Lava Cookies Chocolate Chip Lava Cookie: These massive cookies (about 4" in diameter and 3/4" thick) are available at pastrami shop Harry and Ida's in the East Village. Each cookie costs a little under $6 each and are large enough to be easily shared. I'm not one to purchase a cookie in a bake shop, as I generally prefer other pastries and breads, but I can easily say this is one of the top cookies I've had in my life. On the interior is a molten chocolate filling whose consistency just holds together, while the cookie itself is... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional baked nyc harryandidas lavacookies chocolate chip lava cookie 4.5
Grocers Bottling Co Celery Soda: I've been finding it hard to write snack reviews recently, mostly because I haven't had the time to seek out specialty items that excite me and motivate me to keep writing. But I finally made it out to Court St Grocers in Carroll Gardens this weekend. I've been meaning to check out Court St Grocers ever since I tried their excellent soda offerings at BYGGYZ (RIP), my formerly favorite sandwich shop in NYC. Unfortunately, BYGGYZ didn't have all Grocers Bottling Co (a spin-out from Court St... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional drinks brooklyn nyc courtstgrocers grocersbottlingco celery soda 4.5
Ling Kee Beef Jerky: Around the corner from the East Broadway subway stop on the edge of Manhattan's Chinatown is a small shop called Ling Kee Beef Jerkey (sic). The shop sells pork, chicken, and beef jerky by 1/4, 1/2, or lb sizes, each laid out in stacks under a bright heatlamp. The shop specializes in Malaysian Jerky, which I hadn't had before but remind me a lot of Taiwanese beef jerky, which is nothing like American packaged jerky. Typically, asian jerky is moist, with a glistening, sweet glaze rather th... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional nyc jerky manhattan chinatown malaysian beefjerky meat lingkee beef 4.5
Culture Raspberry frozen yogurt: This is the best raspberry soft serve I’ve ever had, with a concentrated berry flavor that’s sweet and tart. With a flavor this good, it’s best eaten without any toppings. Seasonal flavor from NYC-based yogurt shop Culture. (Purchased over a month ago now, so raspberry may not be on the current menu, but their menu changes every day so it just may return.) 4.5/5.0
exceptional nyc dessert froyo culture raspberry frozen yogurt 4.5
Luscombe St. Clements citrus soda: Almost every time I have a Luscombe soda, I think it’s the best one yet and likely the best version of that particular flavor of any brand I’ve had. I really enjoyed this clementine soda, which has a bright, clean, yet concentrated orange and lemon citrus flavor. It’s clear they’ve taken great care to use the freshest fruit. Definitely one of the best sodas I’ve had. 5.0/5.0
exceptional soda organic drinks st. clements citrus 5.0 luscombe
Otafuku x Medetai Red Bean Taiyaki: Otafuku x Medetai is a small Japanese to-go street food shop in the East Village specializing in okonomiyaki, takoyaki, and taiyaki. Taiyaki is a classic Japanese dessert with a fish-shaped waffle exterior and different fillings inside (traditionally red bean). They make all their taiyaki from scratch here, filling their detailed custom molds with batter and producing 6 fishies at a time, all of which you can watch. This was probably the freshest taiyaki I've had -- it came out pipping h... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional nyc japanese otafukuxmedetai red bean taiyaki 4.5