple compote, spiced anglaise, pecan steusal and vanilla gelato.  All the flavors were great but overall this was a bit too sweet for me.  I prefer the olive oil cake

Brunch at City Diner in Jersey City, NJ

City Diner on the weekends is usually a pretty quick and delicious option for lunch.  This time was no different and I had some delicious chicken and waffles, while Dan got a taylor ham and egg and cheese wrap with fries.  Clearly both of us were feeling a little bit gross haha.

Taylor Ham, Egg, and Cheese wrap with fries.  Dan was eating the other half while this photo was being taken

Chicken and Waffles - large portion size and chicken had great flavor

Dessert from Dough in NYC

Dan and I went to Dough in Chelsea to pick up some doughnuts.  They were HUGE and similarly priced, if not slightly cheaper, than Doughnut Plant.  All were good but I still like the variety at Doughnut Plant better.  I liked how most of the dough doughnuts were yeast-based though.  A good option if you're craving non-chain doughnuts.

Four beauties.  (L to R clockwise) Glazed, Lemon Poppy, Dulce de Leche, and Chocolate

Lemon Poppy was way too lemon-y/sour.  Could only eat a few bites, which was sad.  The dulce de leche was great though very rich

Glazed was the best.  Chocolate frosted also super rich but tasty