Grace Street - Midtown West, NY

I remember Grace Street to be a very unique spot. My fiancé and I visited Grace Street when they were still in the works a couple of years back. They were still renovating and fixing the dining area when we got our first hodduk.

It was the best dessert I've had before. Hodduk is basically fried dough with a sweet brown sugar filling in the center - almost like a donut. It was fresh and delicious.

Fast forward a couple of years, I re-visited Grace Street with my girlfriends. It's a lot more crowded since it's a good late night hangout spot, especially after dinner and you wanted a place to have some dessert and chit chat.

The wait didn't take too long and we sat at a bench. Wait staff was very friendly, even after a long day of work they look happy to serve you. We ordered Hodduk, Chocolate Brownie Waffle, Bubble Tea and Green Milk Tea. To be honest, everything tasted very mediocre. The hodduk tasted like it was just reheated in the microwave and cut up into really small pieces. The taste was there but the texture was lacking. The drink were good but not great. And the waffle...it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Grace Street wasn't how I envisioned and it's quite disappointing.

Green Milk Tea, Hodduk, Jasmine Bubble Tea

Chocolate Brownie Waffle

Verdict:
Food ~ 2 out of 5
Price ~ 3 out of 5
Service ~ 4.5 out of 5

Grace Street
17 W 32nd St
New York, NY 10001

Born Thai - Brooklyn, NY

After a pre-game with the fiancée (yup, just got engaged!) and friend, we were still hungry. Walking along Flatbush on a rainy day isn't that pleasant. But, what stopped us in our tracks was the happy hour Born Thai still have. Plus, Thai food sounded quite promising and comforting on a rainy night.

There was still a lot of tables open (lucky us). The happy hour beverage menu was quite simple, nothing too extravagant and it was all around $4-6. The food here was what caught us by surprised. I honestly wasn't expecting much but each plate we ordered totally delivered. Also, service was on point and friendly.

We started off with the Curry Roti which came with Mussaman curry and not your average curry, it was delicious. The curry was slightly sweet and gave a bit of heat. Next was the Curry Puff, also excellent choice, the puff pastry was perfect and flaked off just how it was suppose to. At this point, I was looking forward to the noodle and rice dish we ordered. It all came out in a timely manner and tasted like it was made with love (yea, sounded quite cheesy there). The Curry Fried Rice was nice, I loved the basil in there which made it very flavorful and fragrant. The Drunken Noodles was a one of a kind, made with udon, the dish was slightly spicy and the intensity builds as you keep eating, also quite addicting.

The night was good. We ordered a couple of more drinks and the wait staff didn't bother us. I believe happy hour ends at 8pm but with good food, company, and drinks the night seemed endless. Definitely a hole in the wall. I plan on revisiting some time soon.

Gin Daisy

Old Fashioned & Cuba Libre

Curry Roti

Curry Puff

Drunken Noodles

Curry Fried Rice

Verdict:
Food ~ 5 out of 5
Price ~ 4 out of 5
Service ~ 4 out of 5

Born Thai
293 Flatbush Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11217

Maharlika - East Village, NY

Maharlika has been on my list for the longest time, even before the hyped, but I'm glad it died down a bit because that's how J and I were able to get a quick seating on a Saturday during lunch.

It's a really small restaurant but filled with personality. The walls were decorated with Filipino style art and photos which really gives a cool eccentric vibe. Our waitress was so adorable, very friendly and outspoken. It didn't take long for us to decide on our dishes and everything we ordered was delicious.

We shared all the dishes which we almost had a problem finishing. Started off with the Lumpiang, Filipino version of a spring roll, it was absolutely phenomenal. Crispy and flavorful, I really like that sweet and tangy sauce, and also the banana ketchup. Next two things were Sisig and Tapsilog, excellent. The sisig was something special, in a small cast iron were pork ears, snout and belly all sauteed together and mixed with an egg. Tapsilog is a basic lunch dish with steak, garlic rice and some lightly pickled cucumbers. All of these dishes we were drenching them in this special sauce they provided us - vinegar and chili sauce. Absolutely tasted great with every dish, and they encourage you to eat it with everything cause it's that good and it enhances the flavor of the dish.

Filipino food is pretty awesome and Maharlika just makes it that much better. Definitely a must visit.

Menu

Rizal's Ruin

Lumpiang Barquillos

Tapsilog

Sisig

Verdict:
Food ~ 5 out of 5
Price ~ 4 out of 5
Service ~ 5 out of 5

Maharlika
111 1st Ave
New York, NY 10003