NYC Here We Come

And by "we," I not only mean myself and my friend/boss who I'm traveling with, I also mean my appetite.  I have only been to New York City once before, when I was in 10th grade.  Back then I was more interested in shopping and hitting the "touristy" spots, like the Statue of Liberty, FAO Schwartz, Times Square, etc.

This go-round, I am most excited about the food.  I am actually going to the city to attend a conference: Beyond Housing: A National Conversation on Child Homelessness and Poverty.  I work with homeless families and children, so the conference should be informative for my work, plus Jonathan Kozol, an author who I read when I was in school for social work years ago, is the keynote speaker.  Kozol has been a voice for homeless families as well as the inequities in the American education system for years, and his work is inspiring. 

I plan on writing a few posts about the conference and the other fun NYC-things we do (we're going to see Avenue Q and to see a comedy show at the Upright Citizens Brigade!), but this anticipatory post is dedicated to the food...

Here's where we have planned to go, mostly by way of recommendations from friends:

Co. Pane

1) Co. Pane (pronounced 'Company')- recommended by 2 of my favorite bloggers (A Cup of Jo and Rockstar Diaries).  In their own words: "Co. celebrates the communal dining experience with bread as the centerpiece of the meal. Our menu features a variety of toasts, soup, salads, artisanal meat and cheese selections - and, of course, pizza."

Mexicana Mama

2)  Mexicana Mama- recommended by one of my best friends.  She had me at: "they make fresh guacamole tableside."  It's also listed in the New York Magazine Restaurant Guide.

3) Rai Rai Ken- I asked my Facebook friends to recommend a place for good noodles in NYC.  A high school friend who I haven't heard from in probably 10 years messaged me this: "Best noodles in the world. Rai Rai Ken in East Village. I swear to god. Really small, really good. Also, hey! How are you?"  If this is the first thing he has to tell me after 10 years, then it must be good.

momofuku noodle bar

4) momofuku noodle bar- A vegetarian (and foodie) friend recommended this place--it's supposedly "trendy," so we'll probably have to wait a while to try it, but the menu is pretty amazing.

Cafe Blossom

5) Cafe Blossom- My traveling companion is vegan.  As long as I can have cheese at every other meal of the trip, I'm not opposed to dining veganese for one meal.  This place has gotten great reviews and the menu has things like Root Vegetable Phyllo Pastry and Homestyle Pancakes with Chocolate Chips that sound pretty amazing, vegan or not.

Also recommended that we're contemplating: Jane, Angelica Kitchen (vegan), Lodge (for Saturday brunch), Mesa Grill...where should we go? 
Any recommendations for sushi and/or Thai food in NYC?

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