NYC: Cronuts and Coffee
Focus of This Perfect Travel Day: Cronuts, Coffee and Tastes in NYC
Pretty much every time I am in NYC now there is a first stop: Cronuts. I make each morning. It has become a mecca for me, and I wait in often long lines for this bakery to open at 8am, making sure I get what will soon sell out: the famous Cronut.
189 Spring Street – SoHo
Rating: A mecca location I never miss
The Cronut – a fusion of Croissant and Donut – each month Dominque has a different flavor and this month it is Blackberry and Toffee.
This excerpt I wrote after my first visit
I watch as they package the Cronut – stupidly I only order one – in a way that shows an attention to detail I have not seen before and totally appreciate. The container warning – says to eat this fresh – so I obey. I take one bite and silently scream – HOLY SH*T – this may be one of the best flavor combinations – I have EVER experienced. On the second bite is when I fall to my knees. It is when, I get a taste of the little piece of toffee heaven sitting like a temptress on the top… and thats when my mind is blown…how could this be? Who came up with this? When can I come back?
Next, as I leave the bakery I fall into my daydream of being a Soho resident walking to work, enjoying my life in the city – and walk to one of my favorite Brooklyn based coffee roasters – but this one in the West Village. My daydream filled walk takes me through the tree-lined streets of Soho into the West Village where I open the door and am hit by the smell of small batch coffee. This is Toby’s Estate Coffee.
44 Charles Street – West Village
Ordered: Flat White and some beans
Rating: I go here every time I am in NYC
But it’s time for a proper breakfast.
A bit of a walk away, an probably a much quicker uber ride. you come up to the brick paved streets that famously run through Tribeca, an ex meat packing district – to one of another of my favorite finds of this trip: Bubby’s.
120 Hudson Street – Tribeca
Ordered James Beard Pancakes
Rating: I would totally go there again
I snuggled up at that bar and ordered the James Beard Pancakes – because duh, who doesn’t order something with James Beard in the name? They were fluffy – topped with caramelized bananas and toasted walnuts and every bite – an affirmation I had ordered well. The lines of people made it impossible to see what other diners had ordered, but I could tell the crowds meant this was a place well-chosen.
The food and coffee have hit the mark and I can leave a happy foodie. It is just then, I receive a DM from a friend of mine in Melbourne to stop by Bluestone Lane – a cafe owned by a Melbournian – and I because I am obsessed with the Melbourne coffee scene, I obey. I wake up, shower and head to the cafe full of Aussie accents, perfectly roasted beans, and a for those eating what looks like a scrumptious breakfast.
Location: Bluestone Lane
Rating: I have already gone there again.
After a break and a little window shopping, and made my way over to Union Square where I caught the Q Train to Avenue J – to the world renowned Di Fara’s Pizza. I had read it would be a long wait, but when I entered, the line seemed short and I thought I had beat the system. Two and half hours – and two new friends later ..I realized this was not true.
The pain of waiting dissipated as soon as I took my first bite. This pizza – handcrafted in front of me by a legend – was more than a bite it was an experience.
1424 Avenue J, Brooklyn, NY
Ordered: Two Slices of the basil topped Margarita Pizza
Rating: A must and I will totally go there again
While waiting for my Pizza, I met two New Yorkers – who shared my love of food. They suggested I take the Q up the new 2nd Avenue subway line to the Upper East Side – to try a bakery called: Two Little Red Hens. I was instructed to try a cupcake that they warned would become my new obsession. Based on the fact that they too had made the trip out on a Sunday just to try a bite of Pizza – I knew they were kindred souls and I obeyed.
Forty-five minutes later – time I needed to make a bit more room in my stomach – and I popped up from the subway onto 2nd Ave – found my destination and got in line for a Brooklyn Blackout – a cupcake that almost can not be described – it requires a bite. Made with three flavors of chocolate with a rich pudding filling, the Brooklyn Blackout Cupcakes have become an Upper East Side addiction – and it is easy to see why.
Ordered: Brooklyn Blackout Cupcake – one small peanut butter and chocolate cupcake
Rating: I would totally go there again
Exhausted, I notice a coffee spot nearby that my friend , Ken, had recommended. So, I stopped in for a break – to recenter myself now that I was surprisingly off track from my downtown adventure.
1424 3rd Avenue- Upper East Side
Great spot – but I will be frank – at this point I really can’t think anymore -so I order a Flat White – comment to my friend on text that they have glass bottled milk – which is always key- and sit at the community table and listen to two people on a first date entertain me with their uncomfortable – I hope we go on another date – flirtatious banter.
Knowing my way around uptown, I decide to walk on 5th Avenue and take the time to decide what will be next. I make it to the end of Central Park and realize my feet have walked about another 1.5 miles. It is time to hit the train for a ride to some actual dinner. I have been advised by another friend I must try Pig and Khao – the new restaurant of top chef contestant Leah Cohen. Without question – because I trust Jesse Lubinsky recommendations , I head to the Lower East Side – acutely aware that I am doing a darn good job of seeing all of Manhattan. I take the J to Delancey Street, exit and walk a few short blocks to PIG and Khao and again snuggle right on up to the bar where I watch the cooks make food whose smells make me think I might have entered heaven and not known it.
68 Clinton Street – NY
Rating: I have since gone there again
With not much room in my stomach for food, I order the pancake stuffed with Pad Thai – to be dipped in a peanut, cilantro vinegar sauce. I try to muffle my pleasureful groans as I take bites – and the pure intensity of the flavors helps me find room in my already stuffed stomach for each and every bite. I drink it down with a Rum and Hyde and blissfully say a thank you to the universe for the amazing experiences I am allowed to have each time I travel.
I think at this point I am done, and my foodie tour complete for this visit.
Next, it’s time for Hamilton. This truly was The Perfect Travel Day in NYC.
