EATALY NYC

One of my sole missions to complete in New York was to check out the Italian super store/restaurant complex that takes up a whole city block called Eataly. This place is what I consider to be Italian heaven. Fresh ingredients every, dedicated to the best product, hand made foods and everything Italian. This place is a mecca for anyone looking to cook, learn or eat Italian. It took me forever to wander through here, aisle after aisle and restaurant after restaurant. I could not leave the cheese & meats aisles, they were to die for ! Whole walls of just parmesan and fresh charcuterie! Amazing! And the coolest part I found about Eataly, was that it was not just for tourists. People actually shopped there (I would only shop there if I lived in New York)! We went on a Saturday, and the place was packed! The meat&cheese restaurant bar was already full at 11am, people were eating pasta and pizza and it wasn't even noon! We sampled an Italian sandwich of crusty baguette and house cure proscuitto, simple and perfect, classic European.

For more info on Eataly and its greatness visit - http://eatalyny.com/#1

 

Outside the entrance!

 

Incredible variety of meats

 

Canadian Lobster!

 

 

Insane mushroom selection 

                 Onion selections                                           I love Parmesan!


photo credit: my own

THE BRESLIN

Sorry for my lack of blogging, but now for some posts on my New York City adventures!

The first spot I want to talk about is called - The Breslin Bar & Dining Room, located beside/in New York's ACE Hotel. I first heard about the spot through one of the chefs at Part&Labour who had tweeted a picture from the hotel, from there I checked it out and decided it was a must go! The restaurant is sister to New York's also popular "Spotted Pig." Both restaurants are "nose-to-tail" restaurants, meaning that thy use everything from the nose to tail of animal products, preventing waste and teaching eaters about different parts of the animal and how they can be enjoyed. A trend that is seriously hitting Toronto these days! The chef and co-owner of both The Breslin & Spotted Pig, April Bloomfield is a NYC legend. She received a Michelin Star for the Spotted Pig.

The Breslin is a great spot, wooden decor with a casual yet seriously hip feel and little pictures and figurines of pigs and other animals adorn the walls. The place was packed, and we walked in for lunch at 230! But you can clearly see why, with an open concept kitchen, the restaurant is producing fabulous product. With a smaller menu, The Breslin is able to focus more on each dish, making sure it is perfect. I loved the feel of this place, and with a great snacks menu it would the perfect spot for after work beers as well. New Yorkers, and NYC visitors this is a definite must see!

Some of their great snacks include:
Boiled peanuts cooked in pork fat
Chicken liver parfait with madeira jelly
Spiced Almonds
Caramel Popcorn

For lunch I had hear the burger was a must! So we ordered the Chargrilled lamb burger with feta, cumin mayo and thrice cooked chips and the Oven Baked 3 cheese sandwich with onion marmalade and mustard. The BEST grilled cheese, the onion marmalade was out of this world!!

For more on their menus check out: http://thebreslin.com/menu-lunch.html

So for a great casual, but delicious bar-like dining experience, check out The Breslin!


photo credit: my own & the breslin

EATALY (NEW YORK)

Thanks to a friend’s suggestion, I have now found my number one reason for a trip to New York…asap!

Eataly, a little slice on Italy nestled in the Toy building at Fifth Ave. between 23rd and 24th streets in New York is a massive marketplace in the heart of Manhattan giving New Yorkers & visitors a taste of Italy sans the flight. Eataly is the creation of Italian-American restaurateurs Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, Lidia Matticchio Bastlianich and the founder behind the gourmet food and wine market (Eataly) in Turin, Oscar Farinetti. The 50,000-foot-space is more than just a supermarket with restaurants, it is an energetic marketplace, a place to taste and take home products that inspire the rustic coking of Italy, and a place to learn about the country, the trade and their products. Eataly is the “heartbeat of Italy.”

The complex includes multiple restaurants (an Italian steakhouse, a Neapolitan pizzeria, a gelaterie, a microbrewery and year-round rooftop beer garden etc.) a cooking school, aisles upon aisles of vendors, and the ability to buy the ingredients of a dish you just ate in one of their restaurants. There is a travel agent who will help you arrange a trip to Italy to visit food and wine producers, there is a bookstore, wine store and houseware store where you can buy things such as espresso makers from Bialetti.

This place sounds just fabulous and their manifesto just further highlights the perfectness of this creation! Molto buono!

Learn more at http://www.newyork.eataly.it/

OUR MANIFESTO

1. WE’RE IN LOVE WITH FOOD.
We love high quality in food and drink. We love the stories about it, the people who produce it, the places it comes from.

2. FOOD UNITES US ALL.
Good food brings all of us together, and helps us find a common point of view.
We believe that one of the greatest sources of joy is what happens around a dinner table.

3. OUR PASSION HAS BECOME OUR JOB.
We’ve dedicated our daily lives to promoting a real understanding of high-quality food and drink. How lucky are we that we get to do what we love?

4. THE SECRET TO QUALITY OF LIFE? QUALITY PRODUCTS
By creating and offering the best products, we improve our own lives, and bring added value to yours. Enter a world dedicated to quality: that means quality food, quality drink and ultimately quality time.

5. OUR TARGET AUDIENCE IS EVERYONE.
Whether you’re here to buy a loaf of bread, prepare for a lavish dinner or sit down to enjoy a meal, we want this to be your place. We want you to be comfortable, happy, and enriched by every visit.

6. EAT. SHOP. LEARN.
This is a store with stories. Here, you won’t just discover what you love, you’ll also learn about what you love.

7. WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER
What you choose every day determines what we’ll stock our shelves with over time. When you demand quality products, you support the local farmers, fishermen, butchers, bakers, and cheesemakers who produce them. You create a better environment—for eating and beyond.

8. OUR THREE PROMISES TO YOU
Choice: We offer a diverse selection of quality food and drink
Accessibility: We are dedicated to offering the best products at the lowest possible price points.
Knowledge: We feel that it’s not just important that we know everything about what we sell and serve, but that you also learn about the products we are so passionate about. We share with you the stories of the people and places behind all that we offer. The more you know the mote you enjoy.

9. YOUR TRUST IS EARNED EVERY DAY.
In all ways, we promise to be scrupulously honest. We’ll never encourage you to buy more than you need or more expensive than you can afford.

10. THE END GOAL.
Our goal is to have you as our customer for a lifetime. The easiest means to that end is offering the best food and drink as well as the best environment in which to discover and expand your tastes.

photo credit: http://www.newyork.eataly.it/