2016 07 02 16.22.16

Tong Tong Bay Roasted dried squid: A delicious, chewy snack with a slightly smoky flavor. Good amount of seasoning, and high level of umami. 3.5/5.0

recommended hmart seafood tongtongbay roasted dried squid 3.5
2016 07 02 14.51.48

Kung Fu Tea Lychee tea with boba and lychee jelly: Purchased from the Kung Fu Tea in Edison, NJ, this tea drink was far too sweet despite specifying 25% sweetness. The boba was also disappointingly soft. The jelly, though, had a decently firm bite. It's too bad there is so much variability with drinks from this chain. 2.0/5.0

drinks tea kungfutea lychee boba jelly 2.0
2016 07 01 13.09.54

Lemon Ice King of Corona Rainbow Ice: Practically a landmark in Corona, Queens, Lemon Ice King has been serving house-made Italian ices for over 60 years. I first found out about it on an episode of Real Food with Mike Colameco, which featured several Queens-based institutions. The corner shop has a wide array of flavors to choose from, but I had to choose the flavor I always ordered as a kid from my neighborhood's Italian Ice truck, Little Jimmy's. This ice, though, was far superior, with by far the best texture Italian ice I... (read more) 4.0/5.0

recommended queens italianice lemonicekingofcorona rainbow ice 4.0
2016 07 01 12.29.21

Tomarchio Limonata Sparkling Lemon Soda: A nicely balanced acidic soda that's slightly reminiscent of Mountain Dew, but just for a second. The sizing of the can makes it feel more filling than a typical 12oz, though it's all psychological I think. 3.5/5.0

recommended italian drinks tomarchio limonata sparkling lemon soda 3.5
2016 07 01 12.29.14

Tomarchio Aranciata Rossa Sparkling Blood Orange Soda: This pleasantly-carbonated beverage is on the sweet side but nonetheless has a distinctive citrus flavor. I prefer it to the Pellegrino blood orange soda, as it doesn't have a metallic aftertaste. From Sicily. 3.5/5.0

soda recommended bloodorange fruit tomarchio aranciata rossa sparkling blood orange 3.5 italian drinks
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Annie's lemon drop cookie bites: Crumbly, shortbread-like lemon cookies that have a very good tangy citrus flavor. Amount of lemon is just right. One of the better lemon cookies I've had in recent memory. 4.0/5.0

annies lemon cookie 4.0 recommended drop bites