NYC FOODIE BRUNCHES OF THE WEEK: THE SMITH MIDTOWN, KINGSWOOD, AND BARBOUNIA

Brunch is hot. Many New Yorkers love Brunch. They are always asking me where they should go. I've had some fabulous brunches in NYC, from elegant and fancy to drunk and boozy. Last month I had three brunches that were all fab.

The Smith Midtown, sister restaurant to The Smith in the East Village (a crowd favorite), is the perfect Midtown brunch joint. It's always crowded, but they know what they are doing here. It's a "go-to" brunch that delivers.

Potato waffle benedict ($16), with a spinach and caramelized onion sauce is pretty good. Vanilla bean French toast ($15) with maple butter and caramelized bananas is out of this world, fabulosity! Pair everything with a free bloody mary, and you're set for the day.

Kingswood, the Australian hot spot in the West Village, serves a great brunch too. Start your meal off with some homemade banana bread and an avocado toast. Both are delicious. Eggs Benedict here comes with roasted zucchini and a paprika hollandaise, and is a perfect and tasty dish.

Barbounia, the Mediterranean joint on Park Avenue South, serves an excellent brunch too. Start with some of their great homemade and fresh bread, and then order a trio of their meze to dip it in. My baked eggs with tomato sauce, paprika, garlic, and homemade lamb sausage, had great flavor and spice, and was splendid. Dessert should not be skipped here too. A Valrhona chocolate fondant was fab, but what blew my mind was Barbounia's Silan dessert. Shredded halva, date-honey, almonds,pistachios, rice crispy brittle, and milk-caramelized coffee gelato, was one of the most memorable desserts I've had in some time. True Awesomeness!

So go get your Brunch on, everyone's favorite weekend meal.

The Smith Midtown
956 2nd Avenue (at 51st St.)
New York, NY 10022
212-644-2700
www.thesmithnyc.com

Kingswood
121 West 10th St (and Greenwich Ave)
New York, NY 10011
212-645-0018
www.kingswoodnyc.com

Barbounia
250 Park Avenue South (at 20th St.)
New York, NY 10003
212-995-0242

www.barbounia.com

NYC FOODIE BRUNCH OF THE WEEK: YUCA BAR

I had passed by Yuca Bar, the Latin Fusion joint in the East Village many a weekend, walking by their bustling brunch. I decided to check out to see why it was always packed, and can tell you they serve a fun and festive brunch, worth checking out.

Yuca Benedictos ($9), poached eggs with shrimp & avocados on yuca hash browns, and topped with cilantro Hollandaise is delicious

Arepas Benedictos ($10), poached eggs on a white corn cakes with smoked Salmon or Serrano ham and topped with Hollandaise is also great. The Hollandaise has a hint of lime that adds a nice flavor to the dish.

People are always asking me where is a good brunch spot in NYC? Yuca Bar is one of them.

Yuca Bar
111 Avenue A (and 7th St.)
New York, NY 10009
212-982-9533

www.yucabarnyc.com

NYC FOODIE BURGER OF THE WEEK: RARE BAR AND GRILL

I love me a good burger. I had heard fabulous raves about the burger from Rare, and had the chance to get my taste of one two weeks ago, to see what the raves were all about. They are well warranted. Rare Bar and Grill serves a great burger. Juicy and flavorful, it does a body good. A basket of assorted fries ($10) served with an assorted array of condiments will tickle your taste buds too. Go nuts and try their burger trio ($15) to try the chef's choice of three mini burgers if you prefer. But you'd be wise to devour one of Rare's signature steakhouse burgers, like the New York Strip ($21) I made disappear, topped with Roquefort cheese, double smoked slab bacon, and grilled red onions. It's burgers this good that also make my diet disappear.

Rare Bar and Grill
152 W. 26th Street (bet. 6th and 7th) 
New York. NY 10001
212-807-7273
www.rarebarandgrill.com
(there is a Lexington Avenue location as well)

NYC FOODIE LUNCH OF THE WEEK: ARIYOSHI

I love a good bang for your buck. I love sushi. So, I obviously love really good sushi, at not such a high price. I found a great lunch spot that fits this bill in Midtown; Ariyoshi. For $14.50 you can get a sushi deluxe entree (9 pieces of sushi, and a roll). This is beyond a deal and a bargain, it's a steal, and it's great! The sushi is really good. One of the best bangs for your buck in town. Order a classic Spider roll too, it'll tickle your fancy for sure.

Ariyoshi
226 E. 53rd St. (bet. 3rd and 2nd)
New York, NY 10022
212-319-3940

NYC FOODIE BREAKFAST SANDWICH OF THE WEEK: MADE FRESH DAILY'S BLT EGG SANDWICH `

I rarely go all the way downtown towards the South Street Seaport or Financial District, it's just not my style. The Financial District scares me at night, with it being so desolate. The Seaport area is too touristy for my taste. Well folks, that is sheer ignorance, because I have found some hidden treasures way downtown, that should not be overlooked. A few weeks ago fate led me to the South Street Seaport area, where I wandered into a cute little spot called Made Fresh Daily. Not only is this place cute, it's neighborly, homey, and great! I had their BLT egg sandwich ($8.50), with farmhouse eggs scrambled, peppered bacon, roasted cherry tomatoes, topped with arugula and mayo, all on a Balthazar croissant. It was one of the best egg sandwiches I've ever had. The cherry tomatoes were so fresh and sweet, my taste buds were tickled with joy. Everything about this egg sandwich was perfect. It was truly eye opening and inspiring to find such a great place this far downtown. Made Fresh Daily is a little treasure I hope you discover too.

Made Fresh Daily
226 Front Street
New York, NY 10038
212-285-BAKE
www.madefreshdailybakeshop.com

NYC FOODIE LUNCH OF THE WEEK: CALEXICO CART

Great Mexican in NYC is hard to find. But I have found it at the Calexico Cart stationed at 24th and Broadway. I am here to tell you that the tacos and burritos from this cart are outstanding and amazing! I've tried a bunch in the last few weeks, and have been beyond happy with each bite. You might have to wait a bit, but it's worth the wait. Check it out!

NYC FOODIE BRUNCH OF THE WEEK: FATTY CUE

My first time at the fine Malaysian BBQ joint Fatty Cue was three weeks ago during brunch. Unfortunately, I have not dined here for dinner yet, but I'm craving to, because this Williamsburg, Brooklyn spot serves one heck of a brunch.

The ribs ($12) at Fatty Cue are astonishing. Heritage pork meat, smoked palm syrup, and Indonesian long pepper, makes for some of the tastiest, flavorful, succulent, and best ribs around. Order them.

Fatty Cue's version of bacon, egg, and cheese ($9), served with house smoked coriander bacon, two fried eggs, and smoked cheese, on a Kaiser roll is amazing. Could have been the best I've had.

Flapjacks ($10) served with maple syrup and bacon, were okay, but boring, and nothing special.

I believe last year New York Magazine named Fatty Cue's smoked brisket sandwich ($14), the number one sandwich (on a list of 100) in New York. I can see why. It is fabulous. Served with chili jam, aioli, pickled red onion, house smoked cheese, and salad, it has unbelievable, well-balanced flavor. The chili jam adds an amazing sweet kick of spiciness that will leave your taste buds in awe.

Fatty Cue just gives Brooklyn another reason for greatness. I live in New York City, and my heart is always on the island of Manhattan, but sometimes fooling around ain't so bad.

Fatty Cue
91 South 6th St.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
718-599-3090
www.fattycue.com

NYC FOODIE PATE OF THE WEEK: MEUNIER

I had become addicted to the Madison Square Eats food kiosks across the street from Madison Square Park, which just closed this past Friday. The choices at this little Market were great. One afternoon I had the opportunity to try some great paté from Meunier. My little paté tasting was fabulous, and you can find their products atwww.meuniernyc.com. Bon Appetit!

www.meuniernyc.com

NYC FOODIE LUNCH OF THE WEEK: FAICCO'S ITALIAN SPECIALTIES

Great sandwiches await you at Faicco's Italian Specialties over on Bleecker Street in the West Village. I had been craving to check out this spot for a while, and fulfilled that craving last week. A really good Italian hoagie was perfect. A roast pork sandwich was delicious, filled with flavorful (a tad dry) pork. I'm not sure how long this place has been around, but it definitely has that old school vibe. A friendly, blue collar, hard-working, authentic New York City vibe. So if you are craving an Italian sandwich in the West Village, drop by Faicco's Italian Speciaties and get satisfied.

Faicco's Italian Specialties
260 Bleecker St. (bet. Cornelia and Morton)
New York, NY 10014
212-243-1974

NYC FOODIE LUNCH OF THE WEEK: SOCIAL EATZ

I was a fan of Angelo Sosa's now closed sandwich spot Xie Xie, and am happy to say, Mr. Sosa is serving some really good Asian influenced sandwiches at his new Midtown spot, Social Eatz.

Before the NYC Foodette (NYC Foodie's younger sister) and myself dug into some flavorful sandwiches, we started with some hot wings. Crispy wings glazed in a sauce of tamarind, garlic, shallots, palm sugar and togarashi (a Japanese spice blend of red chili, roasted orange peel and black sesame.) These wings were truly excellent. Tasty, sticky, goodness.

Both the Kung Pao Sandwich, (certified organic chicken, soy-sesame marinated, then iron-seared with thai chili, finished with smooth roasted peanut spread), as well as the Bulgogi burger (charred beef, sauced with soy, sugar, scallion, garlic and sesame oil then garnished with cooled cucumber kimchee, kewpee and a japanese mayo), were great. They both packed great flavor, and each had a the perfect kick. I recommend both.

So for American comfort foods with an Asian kick, Social Eatz delivers the goods. 

Social Eatz
232 E. 53rd St. (bet. 3rd and 2nd)
New York, NY 10022
212-207-3339

www.socialeatz.com