FOOD - "The Delicious"
Rice in Nolita
Ah. You win some, you lose some. I’m pretty convinced this foodie friend of mine always knows the best tiny joints in the city so I was excited to come upon Rice when he led a few of us there a couple days ago. The place itself was so cute, but I think it was a sum of a lot of things that made it not the best experience this time around.
Rice
Here’s the cliff notes version. 1) It was raining and cold that night and we walked a good 15 minutes out of our way to get here; 2) We were all starving and waited another 15 minutes to get seated…pretty standard but that feels way longer when you’re famished; 3) To add insult to injury, they took ONE HOUR to get our food out. The people next to us who came after us go their food before we did; 4) When the food did come out, the portions were pretty small. And you’d think being so hungry, anything would do, but my coconut thai curry dish was three-fourths rice and one-fourth curry. I guess to their credit, it’s not false advertising. But I was still starving after my meal!
Corn
Spinach rice balls
Chicken satay
Lentils and black rice
Granted, I also got the smaller dish (it comes in a small and large), but after waiting so long, I was afraid ordering anything else would take another five years.
Sh*t baristas say!
I strangely haven’t gotten sick of this new Sh*t people say video craze yet — maybe I’m just easily amused! I know it’s been a minute on here — I felt like my birthday was a good time to take a little break, but I promise to be back with a lot more goodies. Until then, you can sink your teeth into the latest video that popped up: Sh*t Baristas Say 
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x
Shy
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JivamukTea Cafe in Union Square
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’ve embarked on a three-week cleanse that has totally turned my eating habits upside-down (in a good way). It focuses on eating a lot of non-processed, fresh veggies and fruits and cutting out other mostly-bad-for-you things (caffeine, dairy, etc.). The first week was rough — but I’ve slowly adapted and I’ve been feeling pretty amazing. I’ve had more energy, fitting into my jeans better, even my skin has been responding positively. In the past week I’ve had two people comment on its ‘glow’ (shucks!).
The hardest part I found has simply been A) finding time to do groceries and prepare my meals; B) when I’m short on time, finding places that will serve food that fit the parameters of the cleanse and still taste good. I’ve relied on Blue Dog for healthy, organic shakes some mornings, and anywhere I can get my hands on a salad. After working out with my friend Hamid last weekend, he took me to a cafe I probably would have never found on my own: JivamukTea Cafe. He tends to always show me some hidden gems in the city.
JivamukTea Cafe
The “hidden” cafe lives on the 2nd floor of the Jivamuktea Yoga School in Union Square (right smack in between Max Brenner and Cosi!). With no sign or indication of a cafe up there, you may very well pass right by it.
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Sri Lankan food at Banana Leaf
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New York never ceases to amaze me with all their hidden gems. I find a lot of the smaller, homey places make some of the best food. Recently, I went to dinner with a few friends, and one of them introduced us to Banana Leaf, a Sri Lankan restaurant tucked away on 28th street. This was actually the first time I ever had the cuisine and had no idea what to expect. If YOU’VE never had it, let me prepare you: HOLY SPICE!
Inside Banana Leaf
Veggie and fish cutlets
Deviled Shrimp
Of course, there were a lot of similarities to Indian food, but so different in taste and seasonings. We started off small with the veggie and fish cutlets (don’t let them fool you, they’re spicy too!), and moved on to deviled shrimp. I’m not generally a fan of seafood, but I love shrimp and the chili-infused sauce was delicious.
New Year, New Cleanse
I used to think New Year’s Resolutions were pointless. I’d make a generic list in my head of what I wanted to work on, but without definite goals, they would be long forgotten. But after this past year, I realized they can be beneficial especially if you have concrete goals. January 1st is technically just a day like any other but I like the idea of having a marker to reflect and take stock of the past year. Among my resolutions last year were to visit South America (check!) and sign up for a dance class (well, I did sign up, I still have to go…I’m just carrying it over to this year). That said, I’m still working out my list of resolutions this year…2012 kind of crept up on me and I didn’t necessarily plan ahead…
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That said, one of the things I have been more cognizant of lately is my physical health and what I put in my body. Thus, I just started this cleanse with some friends and I’m hoping to keep it up for the next three weeks. Normally, I would find this type of thing terrifying, but after experiencing my very first cleanse with Ritual Cleanse last year, I’m a little less intimidated…excited if anything.
Ritual Cleanse drinks
Mid-last year, I was not feeling my best. I was working ALL the time, and barely found time to even go to the gym which I always felt I had been good about before. I needed to “reset,” and I wanted to start with my diet. At that point, I had heard of cleanses, and was curious but have never really tried one before. It was a bit serendipitous actually, because when I started asking people if they recommended any, my friend Kristan told me about her obsession with Ritual Cleanse. It’s basically a liquid detox cleanse, where depending on which program you choose, you are sent fresh, 100% organic fruit and vegetable juices that act as meal replacements to rid your body of toxins and nourish it with vitamins and minerals. While I think a lot of people associate cleanses with weight loss, I was in it for other benefits — mostly for energy and mental clarity (I was starting to experience a bit of brain fog at work and was finding it hard to just focus).
Cafeteria in Chelsea
On Christmas Day recently, my sisters and I lunched at Cafeteria in Chelsea. Our friends only had to rave to us about the delectable macaroni and cheese, and we were already calling to make reservations. Upon arrival, we weren’t extremely impressed with the façade (I think they’re in the midst of some construction) but the interior décor was simple and elegant. We were seated promptly upon arrival by the friendly staff.
We pored over the menu, debating between breakfast entrees or sumptuous salads. As tempted as we were by the lemon ricotta pancakes, we finally settled on the crispy calamari salad, which was a tossing of frisee, roasted peppers,
calamari (obviously), green beans, toasted peanuts, all dressed with honey sesame vinaigrette. Along with the salad, we ordered the restaurant’s signature “Mac Attack,” which is a tasting of all three types of their gourmet mac & cheese (1) cheddar and fontina, 2) smoked gouda, and 2) truffle oil). For dessert, we indulged ourselves by ordering deep fried Oreos, which are served with espresso chip ice cream and a coffee shake shot.
Crispy Calamari salad
