Falai's Bombolones

Falai Panetteria in the Lower East Side has me by the bombolones. Made fresh daily, these wonderfully poofy donuts come filled with a deliciously eggy and not-too-sweet creamy custard. During my weekend stay, MB and I made two visits to the inviting bakery cafe to partake of the heavenly carbs.

Podunk Tea Party

On a brutally cold day in New York, five of us gals met for high tea at precious little Podunk to celebrate MB's recent nuptials. It was the perfect choice—toasty warm and with plenty of tables to choose from, we settled quite happily in our window seats and proceeded to scarf down a medley of sweet and savory nibbles, all washed down with steaming pots of apricot and blood orange tea.


The sweet stuff: scones, brownies, choco chip cookies, coffee cakes and more.


More: tea sandwiches, fruit preserves and clotted cream.


The savory: meat and veggie pies, spongey/springy breads, goat cheese and olives.

Schiller's Bread Basket

Something to look forward to this weekend when I'm in New York ...



Schiller's bread basket stuffed to overflowing with some of the most splendiferous sweet carbs made by sister resto Balthazar. Schiller's hamburger and fries are also a must-have, especially after a big night out.

Korean BBQ

You just can't beat this combination, if you ask me (accompanied of course with your requisite pan chan): sundubu jjigae, daeji bulgogi (spicy grilled pork) and sticky rice. I pretty much ask for this combination every time I go out for Korean. My folks groan over my lack of creativity, but heck, I hit Korean BBQ joints so rarely, maybe once every few months and usually when I'm visiting my folks, that I like to chow down on my absolute favorites.

My fave Korean BBQ joint in SF: Wooden Charcoal BBQ House
My fave Korean BBQ joint in NY: Kang Suh

For sure there's better K.BBQ to be had in Oakland and Flushing ... and I've partaken, but always with my ma and pa or my aunt and her friends—which means I go autopilot as soon as the elder folk take over. I couldn't tell you where I've been, but it's all good. Wooden Charcoal suits me just fine. Better than fine.

Colibri Makes the List

A foodie friend in New York asked me for resto recs to pass on to a buddy soon to visit SF. I asked her, what's she like? Need some parameters to work within. She let me know that greasy spoons and dives are not for her (and sadly neither is sushi) but rather eateries of the Cookshop level are more up her alley. Got it, I said. As any proper San Franciscan knows, you can't spend any time here without sampling some of the grubbin' Cal-Mex that abounds. Mission taquerias were pretty much out based on the above requirements. What to do ... of course! Mijita certainly makes the list as does Colibri, whose made-by-your-table lumpy chunky guacamole is really outstanding as are its accompanying handmade toasty-warm tortillas. I also liked Colibri's quesadillas as well as the tacos. All well-seasoned, using fresh ingredients ... in a setting that will surely please even the toughest customer.

Rock n' Roll Sushi

O' course, thoughts of my sister's fave sushi joint triggered memories of other lip-smackingly good sushi rolls I've had the pleasure of eating in '07. They are:


the spicy rolls and otherwise at Brooklyn's Cube 63. The little LES resto is also a goodie.


the pricey rolls ordered up at Chaya avec my buds WF, CD and PS.


the crazy explosion of rolls on offer at Ten in the Inner Sunset.

I never did manage to get a picture of the sushi at my fave SF joint: Sushi Groove in Russian Hill. The waloo (aka butterfish) is out of this world. When I used to live nearby, a trip to Sushi Groove to grub on the fish followed by a hop-skip-and-jump over to Swensen's for an ice cream cone always proved to be the perfect antidote to even the roughest work week.