Monday, July 16, 2007

two types of food in NYC!

Saturday morning my DH and I decided to get up early and head down to the Farmer's Market at Union Square. It would provide for a nice walk and a good morning activity to get the day started early.

I have to say that the Farmer's Market at Union Square is the only place you will find a large group of New Yorkers out and about before noon on the weekends! Most streets are absolutely desolate at the hour of 8AM. We got down there around 8:30 after the market was all set up and decided to walk the length of the market before we made any decisions about purchases since it was our first time wandering through the market.

After a lap around we decided on fresh scallops for dinner (which we seared and were out of this world!) We also bought some salad and a yellow and green zucchini to go with our delicious fish. Then we made our way over to the Pretzel Stand that sells Martins Handmade Pretzels (they're pennsylvania dutch). For anyone that decides to explore the Union Square Farmer's Market these pretzels are a must - they are sooo delicious! We also picked up a bottle of wine to go with our dinner from a relatively local vendor - Anthony Road. We asked the man running the stand which of his wines would go best with scallops and he recommended the 2006 Chardonnay with no oak. After polishing of the bottle of wine with dinner I must say that we definitely agreed. It was delicious - very light and perfect for a fish meal. We're looking forward to going back and purchasing more wine from him.

The Farmer's Market was our first NYC type of food (organic, fresh and healthy). For our second type of food in NYC, we met up with a friend for lunch at the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park. This is anything but organic, fresh and healthy! But it sure is delicious and a NYC summer tradition. No matter what time of day you get there you wait on a line that is at least 30 minutes. Then you put your order in snag a table and wait about another 10 minutes for your order to be ready. But let me tell you it is all worth it when you bite into that Shake Shack Burger with it's "special" sauce! Mmmmm...good! I've gone twice this summer so far and the first time I had their rich delicious chocolate shake with my meal and let me tell you that's what will put you over the edge. This time we shared a lemonade and fries so we could enjoy our burger and not feel disgusting afterwards (although for first timers the shake is part of the experience!) The Shake Shack as I said is a NYC summer tradition so if you're ever exploring NYC in the summer set aside some time for a burger in the park.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey! You can't forget a visit to the dog park whenever you head over to Shake Shack!

readerbean said...

This is true - I did not mention the dog park in this post! Nor did I post about doggie heaven at Ramapo reservation. But how could you not love watching dogs at play even if you are not a dog owner right?