restaurant Archives - Frolic Through Life

#WIAW – Penthouse 808, Long Island City

May 1, 2013 12 Comments

On Saturday, Tommy surprised me with dinner at Penthouse 808 in Long Island City. The restaurant is located on the roof of the Ravel Hotel and has a gorgeous view of the 59th Street Bridge and Manhattan. Our reservation was for 6:45, perfect timing to enjoy the sunset over dinner. Even though the restaurant is on the roof, it is open year round. There is a retractable glass bubble, for lack of a better word, which they close up when it’s too cold to dine al fresco.

We started dinner with drinks. I definitely needed a drink after two days of studying. The Wasabi Margarita caught my eye right away. The margarita itself wasn’t spicy, but the glass was rimmed in sweetened wasabi which did had a bit of a kick.

We were pretty hungry going into dinner since we had only eaten breakfast that morning, so we started with some appetizers. Being a huge fan of tuna, Tommy immediately suggested the Tuna Tartare Tacos. This was probably the most interesting presentation of Tuna Tartare that I’ve ever seen. The tuna was served in a crispy shell and topped with Wasabi Guacamole.

We also ordered the Korean Style Chicken Wings. I had read in multiple reviews that the wings were great and I since couldn’t remember the last time I had wings, it struck a major craving. The wings were spicy, but not too spicy and hit the spot. The chili flakes on them make the eating process a little messy, but wings are always messy.

We also split a sushi roll – the Smoke Stacks. Spiced tuna, avocado, kani and oshinko in marbled seaweed topped with tobiko.

Finally, for my entree I went with the Pan Roasted Chicken Breast which was marinated in Sake Teriyaki and served with a side of Chinese broccoli and pineapple fried rice. I don’t usually order chicken when we go out to eat, and I was this.close to getting the salmon, but the pineapple fried rice caught my eye and I couldn’t say no. The chicken was very moist and the teriyaki gave it a great flavor. The rice didn’t disappoint either!

Tommy went with the Soba Noodle Stir Fry with chicken.

Overall, we had a great dining experience. The food was very good, the service was decent and the views were amazing. I definitely recommend it!

What’s the best thing/place you ate this week?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: asian fusion, dinner, long island city, NYC, penthouse 808, restaurant, review, sushi, WIAW

Saturday Scenes

February 18, 2013 14 Comments

This weekend was a lot more fun that I’ve had in a long while. For the first time in weeks, I was able to spend a weekend with both my guys, doing nothing special, but having a blast. On Saturday, we were on a mission to spend the day in Manhattan. Tommy and I are both in Manhattan on a regular basis for school and work, but going there for pleasure is a rarity for us. We had made plans to get brunch and spend some time in Central Park, but when we got to the restaurant, we were told there was an hour and 45 minute wait. After recovering from the initial shock, we got some Chipotle and headed over to the Central Park Zoo.

We had a ton of fun visiting all of the animals. We also went over to the Children’s Zoo where you get to feed the farm animals. While Munchkin was busy feeding the sheep when the llama in the same pen got a little peeved and tried to eat his hat instead. That, or he was just a fan of Angry Birds and wanted a sweet looking hat.

After the zoo, we were all pooped. We headed home and all took a nap, which is highly uncommon for me. I woke up feeling refreshed and hungry. When my two gentlemen finally awoke, we decided on Chai for dinner. Chai recently opened up in Williamsburg and was filled to the brim when we got there. There was a bit of a wait, but we got to sit next to a little reflecting pool with super cute decor. Munchkin kept trying to blow out the candles which kept him occupied for a long time, since they were battery powered.

We knew what appetizers we wanted as soon as we were seated because we had looked at a menu while we were waiting. I went for the Thai crab cakes with lemongrass mayo and Tommy opted for the Crispy Spring Rolls with homemade plum sauce. Both apps were spot on, and I really enjoyed the flavor that the lemongrass mayo gave to the crab cakes. I also enjoyed a drink, whose name I cannot remember, nor find on their website, but it was tequila with champagne. It was strong but very tasty, and made me a little giggly.

For my entree I got the Vegetarian Duck with Mushrooms in Garlic Sauce. I usually go for noodle dishes when we go for Thai, but I was very pleased that I decided to try something new. The sauce was delicious, and the “duck” tasted just like the real thing.

Another plus of Chai was the price-tag. We all enjoyed our meals and drinks and the prices were very reasonable. Chai will definitely be thrown into our rotation of dinner places, but I think we will be frequenting it during off peak times to avoid the wait.

What did you do this weekend? What’s the last new restaurant you tried?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: central park zoo, dinner, munchkin, NYC, restaurant, thai

Back in the Kitchen WIAW

July 18, 2012 26 Comments

So it seems like I’ve been spending an awful lot of time in the kitchen lately which is … GREAT! I’ve tried some new thangs, had a failure or two, but had an awesome time playing. All cooking really is, is big kid playing! Check out this week’s eats! Thanks Jenn and hope your toe feels better!

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so I always try to start my day in a balanced and yummy way. A full belly almost ensures that you will leave the house with a smile on your face!

Chobani plain yogurt, farm fresh peach, Love Grown granola and a spoonful of strawberry preserves.

Two egg scramble with cherry tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts and turkey.

I’m horrible at eating lunch at work. Even when I do pack a lunch, it often doesn’t get eaten until I get back home. Because of this I’ve started packing smaller snacks instead of a whole meal.

Luna Bars have become my go to snack. The White Chocolate Macadamia is to.die.for!

Sometimes we girls get a little crazy and order takeout for lunch. Luckily, the area that I work in has a ton of amazing restaurants to order from.

Nicoise salad with seared Tuna. Who said take out can’t be healthy AND delicious?!

Dinner is a meal I have no problem with eating.

Chicken Pad See Ew. One of my favorites dishes in life. Try it!

Salmon Explosion Roll. Salmon tempura and asparagus topped with more salmon and salmon tobiko.

Seaweed Salad. Recipe will follow..this is so good and easy to make!

Some Tai Thai goodies. Tom Yum Soup, Calamari with Sweet Chili Sauce, Red Curry and oh yea, some white Sangria.

Life ain’t worth living if you don’t enjoy dessert once in a while.

I shall call these quinoa fail cookies. They tasted great, but looked horrible and fell apart when touched. It was my first time baking with quinoa and coconut oil and with some tweaking, I’m sure I can make these look as good as they taste!

If you can say no to fresh cut watermelon, you have superhuman powers. End.of.story.

Since July’s theme is Food and Fitness, let’s move on to the calorie burning portion of the post. Just last night, my new home gym was completed. Tommy ran all the cables and I got to do a killer arm and back workout. I am seriously in love, but was not in love when Tommy asked me to read the instruction while he was putting it together..check this out.

Yeaaaaa…luckily, Tommy is pretty handy without my help. The boy knows how to read plans for skyscrapers, so what’s a little home gym to him!

Don’t mind the curtains, they are coming down as soon as I can find something to replace them. That’s what you get when your dad buys new basement curtains at Walmart!

It’s small and cramped, but it is coming together. I also want to buy some mats to put down under the machines. And maybe some posters and pictures on the walls. We shall see!

I have a feeling that soreness will be coming on rather soon and I could not be happier! Feel the burn!

What’s the best thing you ate this week? Do you go to the gym or work out at home?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: baking, breakfast, dinner, lunch, restaurant, WIAW, workout

Dinner and Breakfast

June 4, 2012 16 Comments

This weekend was one of good eats and good workouts. I posted about my Saturday evening run in my last post, but I will save Sunday’s workout for it’s own post. That is, if I can get out of bed the next few days because soreness is starting to set in, big time. On to the eats!

Friday night, we tried out a new sushi spot. We had all the intention of going to our usual place, but Atami has caught our eye time after time because along the way to the other place we go, and Tommy actually pulled a~~n illegal~~ u-turn to get us there on Friday.

I am so happy that we tried it because I think I like it better than the other two placed we’ve been going to lately. Atami is a buffet style sushi place, where you get a piece of paper, write down what rolls you want and pay a flat rate at the end regardless of how much you order. What makes Atami different from the other buffet places we’ve tried is that there is an actual buffet in addition to table service. Even though I didn’t get much from the actual buffet, Munchkin was able to have a full meal, instead of just a few bites of sushi, as usual.

We were also pleasantly surprised by the quality of the rolls when our order came out. The three of us ordered a bunch of rolls to share and they were all delish.

Munchkin’s favorite part was the dessert – ice cream!

On Saturday morning, my boys woke up and told me they wanted pancakes for breakfast. What was I supposed to do? I was outnumbered 2-1, so I got my butt to the kitchen. Since I’m not a fan of doing anything easy or plain, I decided to spice the pancakes up a little. I bet you’ve already noticed my affinity for the white chocolate and cranberry combo, as seen in my Cranberry Bliss Bar and Cranberry Bliss oatmeal, so what better to make for breakfast than Cranberry Bliss Pancakes?

Cranberry Bliss Pancakes

3/4 cup buttermilk
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/4 cup craisins

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk egg and butter into buttermilk. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk until lumps are gone. Fold in chocolate chips and craisins. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Pour batter onto the skillet, and cook until bubbles appear on the surface. Cook until lightly browned on both sides.

These bad boys paired with the Strawberry Fig syrup I got from this month’s Foodie Pen Pals swap are a match made in breakfast heaven.

I’m not kidding when I say you need to make these ASAP.

Have a great Monday!

What’s the best thing you ate this weekend? What’s you favorite type of pancake?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: breakfast, dinner, munchkin, pancakes, recipe, restaurant, sushi

Veggie Special Powered Run

June 1, 2012 8 Comments

A few weeks ago, I was super excited to see that Crif Dogs was on Groupon with a great deal – $7 for a Crif Dog, Tots and a drink. I swooped up two of these deals because Crif Dogs is one on my fav “fast food” places, and Tommy, Munchkin and I headed over there yesterday for dinner.

Crif Dog’s menu is a mile long, and if you can’t find anything you like from their combos you can create your own.

I decided on a Veggie Special which is a veggie dog topped with chopped onions, tomatoes, cucumber and jalapeno.

Tommy opted for a BLT which is a regular hot dog wrapped in bacon and topped with lettuce and tomatoes.

Their cheese tots are probably on of the best things I’ve ever eaten, no joke. Tommy and I usually share one order when we go to Crif Dogs and we ended up throwing a lot of them away since the Groupon gave us each our own side. I wanted to keep eating them, but I knew that if I overate, the run that I was planning for the evening would be replaced with laying on the couch feeling gross. Yay for making the right choice!

After I let the food settle in my belly for a bit, I changed into my favorite running crops and hit the road. My run was great! I am still following my couch to 10K program for about the first half, but once I hit the halfway point I push myself and run it through straight if I’m feeling up for it. I also find that when I run in the evening, I kick total butt, which doesn’t really happen in the mornings or midday. I love watching the sun set, maybe that has something to do with it?

In total, I ran/walked, but mostly RAN! 2.62 miles. I ran basically through my whole neighborhood from one end to another, down the main street. Not gonna lie, I felt pretty bad-ass being able to run for 1.5 miles without having to stop or feeling like I’m going to die. I came home with a HUGE smile on my face!

Well, it’s time for me to head out to work. It really stinks having to go in on Friday, but one of the girls I work with got her wisdom teeth pulled yesterday and I need to cover for her. At least the weekend starts at 3:30!

Have a great weekend!

What’s your favorite fast food? What time of day do you like to run?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: c210k, couch to 10k, crif dogs, dinner, groupon, NYC, restaurant, workout

Memorial Day Bikes and BBQ

May 29, 2012 5 Comments

This Memorial Day is going to go down in the book as one of the best in a loong time. Even though we slept in, we were able to pack a lot of fun into the day. We used Trails.com to look for a bike trail and around noon, we packed up the car and drove out to Long Island to Belmont Lake State Park. None of us had been to this park before, so we were really excited to try out the trails.

The trails took us around the lake itself and through the woods. In the end, we did 5.2 miles in a little less than an hour.

Munchkin had an awesome time and did not mind the bumps and having to be carried over some parts of the trail.

He did love yelling quack quack at the ducks, which I was later informed were actually geese. Whoops, I grew up in the city, so you can’t blame me for not knowing!

The trail also had strength training points scattered throughout it, so we stopped to try the monkey bars and the dip bars. I am proud to say that I was able to get halfway across the monkey bars. Tommy’s little bro said that he will have me doing pullups by the end of the summer and I am holding him to it!

Even though it was in the high 80s, the trail was shady and kept us cool. We really didn’t feel the heat until we returned to the parking lot.

Have I mentioned how much I love Munchkin’s bike seat. It is soo much better than the kind that goes on the back of the bike and I am sad because I know that by next summer he will be too big for it.

After our bike ride, we stopped at The Pit Stop for lunch. Tommy had seen the Pit Stop on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network and we’ve been trying to go there ever since.

I ordered the Spaghetti Squash which is one of the thing Guy Fieri tried while there and it was pretty darn good. They ever share the recipe on their website, so if you can’t get there to try it, you can recreate it at home!

Munchkin got a bit tuckered out after our ride and napped on the way back.

Since the weather was perfect in the afternoon, we decided to grill for dinner. We made two grilled pizzas, corn on the cob and baby bok choy in a soy sauce sauce.

I am also in love with my new tray from Target. So summery and fun.

Mushroom and pepper with mozzarella cheese.

Buffalo chicken and blue cheese.

Baby bok choy.

Corn of the cob which turned out great because we grilled it without peeling. It really makes a world of a difference. We ate it without any butter or salt. Yum!

Hope you had a great Holiday Weekend!

What did you do on Memorial Day? What’s your fav BBQ dish?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: bike, dinner, lunch, munchkin, NYC, park, restaurant, weather, workout

Memorial Day Smorgasburg

May 28, 2012 4 Comments

Happy Memorial Day! I hope you are having a great first weekend of summer and enjoying this amazing weather. My weekend started out great at the Farmer’s Market. Tommy and I have been trying to get out butts there for weeks and we finally made it.

We strolled through the place and picked up lettuce, spinach, bok choy, heirloom tomatoes, beets, carrots and strawberries. We’ve eaten almost all of it already too. Nothing like fresh fruits and veggies!

After stocking up on produce, we headed over to the Williamsburg waterfront to wait for the Smorgasburg to open. It had been a while since we had been to the area and we were surprised to find that there was a whole new park built there, complete with amazing city views.

Munchkin had an awesome time climbing the rocks and looking for non-existent fish in the water. We did see ducks though!

Once Smorgasburg opened, we headed inside to see what deliciousness we could find for lunch. Smorgasburg happens every Saturday rain or shine from 11 AM to 6 PM and is a huge food festival where over 100 vendors come to set up shop and sell you their delicious food.

We did a loop around the whole place to see what was there before we made our decision on what to eat. We started out with Arnold Palmer Slushies from Kelvin Natural Slush Co.

Refreshing and delicious!

For our lunch, we chose different paths. Tommy went Greek and got a Spinach Pie from Anthi’s Greek Specialties.

I got a falafel, but not just your standard chickpea ball falafel. As soon as we walked in I saw Saucy By Nature, I knew it was going to be my lunch.

I chose a whole Spiced Marrakech Falafel.

And I only have one word for it… AMAZING!

We were planning on getting dessert too, but we really did not have any room in our bellies for it. There’s always next time and we are already planning our next trip there!

How did you spend your holiday weekend?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: brooklyn, farmer's market, lunch, munchkin, NYC, restaurant, smorgasburg

Wordless Weekend

May 21, 2012 3 Comments

Hope yours was great!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: dinner, law school, munchkin, NYC, restaurant

Black Bean Avocado Pizza

May 18, 2012 2 Comments

I’m usually a brown-bagger when it comes to lunch at work, but since I kind of overslept yesterday (turns out a toddler isn’t always a reliable alarm clock) I ran out the door lunchless. Once lunchtime rolled around and my belly started rumbling, I threw out a suggestion of pizza for lunch, and my coworker quickly agreed. Who doesn’t love pizza?

Instead of getting the regular cheese slices from across the street, she suggested that we order from a new place that had opened up a few blocks away. When we pulled up the menu for Vinnie’s, I was sold. Their menu is packed with unconventional, yet delicious sounding specialty pizzas, like Mac Attack (mac and cheese topped slice) and Greenpoint’s Finest (pizza topped with potato and cheese pierogi). They also have a ton of vegan options, which I’d like to try in the future. We decided on a pizza that wasn’t a total carb bomb, but still delicious, the Black Bean Avocado.

The crust was perfectly crisp and the black beans tasted great as the base for the pizza. I didn’t miss the traditional tomato sauce at all.

And yes, we are classy ladies who ate straight out of the box. I think it would be super easy to recreate this pizza at home using my pizza stone or on the grill!

It’s time for a quick run before I dive into my last paper! The weather is supposed to be gorgeous this weekend, so I want to get it done quick, and celebrate!

Have a great weekend.

Any plans this weekend? What’s your favorite slice?

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: lunch, pizza, restaurant, work

Big Fat Mexican Dinner

May 12, 2012 6 Comments

Good morning! I don’t usually blog on Saturdays, but ~~I’m procrastinating like heck~~ I had some time on my hands and I figured, why the heck not? Friday flew by yesterday and I’m feeling like that’s going to be a theme for this weekend.

Munchkin and I slept in until almost 10 and it felt sooo good to get enough sleep. I’ve been staying up pretty late to study and the alarm always seems to ring too early in the mornings. After making Munchkin a quick breakfast, I headed out for a run. I decided to take my old running route for a change of scenery and I think I know why I had a difficult time getting into running last year. I used to run in circles around the park and it kind of sucked. I kind of felt like a hamster on a wheel, no change in scenery and I kept passing the same people who were going the opposite way. Towards the end I felt like I needed to say hello to them because we had seen each other so many times. To add to the awkwardness, I wore crop yoga pants to run in and they kept sliding off my butt, but I got through it.

Needless to say, I think I’ll be sticking to taking the scenic route from now on… and buying more leggings.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I wanted to strengthen my core and challenged myself to plank everyday. Looks like I’m not the only one! Steph from Steph’s Bite by Bite started the #PlankProof challenge, so every Wednesday, be sure to show off your planks and tweet with hashtag #PlankProof. So far, so good for me with the planks. My endurance is increasing slowly, but surely.

I was really glad that I got my workout in earlier in the day, because I had a big, fat ~~Greek wedding~~ Mexican dinner. After Tommy got home from work, we had to go to the mall to switch out my cable box because it just stopped working, in the middle of the Lion King, no less. Since it took us a while to get out of there, we were starving by the time our dinnertime rolled around. We went to one of our go-to places, the kind of place where everything on the menu is good, Pop Diner.

I love their Muchos Nachos, so we started with them..and that’s probably where we should have stopped because they were super filling.

I had still ordered a Mexican Salad for my entree which was delicious, but I was stuffed! The salad consisted of lettuce, tomatoes, corn, black beans, shredded cheese, pico de gallo and grilled chicken while I topped off with a bit of guac. I loved the look of the tortilla bowl, but I didn’t even have room to try it.

I also decided that I need to recreate this salad combo at home on a regular basis because it was really good! I just wish I had saved more room for it!

Before I finish this post I just want to say..Go Rangers! Tommy and I actually hit up Crumbs last night to see if we could find this cupcake, but no luck, they were all sold out!