48h in NYC

so it was a bit crazy but i recently jumped at the chance to go to NYC for 48h. long story short - i'd some airline credit to use up before june and because i'm going home for easter, this was sort of the last time i could take a conscience-clear holiday before finals. didn't hurt that my best friend was going to be around the exact same time! and really, who needs an excuse to go to NYC? my last visit was in summer 2014 and with the unbearable heat and crowds, i was not a happy camper. this led to a semi love/hate relationship but so glad this most recent trip changed all that. it's love/love all the way.

i love the energy the city has, it just buzzes (how cliche) and i feel invincible. the architecture is breath-taking and i can spend hours is rapt awe just soaking it all in. the chrysler, the flatiron building etc. crazY! and the food!!! nothing to do with the currency (or maybe everything to do with the currency) but i feel like such an auntie complaining about how things in sg are so expensive in comparison. even london! we'd a 15 course omakase at a fab sushi place for USD105. admittedly well into the 'treat / splurge' zone when it comes to a meal but the same quality would be at least 30% more in london and double the price in singers. so there. rolled out satiated but greedy enough to add extra pieces because while generous servings, my gluttony knows no end.

drinks and jazz at the flatiron room after and hm i just lost track of time. landed at 6pm, uber-ed to union square where i was staying, omakase dins, defensive nap then back out for drinks and jazz till wee hours of the morning! early start on saturday (ugh) but glorious glorious weather. brunch en masse with the crew before having another nap and then steak dinner at somewhere i mistook for a strip club (it wasn't) before a private party till late.

sunday was equally manic, bouncing from brunch at M's suite (and met his parents! fan girl moment, having heard so much about them previously) before brunch round two with F and her friends at the odeon. word has it that bill murray used to fly from LA solely for brunch at the odeon and i do think he was on to something! great vibe and F joked about how this would not have happened in london (her commandeering a table of complete strangers to hang out, essentially we each only knew F or her hubs JP) but it was all good and everyone got along swimmingly. so well, in fact, that we progressed to post-lunch drinks at 230fifth. now i don't know about you but i've had enough of chichi places with a reservation list / queue around the block. we got lucky with 230fifth and i liked how we could waltz in no reso and just find seats, send the boys to buy drinks and take in the skyline. no table / bottle service (ugh) although it did fill up and there was a queue (line, as the uhmurikans say!) by the time we left.

bordeaux

i'm a big fan of supermarket wine but have never really been cultured enough to understand what all those labels mean!  so our visit to bordeaux (docked in le verdon sur mer) was quite the education. wine is something i wish i knew more about but there's only so much info i can pump from B. 

B's one of my oldest friends and we've swum together since we were four. he's a SEA games gold medalist, was in cornell doing pre-med on a swimming scholarship when fate intervened and he found himself eventually majoring in viticulture. he's since graduated and worked his way up the vines and is now a full winemaker on the east coast, having done his time in napa. when he heard i was going to be in NYC last month, he hopped over for the weekend, something i'm super grateful for. ever the gent (and because i'm a poor student) he bought lunch at fatty crab (good! go!) and better yet, came bearing wine that HE HAD MADE. it was as if christmas came early :) he's in the process of overhauling a family vineyard now and has made amazing progress. the rose was delicious (popped it with the grads after we learnt we'd passed hehe) and am saving the red for a special occasion with the mister. we then went to eataly where we'd crepes with, get this, wallace*shawn and B even got a photo with him (that i took). so all in all a winning saturday while the mister was wheeling and dealing in the city. 

oh, but back to bordeaux. vineyard tour, history etc. visited a vineyard bought over by a chinese company (yuck) and felt sad that it was so cheapened (double yuck). the end.

cafe grumpy

was originally intending to get some work done in NYC but halfway through the trip, i realised that wasn't going to happen and it was high time i stopped pretending. had been deliberately low profile and not gotten in touch with friends based in the city just in case i was deep in the throes of revision. but having thrown in the towel, i got in touch with V whom i last met in NYC easter 2012 when i was in town to buy my wedding dress. different story there - didn't tell anyone i was in town in case i needed the entire 5 days to find a dress, which eventually took all of 30mins, and unceremonious as it could've been. mission accomplished on day 1 and was left with 4 days to explore the city. not complaining! funny how history repeats itself. this time we met in the west village near where V lives and had a nice girly catch up over chai lattes. typical! she's a dear friend (12 years and counting!) and every time we meet, i learn so much about her and what she's been up to. the last time she had just graduated and just been accepted to grad school, this time she's a jobbing opera singer (!!!) who's teaching chinese through music on the side. busy busy with summer camps and i can see her warm nature and teaching heart even over coffee. always so encouraged by friends who step out of the typically singaporean box (you know what i mean) and dare to do something different.

girlfriends

after a mere few days of rich ang moh jiak, including three breakfasts before 10am one jetlagged morning, my azn palate was yearning for comfort food. i suppose that's the funny thing about being singaporean born and bred. i'll take a bowl of good pei dan chok over the fanciest three star meal any day. salvation came in the form of my dear friend R, who in addition to being incredibly overachieving is also one of the most resourceful people i know. she's an amazing directory of NYC finds, despite only being there as a summer intern herself, and on a friend's recommendation, we went to somewhere not in chinatown but on bowery (?) for my chinese fix. the lovely lovely thing about R is i always leave time with her feeling more aware, more informed and more curious. she's funny and articulate, immensely self-aware and honestly one of the first person i turn to any time i need therapy.

stk

reso for 2145h, seated at 0012h, mains arrived at 0034h. after 2.5h at the bar and 6 x long island ice teas on  an empty stomach, the steaks were the best i've ever had. clever business model? i think so.

there were about 40+ of us at dinner and V, planner supreme, took one for the team by making multiple resos for dinner. was somewhat miffed that it took so long to get us all seated and swear it was part of their sneaky marketing ploy to run up a massive drinks tab. but it was a good night, balmy on the roof top, good music downstairs and everyone was having too much fun to really mind the wait. tell a lie, i did mind the wait and had i know we'd only get round to dinner the next day i'd have done some defensive feasting to line my tummy. it was one of those hypersocial nights where the mister and i divided and conquered (haha, such nerds!) he'd introduced me round the night before so on day 2, he kinda threw me in the deep end left me to socialise on my own. not that i minded, although there was an awkward moment where one of his friends introduced me to someone and the music was so loud the someone mistook me for his wife. and it was an awkward 10 minutes and quite the comedy of errors before i hurriedly rectified the miscommunication. don't often tell people what i do because it's not very interesting, but did get talking with a medical doctor (qualified and all!) who left the profession to start his peanut selling company. often joke about how it's only when someone chokes on a peanut that the doctor becomes the most important person in the room, and meeting mr. peanut was a funny twist on that otherwise old anecdote.

oh! and we also celebrated the mister's 30th a couple of days early. they'd cake and candles - the works!

john's

friends had booked jean georges' for a late dinner but we got hungry in the afternoonn and went on the hunt for pizza. mind you, this was after a full lunch, fried chicken at blue ribbon and pastrami at katz. sometimes i wonder if we've got worms because the constant hunger is really not cool.

decided to try john's as we'd heard good things about it and it wasn't too far from where we were. 

the only problem with it was that they don't sell pizza by the slices and their 14 inch pies are not for the fainthearted. we did get one to share with the works, and some. did not disappoint and we sat there like two chubby kids stuffing our faces with the cheesy gooey goodness :) never mind we'd three michelin stars waiting...

somehow made it back to the hotel to freshen up and wash away the tell tale pizza grease from our greedy faces and clean up for dinner. and being classy, we dressed to the nines then took the subway to trump tower, as you do. that's what i like about NYC. you can be as well or down dressed as you like and no one gives two hoots. thought it'd be more awkward being so dressy dressy on the subway but no :) phew! and obviously was too cheap to spring for cab fare across the city. 

JG was good but not spectacular. what i found more interesting than the actual dinner was how our russian friend was so typically russian. from not trusting the waitress to bring his drink from the bar to the table when we were seated, to ordering the caviar (USD40 supplement...) because he grew up eating it by the tub, and then later comparing every course with mickeyDs, and saying it paled in comparison to a big mac. i suppose that's the thing about russians and not to generalise but he trusts no one and took forever to open up. we were also with a lovely brazilian couple, born and bred noo yawkaa with peruvian heritage, and a nigerian gent who's based in LA. fun bunch and lots of laughs, often at the poor russian's expense. i balked at the bill and the mister was quick to appease me by saying it wasn't going to happen again anytime soon. it's not my (our?) scene and i wish we'd spent the money on something more tangible. but it's all done and chalked to experience.

early days NYC

we tried to be productive on the flight to NYC, having taken a rather inconveniently timed mid-afternoon flight. companions can't be choosers - using the mister's miles and our annual BA companion voucher meant the available redemption flights were sadly limited. but heyy free ticket so who's complaining? the light was good on the plane and i took this of the mister hard at work.

when we got to NYC, it was straight to the lower east side. arrived at night and had a fashionably late lobster dinner at lobster joint. took a ton of photos but look like the complete gluts that we are, so they're not here. some on fb though, if you're kaypo enough to see! early bird gets the deck chair? spent the next couple of days lounging by the pool and emerging when it got a bit cooler. the mister also pretended to work, and i might've flipped through a book but it was defo more play the first couple of days.

met friends at the standard bar for drinks one evening. caught the sunset from le bain (the bar / club section with a pool). there was some confusion and a couple of our friends were turned away for being sloppily attired (it was summer, for crying out loud!) and having just come from soho house, were unimpressed by the stroppy service. can do without? we were dressed o-k but it's not fun when the group is split and shuffled.

ventured to the roof top bar but the downstairs a/c part was prettier (above photo). what i found quite funny was the waitresses who seemed to be constantly wardrobe malfunctioning with boobies escaping from their dresses. i enjoy a peep show as much as the next person but after awhile it did get tiring. fashion tape, anyone? and unforch as a medic, body humour fails to get me any more.

left for dinner just us two and explored the japanese offerings at the LES. great rec from weylin of epicurative fame!

nyc

earlier this month, the mister had to be in the big apple and i jumped at the chance to tag along. never mind i'd my end of year exams the day after we returned to the UK. this must be the 'unhealthy lack of fear' my mother refers to when she laments my poor life choices. but hey, i'll take revising in manhattan (haha) over revising in london any day, if you get what i mean. 

then halfway through our 8 day trip, i had a little wobble after realising i hadn't done any work at all. what was i thinking? which part of 'revise for exams in nyc' sounded like a good idea?! revision whinge aside (yes, i know it's lame. sorry, will stop now!) nyc was such a blast. we'd a few days of holiday before the mister got busy busy with 14h days and i was left to my own devices. not that i minded, because all the better to catch up with friends without having to be dragged along the wine and dine circuit. ok, so i was the gracious +1 a couple of times and the mister's colleagues are a likeable bunch. but there's only so much jean georges my unrefined palate can take, and so many breakfasts (our record is three full brekkies in one morning before 10am) i can stomach in a day. 

i suppose that's the thing about being social. i tell a white lie and say i'm a housewife. which isn't far from the truth at this stage (reading week otherwise spent in domestic drudgery!) because it's just too much effort to tell randoms i used to be an attorney (uhmurican vernacular!) and am now in medsch. and then have to justify my life choices (again, back to that unhealthy lack of fear). as a quick aside, i've a consultant friend who tells people on the train he works at morrisons (budget supermarket) to avoid being pumped for free medical advice. too funny! anyhoos, most of the other wives are stepford wife types and i evidently far from blend in because much as i wish i'd a trophy wife body (haha) i don't. but i've been juvenile and flouncing around in crop tops and short shorts that have my 20 year old sister cringing in embarrassment on my behalf. had this conversation with the mister about how being in a foreign land is freeing because i'm not about to run into anyone i know and i can look as hobo-like as i want without the repercussions of someone ratting to my folks. in fact, i've developed the bad habit of rolling out of the hotel in my pjs. because the lower east side is casual like that, no one bats an eyelid.

the beauty of facebook is when my inner attention ho posted a photo, tons of friends started to share unsolicited advice about where to eat. i suppose it's all par from the course when one announces they're in nyc. but it was a bit overwhelming and we actually did have plans for most of the trip and were double/triple booked on some days. by some happy coincidence, we were already going to most of the places fb commentators(?) recommended, but were unfortunately less than impressed with a couple we did try on friends' suggestions. note to self: only trust the mister when it comes to f&b! 

jetlag hit quite bad this trip and i'd be up by 6am most days. which doesn't bode well for the mister because there's no tanglin halt peanut pancake to appease me with. and when i can't sleep, he can't sleep. in addition to the pj-wearing in public habit, i also cultivated a napping habit with 2h naps every afternoon (after my fitful 6am starts!). but that just meant i could stay out (and awake) beyond 10pm.

oh and wanna hear a moral dilemma? was walking with a girlfriend after drinks when we saw a lady cyclist kind of go limp then fall off her bike. it caused quite a stir and my inner lawyer was all 'it's uhmurica! don't anyhow volunteer help if you don't want to be sued!' while my inner medic said 'how can you NOT check on her if you're the first person on the scene and equipped with the necessary skills?' no prizes for guessing which side won and i somehow did an impromptu spine + hip exam (she'd fallen on her side) and it seemed to be heat exhaustion. a passerby gave her some water and she pepped up. but gosh, momentarily scary and i'm glad it didn't seem to be anything more serious. of course, the usual safety netting like 'go and see your doctor tomorrow if you're not feeling better', 'ring an ambulance if you start to feel worse' etc. and my favourite magic phrase 'i'm acting in my capacity as a lay person with knowledge' because cannot pretend to be doctor when not. but, you know, it felt good to be of some use.

will post more about nyc over the next couple of days. do check back if you'd like to see :)

a bientot, NYC

so many things to see and do, so little time. but most importantly, mission accomplished! with less than 100 days to go, i was starting to panic a little that i had not gotten my dress. conventional wisdom dictates that wedding dresses are sorted at the very least six months before the wedding. and believe you me, there was no shortage of horror stories of the last minute gown scramble. thankfully, this whole gown hunt took all of thirty minutes. i kid you not. had anticipated it to take hours and hours, maybe even repeated trips to various boutiques and having to devote much of my limited brain space to sussing out the right dress. but whaddya know, one hit, one kill. sure, tried on a couple after just to be very sure that the one was truly the one. and it was. i got such a high from this overt show of hyperefficiency that i was on cloud 9 for the rest of the trip. gown shopping? pfft. piece of cake. ironically, it took longer to ring up the dress at the till because in my excitement i'd forgotten to tell my credit card company that i'd be stateside and they blocked the charge -_-  

yay to fuss-free, drama-less gown acquisition. don't know why i had bride wars playing out in my head. was nursing an irrational fear that i'd end up in a tug-of-war with another bride-to-be. not even close :)

being in new york again for the first time in almost five years felt like an awakening of sorts. mega envious of those lucky ones to call it home and am sorely tempted to take the boards once i graduate and do my training there. am less enamoured by london and hopeful that we too will be across the pond in due time. seeing how the manfriend grew up first in new york, then london so i'm pretty sure there won't be any complaints on that front!

thanks for reading the new york series. have been to cambridge since, and am now in phuket catching some tropical rays as the manfriend remains in the throes of wedding planning. be back soon xx

penelope's

last meal in the city had to be a good one, and V's pickings didn't disappoint :) we tried penelope's at lexington and enjoyed its hearty brunch and charming interior. funny story: i was a little early and when i asked for a table for two, the host gave me a piercing look and said, "i know you." which sort of freaked me out, for all of a few seconds. i mean, i couldn't tell him from adam and uh mistaken identity much? but no. turns out he had taken my photo when i was waiting for T and E at union square on sunday evening, before dinner at masak. vaguely remember some guys toting cameras hovering around and presumed (rightly so!) that they were taking photos of the break-dancers, occupy union sq or the old men and their chess sets. apparently they also photographed "faces". which was still unsettling but oh well. and then thank god V arrived before it got too awkward. but seriously! of the millions of people in new york, i've to go to the cafe where a random photo buff works at. the city is so big and so small at the same time.

queens

ventured to queens despite the stereotype and was pleasantly surprised by how, well, pleasant it was. of course, i'd take the express train by mistake, alight and board a local but in the wrong direction and end up 30 blocks away from T's. but that was quickly rectified after consulting the oracle. T cooked chicken rice. from scratch. with a chicken so big it must've had turkey blood. and boy did i enjoy the home cooked goodness. best chicken rice ever! although i suspect if i wasn't this deprived, i wouldn't feel the same way. but plus points for authenticity. even ate the breast meat so you know it's one supremely moist chicken. the chilli (from singers, naturally) was the cincher and it was a truly satisfying meal. the pre-meal buttersnaps and honey liquor might've played a small part in my effusiveness, as might've my favourite mighty leaf tea that T so thoughtfully stocked. aww :) and the best part was talking to T and catching up after almost two years.

little tourist secret

that C let me in on was that the staten island ferry was free! after being disappointed by chikalicious, it took some orange cream popsicle comforting at momofuku, before i was up and running. snuck into the museum of native americans (free entry!) for a cheeky wee and was soon on board the ferry.

this baldie got in my way but i like how the light plays off the top off his egg head.

miss liberty herself!

touristy but fun :) while i'm adamant that guidebooks cheat you of a genuine experience, i'm glad i made this boat jaunt.

exploring east village

one of the best things about having friends in NYC is the treasure trove of information they are. I took me on a walking tour of east village before heading to work and left me with a hitlist of recommendations. had to see katz deli in the flesh after hearing so much about it, and loving when harry met sally. pity i didn't have space for a philly cheesesteak but oh boy the pancakes and sweet potato fries at clinton street bakery really did me in!

when i had finally created some tummy space, for a specific chocolate eclair, i could smell chikalicious before i saw it. but alas, it was shuttered and i took it as a sign from the universe that i should really be eating a lot less.

:(

clinton street bakery

i'd heard some very good things ("the maple butter is unbelievable!") and some not-so-good things ("expect a two hour queue!") about clinton street bakery and jumped at the chance to meet I there for brunch on tuesday. have known I since secondary school where he was the baby of the board and while the lucky boy has kept his youthful good looks, he's oh-so-grown-up now!  a bit rich coming from me, seeing how we're the same age but i was mighty impressed that my old friend is in a good place and going places. not just with his start up but with an ibanking job at UBS. ibanking?! in this climate?! plus points for dogged determination...

on a more personal note, the pancakes were second only to cafe sirap in stockholm, my long-established pancake gold standard. but that maple butter, ohhhmyword.... the stuff of dreams, i tell you.

avra

when L first told me about avra, i didn't realise just how upmarket it'd be. later on, i surmised it had to be pretty darn atas if that's where J had been wine and dined by "the counterparties". ooh! new word! occasionally i envy these corporate types with bottomless expense accounts. and i was the unlikely beneficiary of J's limited (read: only fancy schmancy) exposure to the NYC restaurant scene. didn't help that the first thing i did was to mistake an important looking patron for a waiter (asked him for directions to the loo, yep, i'm classy that way) and later when the haughty hostess refused to seat us till J came*, L and i went back outside and broke out the marks&spencer cookies i'd carted across the pond.

initial hiccups aside, dinner was absolute yums and best of all, i got to meet the guy who stole L's heart. quite the milestone in my little friendship ledger :)

if you ever go to avra, we had the bread with assorted dips (roasted eggplant, carp roe and garlic chive), octopus and squid appetisers were good, as was the spinach side. the fresh grilled tiger prawns were practically alive when they reached our table but the barramundi was unimpressive. just like how the waiter was unimpressed when we all said no to wine. sigh.

*quite common to only seat the table when the entire party is present

bryant park

tried to brisk walk uptown after cupcakes with C to meet L at 30rock. failed miserably, ended up taking the subway, and still managed to be shamaefully late :/ was just thinking how during this trip, i met my oldest friends, and friends who i feel like i've known forever. first met L in kindergarten and without giving the game away, we've been friends for almost 20 years! same with T, who goes back even further (pre-school, to be precise!) and I and V who i met the next few days i've known for over ten years. it was a happy reunion in an unusual place. little did i know that so many friends would be stateside at this time. 

decided to make the most of the glorious sunshine (recurring theme!) and because there was absolutely no need to impress, nor to show the other how cool we were (haha), L and i settled for bottled drinks and a sunny table in bryant park. it was so good catching up, for it had been too long and i'm so very happy for her :) L's hands down one of my favourite people on earth. she's so fantastic that i used to think no boy would ever be good enough. but along comes J, who i've the pleasure of meeting later that evening and i'm roundly convinced that high as the bar was, he more than surpassed all our expectations of L's eventual significant other. WOW.

in more interesting news, L and i seemed to attract all the bryant park crazies in the three hours we were sitting there. one crazy wanted to rub our feet :/, another crazy circled us like a shark for an hour (!) then asked if we were sisters (???) and a third (less crazy) shakily took our photo. only in new york!

hola guapa!

 

E suggested i take a stroll along the hudson and that's just what i did monday morning before meeting C. hit the ground running bright and early and made my way to the water. before i knew it, i'd found myself in west village, also where E had lived a few summers ago. got delightfully lost among the small streets and sought some shade at this lovely little cafe called grounded on jane street. didn't manage to get a good photo but the green tea soy latte was delish! C very sweetly met me at west village because i couldn't bear to tear myself away and we soon stopped for a sidewalk lunch. met C in stockholm in summer 2009 and we've stayed in touch since. she's such a ray of sunshine and by far one of the most attractive girls i know. my goodness, walking next to her is not for the insecure! men openly salivate as she breezes past and it's so funny watching them scrape their jaws off the pavement after.

after a leisurely lunch, we had to pay homage to magnolia at bleeker (again, thanks E for the heads up!) and took our cupcakes to the hudson to nibble at from a park bench.

magnolia cupcakes, riveting company and spring sunshine by the water. 

what more could a girl wish for? :)

morning by the hudson

the chrysler

the empire state

benches in the sun on the high line

skate park by pier 62

masak

sunday dinner was a real treat! the word masak conjures images of my childhood. masak masak, a malay word, was a familiar one in my peranakan family. it meant to play around (?) or so went the context it was used in. however, what chef larry reutens served was far from child's play. T summed it up best, "you can get more authentic but less good food in flushing". so it was really a question of quality over authenticity. don't think the chef was going for replication of singaporean favourites but more reinvention. appreciated the comfort of familiar flavours complemented by novel presentation and conceptualisation. read some reviews where diners/haters berate masak's failure to remain true to singaporean cuisine. on the contrary, i find that chef larry was faithful to the cuisine by making it accessible to more western palates. if i wanted real singapore food, i'd go to singapore and not east village. 

we shared kueh pai ti (same shell and bangkuang or turnip filling but with inventive toppings like foie gras) and chilli crab dip with fried mantou. oh the joyousness of chilli crab without having to chip away at the shell! the stuffed quail was a winner with the salted egg pairing and we had sambal kale instead of the usual sambal kangkong. for dessert, chef larry paired tang yuan with chocolate sorbet and coffee nibs. WOW. tang yuan like never before. peanut tang yuan but served similar to how the japanese do little rice mochi with ice cream. was chatting with chef about the restaurant and its influences, both decor and cuisine and before i knew it, he very sweetly comp-ed his favourite carrot cake dessert. aww :) free food is surely the way to my stomach but this is by no means a paid review haha. was mighty impressed with masak and have been telling everyone i meet to go there if they've a chance. plus, they serve kaya toast for brunch. WHERE TO FIND!!

FML

no, it's not what you think. 

T works for the UN (taking into account how he used to run RMUN, the irony isn't lost on me!) and was subjected to Fast Midtown Lunches on a daily basis. despite linking up on a sunday, we happened to be in the vicinity of said FML, i.e. cambodian sandwiches! having just fit into a wedding dress i hadn't dreamt of ever fitting into, it was time to celebrate with a massive pig out. then again, i'd pre-emptively pigged out too so maybe i was just looking for an excuse. fearing that said dress would no longer fit after my NYC binge, T told me lunch should be more "last supper" than celebratory. true, but the gown glory had rendered me impervious to logic.

and because FMLs aren't quite the culinary delights they could be, T value-added by finding a lovely rooftop terrace to have lunch on. it was a wonderfully sunny afternoon and it felt like i'd been let in on a little secret because the terrace was full of other smug-looking locals. as if they were guarding this little oasis in the middle of the midtown madness.

after lunch, we followed the yellow brick road (ok, not quite but it'd the coolest quotes!) to the library.

and while T went back to work, i met E at broadway for some jamba juice.