Fashion.Feeds.NewYork

M E D I U M   R A R E

'Tis the Season to be Jolly

I'm Not Short, Just Elf-Size..

http://citysanta.org

As we continue to cross presents off our holiday shopping list, let's also remember those who are in need of our time and generosity, but may not be able to ask for our help..

It has always been my NYC Christmas tradition to volunteer with City Santa picking out and wrapping presents. Each year City Santa answers children's letters to Santa Claus, these children are from shelters for victims of domestic violence and homeless shelters in New York City. Their requests consist of basic needs such as clothing, shoes, blanket and coats. And most often than not their requests are not for themselves but for their family members.

'Tis the Season to Pay It Forward

Rich, Red &Well Marbled

Red Wattle Country Chop with Cheese Grits
(Vinegar Hill House, Brooklyn)
 http://www.vinegarhillhouse.com

After a full day of playing santa's helper, I decided to take a trip down to Brooklyn and treat myself to my favourite pork chop in New York. It will not come as much of a surprise to anyone who knows me that pork is my most consumed type of meat. Pork is my LBD (little black dress) in the kitchen, it's so versatile that you can cook it however you want. It can be cured, fried, roasted or stewed. Similarly,  it works equally well with sweet, sour and salty. I wasn't just craving for any type of pork which I could get any time of the day, I specifically wanted my favourite Red Wattle Country Chop. Unlike other white meat, this pork has a distinct reddish-pink colour (just like a medium rare steak) As a pork feinschmecker/swine aficionado, I consider this to be the best tasting pork in the world. -If you don't believe me, try it out for yourself.

FEINSCHMECKER ON WHEELS 

EAT.PRAY.RIDE.LAUGH

On my bike: 

I smiled and laughed till I cried..

I reflected on how blessed I am to be living in this amazing city.

I explored and appreciated New York City like never before..  

I ate everything from hanger steak to Belgian waffles..

I made a few important decisions..

    "I thought of it while riding my bicycle", is reputedly what Albert Einstein said about his Special Theory of Relativity.

Even the genius himself loved it...

Friends are like macarons.. 

One is never enough..

Chic Appetite
(La Maison du Macaron: dark chocolate-Arabic coffee, milk chocolate & caramel fleur de sel and Jacques Torres salted caramels )  

French Stole My Sweet Tooth

(Pistachio flavor macaron, La Maison du Macaron Chelsea)

http://www.nymacaron.com/

It was quarter past seven o' clock in the evening, I  was still riding my bike in the Meatpacking District and Chelsea area when I randomly thought of indulging myself with French macarons. Since I was already in the area, I decided to ride all the way down to 7th avenue and made a right turn on West 23rd Street then I found myself at the doorsteps of La Maison Du Macaron, one of the best places to get a macaron in NYC. (at least in my opinion)  They offer good quality and consistency in flavor and texture. (the best part about this little bakery: there's no line, has a cute seating area and it closes at 9pm)

My other favorite places to get macarons in Manhattan (in no particular order)

Laduree (Upper East Side)

Bouchon Bakery (Rockefeller Plaza or The Shops at Columbus Circle)

Bisou Bisou (West Village)

My Gentle Giant

(Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie, Levain Bakery UWS)

And also on Saturday,  I decided I gotta have my chocolate chip cookie fix. And if I were to satisfy my craving, why settle for anything less when I can have the best.. So, I hopped on my Dutchi and rode it from Eastside to Westside  and from Downtown I went Uptown.. 

Levain Bakery: BEST chocolate chip cookie in NYC -Period
http://www.levainbakery.com/

I call it my Gentle Giant, die hard on the outside, soft and chewy with a choc-full of chips and walnut on the inside.. And the best thing about it, you always get it fresh from the oven.

"A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand.." -Barbara Johnson 

I enjoy being a girl

And I'm a girl who never leaves the house without my pearl earrings... 

German To English - Feinschmecker
(die) n. epicure, gourmet, lover of fine foods, gastronome, one who specializes in good eating, connoisseur of fine food and drink

New York City in Retrospect

The Arrival

Exactly four years ago today I arrived in New York City. The Grand Central Terminal first welcomed me to the greatest city on earth, my destination. I was just passing through then, admiring the magnificent architectural grandeur of the main concourse. Little did I know that this same place would become a familiar territory, a crossroad where I begin and end my day.

Peace in Rush 

Living in the fast paced city has made me appreciate the simple pleasures in life--slowing down, taking my sweet time--basically, appreciating what the world has to offer. Everyday, thousands of commuters like myself rush through the Grand Central Terminal and in the midst of this chaotic environment I always find myself stopping in the middle of concourse to look up to the celestial ceiling (view from God's vantage point) and in that moment, time freezes. I am exactly where I'm supposed to be.  The view of the celestial bodies gives me a certain feeling of comfort, thinking that the heaven is smiling at me and it's His way of saying that my stars are aligned. I may be far from my goal, but like everyone in the busy station, I will eventually get there.

Leap of Faith

"It was my personal decision to stay and live in this city. I've always believed that if you want something so bad you will never let it slip away.."

Why live in NYC?

FOOD & FASHION

Everyone knows that NYC is a pioneer in fashion, style and innovation. It's where fashion trends are defined. Similarly, it is what I consider to be an appetite city where you can satisfy all your gastronomic cravings.

 

"One's life and passion may be elsewhere, but New York is where you prove if what you think in theory makes sense in life."

-Miuccia Prada 

"I was in love with New York. I do not mean "love" in a colloquial way, I mean that I was in love with the city, the way you love the first person who ever touches you and never love anyone quite that way again.." 
-Joan Didion, Slouching Towards Bethlehem

"He adored New York City. He idolized it all out of proportion.. He romanticized it all out of proportion. Yes, to him no matter what the season was, this was still a town that existed in black and white."
 - Woody Allen in Manhattan

"There are roughly three New Yorks. There is, first the New York of the man or woman who was born here, who takes the city for granted. Second, there is the New York of the commuter - the city is devoured by locusts each day and spat out each night. Third,  there is the New York of a person who was born somewhere else and came to New York in quest of something." 

-E.B. White, Here is New York

Living On The Edge
(Park Avenue and 42nd Street)

Take The High Road
(Park Avenue Viaduct) 

Everyone has a unique and personal relationship with the city, this blog will give you a glimpse of what has started off as an infatuation that developed into a love affair with New York City.