3-Hour Dinner at Ai Fiori | NYC

The Breakdown:

- Occasion: Fancy date night, anniversary dinner, etc.

- Attire/ambiance: Classy, elegant.

- What to order: Definitely the Anatra (duck) and Trofie Nero (squid ink pasta, quite unique). If you like rich desserts, then get the Tartaletta.

- Reservations? Yes. (Keep in mind: the 4-course prix fixe may take 3 hrs.)

I had my first Michelin Star experience at Ai Fiori - "Among the Flowers" in Italian, the epitome of fine Italian & French dining. I now have a much greater appreciation for the sheer level of dedication and detail that these places must maintain 24/7.

After we ordered, our server brought over a complimentary appetite-awakener. The grape was a nice touch, and balanced out the savory panna cotta cheese.

Then they presented an assortment of freshly-made bread to choose from, including multi-grain bread, sweet onion rolls (pictured), French baguettes, etc. I normally never use butter with bread, but their herbed butter was irresistibly light and fragrant.

Elegantly plated appetizer - Insalata di Astice: Nova Scotia lobster, cipollini onions, celery, new potatoes, dill. There's so much going on here...Great balance of flavors.

My appetizer, the Vellutata: lobster soup, périgord black truffles, tarragon. I thoroughly enjoyed the first few bites; however, it quickly became too rich/heavy for my taste.  

My next course was their famous Trofie Nero (squid ink pasta): ligurian crustacean ragu, seppia (cuttlefish), scallops, spiced mollica (bread crumbs). The thick, crunchy, tightly-coiled pasta strands were fun to eat but over-hyped, in my opinion. 

Another great pasta option is their Risotto: riso aquarello (Italian rice), duck confit, mushrooms, marsala (wine), parmesan fonduta. They definitely didn't skimp on portion size!

The next meat dish, the Tagliata: prime dry aged strip loin, endive, potato terrine, “cacio e pepe” (basically cheese and pepper), balsamico, bordelaise. The meat was cooked perfectly, very tender and juicy, but lacked the wow factor for us.

On the other hand, we absolutely loved my meat dish, the Anatra: long island duck, apple mostarda (an Italian fruit and mustard condiment), tuscan kale, hazelnuts, cipollini onion. It was cooked to a perfect medium-rare, and the fruity sauce, nut-encrusted caramelized skin, and flavorful meat complemented each other beautifully. Best dish that night, hands-down.

Though I was much too full to even contemplate dessert, I gave in anyway to the raspberry mousse paired with a tangy peach sorbet, fresh fruit, and white chocolate.

Also fantastic but very rich – the Tartaletta: Loma Sotavento 72% ganache (a smoky dark chocolate), chocolate chiboust (pastry cream), tiramisu gelato.

Instead of mints, these delicious petit fours accompanied the check. 

Thus concludes a food coma-inducing but very memorable dinner. My only gripe would be toward the insanely slow service...We got there at around 8:30 pm but left at almost 11:20. At least the numerous courses of the meal kept us entertained. 

Chocolate Heaven at Big Gay Ice Cream | NYC

Let’s take a moment to appreciate this close-up...

You're staring at the just-hardened magic chocolate shell encasing the "Salty Pimp" - a genius combination of creamy vanilla soft serve injected with globs of dulce de leche and sprinkled with sea salt. Each bite was a symphony of crunchy and creamy, sweet and salty flavors...delicious.

We also got the "American Globs" - vanilla soft serve studded with salty pretzel chunks and smothered in chocolate. Personally, I liked the Salty Pimp better (love the caramel) but both are great choices. A must-try if you're in the area and have 30 min to 1 hr to spare for the long line. 

Zinneken's Waffles | Cambridge

The Breakdown:

- Occasion: Casual breakfast, date, or afternoon hangout.

- Attire/ambiance: Casual; not much space to work, but good for sitting down and catching up with a friend.

- What to order: Any type of waffle with chocolate + fresh berries. 

Ordered the Strawberry Glamour - a dense, chewy Liege waffle smothered in decadent Belgian chocolate, fresh strawberries, and powdered sugar. Paired with a creamy latte, it was the perfect rainy-middle-of-midterms day pick-me-up.

These authentic Belgian sugar waffles are now pretty hard to come by – even in their homeland. They were first created in the 1700s as an adaptation of the popular pastry, brioche. What makes Liege waffles so unique is their oblong (vs. round) shape and sweet, crispy outer skin. 

A lot of skill goes into keeping the waffle irons within a certain temperature range to allow the sugar to caramelize perfectly. The result? A crisp, chewy waffle, completely encrusted with a caramel glaze and topped with fruit and chocolate. Pure bliss. 

A sweet story to go along with that: One day, my roommate surprised me in bed with a warm box of Zinneken’s waffles and the smell of freshly-brewed coffee. We were able to share an indulgent breakfast together before heading off to our Monday morning classes…Couldn’t have asked for a better way to start the week.