Rabbit Rabbit Tea Japanese buckwheat milk tea with almond pudding: A caffeine-free option at bubble tea shop Rabbit Rabbit Tea, located at the edge of Union Square. It tasted more of milk than buckwheat, but it did have a familiar Asian breakfast porridge vibe to it, reminiscent of powdered grain packs you mix with hot water. The tea was so so, but the almond pudding was quite good - it had a distinctly non-dairy-milk nutty quality and a soft, slick texture. Overall, though, I probably wouldn't come back to Rabbit Rabbit gven the quality of this drink alone. 3.0/5.0
drinks milktea nyc rabbitrabbittea japanese buckwheat milk tea almond pudding 3.0
Dominique Ansel Kitchen Honey Creme Fraiche soft serve with elderflower grapes: The newest special soft serve from Dominique Ansel Kitchen in the West Village. It's a sizable portion that comes at a sizable price just over $10. The honey creme fraiche ice cream had a good flavor, like a honey-sweetened tart yogurt, but the elderflower-marinated grapes were just not good. They were coated in sugar, making them entirely too sweet and difficult to eat. Without the grapes, I would have given it a 3 overall given the price, but with the grapes, it's a 2.5. 2.5/5.0
nyc westvillage icecream softserve dominiqueanselkitchen honey creme fraiche soft serve elderflower grapes 2.5
Dominant Culture Yogurt with Rosemary Sorbet: When asked for recommendations for where to eat in NYC, I always bring up Chikalicious, a dessert bar in the East Village where $18 gets you a prix fixe tasting of fine-dining-level desserts, always served by the industrious and humble pastry chef Chika Tillman. She and her husband have been offering to-go treats at a separate pop-up on the edge of Tompkin Square Park, including churro cone ice cream that I've previously reviewed. Now they're planning a yogurt shop called Dominant Culture an... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended nyc chikalicious dominantculture yogurt rosemary sorbet 4.0
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
Cedric Grolet & Dominique Ansel Bakery Le Citron, La Noisette, and La Fraise pastries: About 24 hours ago, I was waiting in line at Dominique Ansel Bakery at 7am, an hour before opening, in what would turn out to be a 2 hour await for a taste of French pastry chef Cedric Grolet's NYC debut. This chef is known for concocting fruit desserts whose outward appearance mimics the texture and color of the real fruit, a style many describe as works of art. When its thin shell is shattered, the desserts reveal a layer of cream and a molten filling of fruit compote. Winner of the 2018 W... (read more) 2.5/5.0
nyc pastry strawberry chocolate lemon mint dominiqueanselbakery cedricgrolet chef cedricgroletdominiqueanselbakery le citron la noisette fraise pastries 2.5
Morgenstern's Black currant sorbet : A sharp black currant sorbet, sure to color your entire mouth deep purple. More tart than sweet, and in that way tastes remarkably close to the real fruit. Texture was a tad inconsistent, witha few icier segments. Wish Morgenstern's could let you do two flavors in one scoop because this was an example of a flavor that was strong enough that having an entire single-dip cup felt superfluous. 3.5/5.0
recommended nyc morgensterns sorbet 3.5 blackcurrant