Showing posts with label Restaurant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Restaurant. Show all posts

Jan 12, 2017

Juice Press comes to Boston!

It's a new month and a new year. Happy 2017!

A lot of us like to take advantage of the new year to make positive changes. For many, that means making changes to improve our health!

Health affects everything - productivity, mood, energy, etc. It's so, so, so important. I can't stress it enough!

Health also encompasses a lot - mental, physical, emotional, and financial health all matter. There are so many great resolutions that can improve your health and they're not all about hitting the gym more.

You can eat more fruits and vegetables. You can get more sleep. You can take up meditation. You can work towards a healthier work-life balance. You can pay attention to your relationships. You can save. You can indulge in bubble baths and quiet cups of tea. There are so may options!

For those of us who resolve to eat healthier, it can be tough to stick to it when the realities of life get in the way. We get busy with work, school, and socialization and buying, preparing, and cooking fresh ingredients on a regular basics can get tough. Or, for those who aren't used to cooking healthy food, it can be tough to come up with ideas of what to make. Sometimes it just feels like too many decisions and that's when the temptation to throw in the towel rears its head.

When eating healthy doesn't feel super fun or I'm super busy, falling back on healthy meal delivery services or healthy cafes is really helpful for me. When I lived in NYC, there were great health food cafes everywhere. Boston has its fair share, too, but many of my favorites were missing.

Juice Press Raw Falafel

If you follow me on Instagram, you know I'm obsessed with Juice Press and, in particular, their Raw Falafel. After much waiting, Juice Press has finally come to Boston!

Dec 19, 2016

My Favorite Things to do on a Cold Day!

The polar vortex is returning!

Polar Vortex Meme Funny

I still remember the iconic day of polar vortex-dom for me last winter - we decided to go to brunch, completely failing to check the weather forecast and relying instead on the beautiful sun shining in on us from my window. We bundled up - it was winter in NYC, after all - and made ourselves on our way, only to be greeted by a blast of icy cold air the moment we stepped outside.

But this is brunch, guys, and we're not quitters.

Lord of the Rings Meme Funny


Luckily, I lived really close to the subway station, so getting on the train wasn't a problem. On the other end, however, our brunch destination of choice - we had decided to try Siggy's Good Food at 292 Elizabeth Street in NoHo - was a bit of a walk from the subway. That, or I had terribly misdirected us, as would not be atypical of my navigation skills.

...I'm going to go with Siggy's just wasn't close to the subway.

It took us over thirty minutes to make it from the subway stop to Siggy's. We stopped in every third or fourth storefront to huddle for warmth, before sprinting a bit further down the sidewalk. Our longest stop was in a very heavily perfumed Hollister, where we tried to see if we could zip ourselves into one coat for more warmth. It turns out, two people trying to wear one coat do not have an easy time staying upright. That failed.

Anyway, finally we arrived at Siggy's, a hipsterish cafe well-suited to the neighborhood and run by alien-loving hippies, and had a delicious, and most importantly, warm, brunch. I drank so much tea.

Salad at Siggy's Good Food in NoHo
Follow me on Instagram @danaikadzere for more photos of my eats and adventures! 
I chose the Splendid Raw Slaw Salad with Sesame Kale and Cabbage. I'm incredibly picky about dressings and if it isn't amazing, I don't want it. I really liked the dressing that came with this salad. Whoa!

I also quite enjoyed the alien smiling down on me from the wall and, most of all, thawing out near the roaring fireplace.

Still, going on a let's-find-the-new-brunch-spot adventure isn't what I'd recommend as a typical polar vortex day activity, especially when temperatures are so low that my roommate took a "cold day" (think: 'snow day') off from work last week, because he refused to leave the house. Here are some cozier alternatives!

Feb 7, 2014

Why I Love Le Pain Quotidien

Le Pain Quotidien is probably one of my favorite chains - I get a little happy whenever I find one near me in a new city and I've never had a bad meal at a Le Pain Quotidien.

Here's why I love them!

1) Everything always smells and looks so fresh and so good.

They use simple, fresh ingredients to create wholesome meals fit for omnivores, vegetarians, and even vegans (the menu has something for everyone).


Their tartines are almost too photogenic to eat.

2) The environment is cosy, comfortable, and not at all stiff.

Whodathunk a French place would make people feel comfortable? I suppose the French love of good food (which necessitates good atmosphere) precludes the otherwise anticipated haughtiness.

3) They offer baking classes...

Baking is SO fun.

Sadly for my mom, this is a fairly accurate depiction of how both her kitchen and I look whenever I go baking crazy when I'm home for the holidays.
I think it's great that they encourage people to give it a go, even though they stand to profit more if people and can't bake and must thus visit their cafes to eat tasty things.

4) ...and they actually share their recipes online.

Including for such unique foods as Olive Shortbread Cookies!


5) Bread.



I'm half-German. 'Nuff said.

What's your favorite chain?

Do you prefer cafes or restaurants? Cafes, hands down, for me!

What's your favorite type of bread?

May 31, 2013

Foodie Friday: Must-Eat Spots in NYC

It's Friday, yay!

Actually, it's summer for me - so every day is the weekend! Ah, summer when you're a student. It's the best, I'm seriously going to miss it when I'm a working adult with a year-round job. But in the interim, I'm going to enjoy the seasonality of my 'career' and the slower, more relaxed pace of the summer months.


This year, I'm in NYC for the summer! I've only been here for a little under two weeks, but I've already eaten my way around the city. My camera has been on the fritz, so I'll use pictures from around the web for this post - but these are all places (and yummy foods) that I've tried myself over these past two weeks and can whole-heartedly recommend!

While this is a list of the highlights from the past two weeks (not a comprehensive list of everywhere that I've eaten, just a best-of to cover all the must-eats) it's definitely not a list of all of the worthwhile places in NYC. There are so many eateries in this city that you could probably eat out at a different place for every single meal every day and still require several years to try them all!

Anyway, here are the ones that I suggest putting on your to-eat list (in no particular order).

1) Dig Inn

Dig Inn was a real favorite last year, when I worked at an ice cream shop in Union Square and needed somewhere quick and reasonably priced to eat.

Not my tray, but I've had many similar ones (though with the chicken swapped out for tofu, beans, etc. depending on the day).

The quality is great, the portions generous, the service quick, the food relatively fresh, and the vegetarian options are plentiful! There's also an emphasis on healthy, sustainable food that I really appreciate.

2) Whole Foods

I don't know if it's just me, but the prepared foods sections in NYC Whole Foods seem better than anywhere else! The sushi is always fresh, the potatoes always crispy, the vegetarian pizza always warm, and the salad bar always stocked with plentiful fun toppings!



I especially enjoy their veggie burgers, falafels, and trying out the various fun grains they have - the wheatberry, quinoa, couscous, and various other grain dishes never fail to satisfy!

3) Maoz Vegetarian

Maoz Vegetarian is as convenient (and almost as easy to find) as any other fast food chain in NYC. I really hope they expand to Boston (and Greensboro!) because the business model is great and the food is tasty!


Sure, the falafel are deep fried - but they come with unlimited toppings from their salad bar and sweet potato fries are an option. It's delicious, convenient, speedy, and budget friendly!

4) Tasti D'Lite

I don't know what it is about their frozen treats, but they're just so yummy! Along with Red Mango, they're one of my favorite desserts.


That's an old photo from a trip to Tasti D'Lite with my mom and little sister two years ago. Mine was (obviously) the biggest cup with the blondie and fruits. Yum!

5) Organic Avenue

Nothing remains to be said, but YUM.

I still have a long summer ahead of me (although it will probably pass too quickly!) so here are some places that I would still really love to try out!

1) Chloe's Fresh Fruit Co

Okay, so I have been to Chloe's Soft Serve Fruit Co. before. 


But I don't have any pictures! Their creations are always so stunning, and so delicious, that I just need to get some good photos for the blog. Besides, it's definitely been far too long. And you can never have too much soft serve in the summer, especially with such yummy toppings as chocolate, granola, and fruit.

2) Peacefood Cafe

I really want to try Peacefood Cafe's vegetable sushi and the various vegetable dishes they have.


They even serve kabocha! Need I say more? I'm obviously already sold.

3) Chobani

I've obviously eaten Chobani often (as in: all the time - love) but I haven't been to their cafe. I think it's so cool that they have one and it sounds just like my kind of eatery!


The combos (especially the sweet ones) all sound amazing!

But why are all the best eateries in SoHo? Sort of random, no?

4) Rawlicious

I stopped by Rawlicious before they opened early last summer, but haven't been back since.


Their brownies and raw sushi both sound amazing!

5) Lula's Sweet Apothecary

Oh. My. Gosh.


Their sundaes all look to die for and their ice cream is vegan - so I can eat more of it without upsetting my lactose-sensitive stomach!

Where are your favorite places to eat in NYC?

Have you been to any of the places I want to try?

What's your favorite kind of food to eat out? I really love desserts out - especially ice cream/froyo sundaes! And yogurt parfaits, a.k.a. why I need to get to Chobani SoHo ASAP.

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