Spot Dessert Bar - My life is golden with sweetness

After having our lunch in KoreaTown on New Year's Eve, J and I wanted some dessert. Or, maybe it was just me that wanted dessert. It was really cold out and we wanted to go somewhere warm, just bum around for a bit and digest the food we just had.

Just around the corner from our lunch spot was Paris Baguette, a Korean bakery but we decided no and went to Food Gallery which was right across the street and headed up to the 3rd floor where Spot Dessert was. We saw it opening up a few months back and saw the Golden Toast, I knew we had to try it.

We did worry that it might be seasonal but good thing they still have it!

Apparently, J knows the girl behind the register. How coincidental! She even gave us a friend discount, awesome! There were a lot of seats since it's an open food court.

So, I wanted the Hot Thai Coffee but I think J said the wrong thing when he ordered and we ended up with a Hot Thai Milk Tea ($3.50). Probably just rolled off his tongue since he's so use to just having the thai milk tea instead of coffee...

It was good though, nice and hot. Some places don't make their beverages hot enough and I appreciate that Spot does.

The Golden Toast ($8.75) really caught our eyes. Especially after coming back from HK and having the best french toast of my life, I needed this. Although this didn't cut it but it was still good. Infused with honey, the toast didn't come out as sweet as I thought it would be. The whip cream actually helps balances it out and the strawberries were a great counter-ingredient. The combination of the sweet toast and the tartness of the fruit made it that more bearable.

Would I get this again? Probably not because the Kabocha Brulee Cake will always be my favorite at Spot.

Spot Dessert Bar
11 W 32nd St
2nd Fl
New York, NY 10001
(212) 967-1678 

Hong Kong: Traditional Candy and Coconut Wrap

One of the best thing about HK is the endless street food, I can even get my desserts in the streets. Walking along, J and I saw something that was pretty strange. It wasn't the Dragon Beard candy which instantly got our attention. It was a good thing that there were no lines.

The man with his small stand of yumminess!

I was so amazed at how he makes the 糖葱餅 or Traditional Candy and Coconut Wrap, but if I were to literally translate from Cantonese to English, it would be "Candy Scallion Cookie."

It was really simple. He already has this hollow tubular sugar candy stored somewhere and took it out, place it on the coconut wrap and then put a spoonful or two of shredded coconut, roasted sesame and sugar on top. Roll it up and... voila!

It only cost 6HKD which was less than a dollar here in the states.

It was really crunchy but then chewy at the same time. It wasn't too sweet which got me by surprise. I love how the tubes look!

Halfway through, it got completely squished. One of my favorite odd snacks in HK. So glad we stopped to get this!

Randazzo's Clam Bar - Getting my white and red on for the night

One of the few times I ever had dinner at 9pm. I was starving waiting for J to come and pick me up. I was actually on the verge of being grumpy. Good thing he took me somewhere close, plus the service was quick also.

We always pass by Randazzo just because we would crazily walk to Roll N Roaster which is a couple of blocks down. We said to ourselves that we would go to Randazzo soon but that never happened until now.

The waitress that served us is such a doll even though she could be my mother. J ordered an appetizer, pasta entree and house wines.

The house wines are so adorable! I want a whole box of those bottles to myself!
I had the Chardonnay ($5) as he had the Merlot ($5).

Mmm bread. We actually didn't have any of the butter...

The appetizer was delicious! The Combo ($22.95) which consist of scungilli, mussels, shrimp and calamari was perfect. The size was just right and everything tasted really good. The mild marinara sauce complimented it really well, good thing we didn't get the spicy one...

Lastly, the pasta dish. No it's not that small but I was just too hungry and totally forgot to snap the dish as a whole so I just ended up taking a photo of my dish. The Shrimp Randazzo over Linguine ($23.95) was delicious! Shrimp, clams and mussels in a lemon, garlic, butter and wine sauce was just over the top. This is where we use the bread, to soak up all the yummy sauce.

I would just come back for that pasta dish, all to myself. It was on the smaller size but it was good. Definitely quality over quantity here.

Randazzo's Clam Bar
2017 Emmons Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11235
(718) 615-0010

Hong Kong: King of Coconut

I was making faces when J told me about the King of Coconut 椰汁大王. Located pretty much everywhere. It's a small stand where they make juices, but better known for their coconut milk drink. If you're wondering, this is the same place we got the Sugar Cane Juice from but different location.

Apparently, according to J, this specific one makes the best Coconut Milk drink and I certainly concur.

Delicious! Not overly coconut-y at all. Didn't know why we didn't go back and get another one since we've been walking around the same place in circles. Not your average coconut juice, because this taste like a blend of the juice and the actual coconut meat which is why it's milky white...yum!

Hong Kong: Yoshinoya

There were days where J and I weren't so hungry, we needed something small but yet filling. There are tons of street food in HK but sometimes we just want a break from it.

J told me about Yoshinoya since it was literally right below our building and around the corner, so convenient. Took us a while to decide what we want. I ended up asking them if they have a extra large size...and they did!

It's great how it came with a drink, we chose tea, and nicely packed utensils.

We ordered the Beef Bowl - extra large baby! Doesn't look like much but it filled us up. The rice was fluffy soft.

Might look a bit dry, but the beef was really tender and when you bite down into the beef along with some onions, the flavor burst everywhere. So gewd! It's probably overpriced here in the states so I'll just get it when I can when I'm in HK =D

Hong Kong: Wonton Noodles - Part 2

Arriving at this specific wonton noodle shop was a bit of a hike. There was a lot of slopes and "mini" stairs in the sidewalks. But we finally found Mak's Noodle 麥奀雲吞麵世家, the one where Anthony Bourdain visited when he was in HK.

Shared a small round table with another fellow HK-er. Menu is in Chinese but no worries, they do have an English menu for non-Chinese speakers.

The pre-stack bowls, extremely tiny bowls.

Two Wonton Noodles and a plate of veggies again. J likes the veggie here, I prefer the other wonton place better.

The bowl, like I said was extremely small. If I didn't watch myself, I could've finished it in 3 bites. Soup base was good though and the noodles were cooked perfectly. They should put up different bowl sizes for different price so I can just order the big one.

Wonton was nice and plump but I wish it was made with translucent dumpling skin, that would've been cool. Otherwise, wonton wasn't anything special. The wow factor was in the broth and noodles. Plus, I would've liked it more if the bowl was bigger!

Hong Kong: Sugar Cane Juice

J knows that I love sugar cane juice, so it was no surprise that he wanted to take me this place that squeezes it fresh.

They're actually known for their coconut juice (will have that in another post) but for this specific location, it's the sugar cane that he said was good.

The aftermath of the poor sugar canes.

So, the verdict?
I didn't like it. It tasted weird...must be the difference in where it was grown and the weather temperature and whatnot. If you compare this to the sugar cane I had in Vietnam, the colors are totally different and it definitely taste different (it's a lot richer) also. J likes it, which is a good thing cause he can finish it. Haha