Wahoo!

As I'm slowly climbing up the ladder in this ivory tower and have moved into an office that has a window (seriously - there's a hierarchy directly related to window space), I can say that it's snowing outside! Wahoo!

Yum

Oh blessed tarte des Grisons. You. Are. So. Delicious.

Le Select

Le Select is so convenient to me in terms of location and it reminds me of a place that I used to love going to when I lived in Europe. I was really hoping that this restaurant could be 'my' restaurant (I'm looking for a place that can be my go-to place), but unfortunately the menu isn't all that exciting, especially at the price point and the food is just ok.

Price point: mid
Ambiance: 4.5/5
Food: 3.5/5
Service: 4/5
Would return again: yes

Mengrai Thai

Mengrai Thai is a restaurant. Nothing overly special, but definitely not horrible.

Price point: low-mid
Ambiance: 4/5
Food: 3.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Would return again: yes

Harlem Restaurant

I've been here a couple times. Sometimes for food, or for drinks, or for music. It can be really cramped for space if you don't get a good table.

Price point: low-mid
Ambiance: 3/5
Food: 4/5
Service: 3/5
Would return again: yes

Jump

Jump is part of the Oliver & Bonacini family of restaurants. I've come to realize that this probably means that while the restaurant experience will be fairly decent, the food itself will be pretty mediocre. I should give Canoe another go at some point. I think the last time I was there was when I was a teenager. Maybe late teens or soon thereafter.

Price point: mid
Ambiance: 4/5
Food: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Would return again: yes

Sushi Kaji

I'm not a fan of wasabi. I don't like the taste of it. I'll eat the stuff that's hidden in the sushi and sashimi but I won't glob on anything extra. One of the pieces of sushi came with wasabi pearls, so I brushed them off and left them on the plate as I happily ate the sushi. While everyone else got a wasabi macaron with their dessert, my plate came with a yuzu macaron. And I had never said a thing. Now that's what I call attentive service.
Also, eating at the sushi bar when there's an open kitchen, watching the chefs artfully prepare their dishes and having the chance to chat with them is quite nice too.

Price point: high
Ambiance: 4.5/5
Food: 4/5
Service: 4.5/5
Would return again: yes

Fabbrica

Mark McEwan's Fabbrica is sort of out of the way if you're a downtown dweller without a vehicle but it's not too bad of a restaurant.

Price point: mid
Ambiance: 4.5/5
Food: 4/5
Service: 3/5 (It was pretty atrocious that night. Although the staff were very pleasant, I think we waited an hour for our main. They comp-ed us a dessert to make up for it.)
Would return again: yes

King West Kitchen

I thought that King West Kitchen would be decent because of its location. I was super disappointed.

Price point: low-mid
Ambiance: 4/5
Food: 2/5
Service: 2/5
Would return again: no

Yuzu

I hope my skimpy restaurant reviews don't overshadow the good quality places that I've dined at. I think I'll use this as a repository of my impressions of various restaurants so I know if I want to go back to them or not.

I will mention that each time I've been to Yuzu, it's been with people who are regulars. As in, they have their own personalized chopsticks that are kept at the restaurant for them. I've been on select days when the food will be really good and have never ordered a la carte. I think there's one 'starter' that's a la carte that we've always gotten, but everything else is really whatever the chef feels like making that night. It's definitely stuff that doesn't go out to other tables as well. The chefs that I've chatted with like the fact that they can experiment on us and let their creativity run wild. I haven't been disappointed with the food yet. The ambiance and service is good, but most likely because who I'm with. I'm sure it would be great otherwise, but it's nothing over-the-top special. And I can't comment on the price, because each time I've been, they just ring in random items because we never get anything that's actually billable. I'm sure we're undercharged each time. Point is, the food is amazing. And it's presented well. I would have to say that this restaurant has made me realize just how good sushi and sashimi really can be.

Price point: mid (I think? My experiences there probably aren't the norm and I'm not charged as such)
Ambiance: 4/5
Food: 5/5 (Again, I've gotten special treatment every time I'm there, so this is definitely a skewed review)
Service: 4/5
Would return again: yes

OINY

Does anyone get The Babysitters Club reference?

Anyway, only on 5th Avenue would you have Bottega Veneta and Forever 21 be neighbours.

And only in New York do you have Times Square and just one block over in Bryant Park, a skating rink and Holiday Market which makes me miss Europe oh, so terribly. I'll have to get roasted chestnuts while I'm here and I'm kinda happy that I don't have to content with the gluwein smell.

So I had thought that I might that this trip to splurge on a new winter coat and was hoping that Moncler would be the place to do it. I was surprise at how limited the collection was in the store. And of course, the one coat that I kinda liked was the one that they didn't bother putting a price tag on. It had this crazy (removable) fur collar. Wool on the outside, but parka-ish on the inside. I'm sure it's so cozy to wear.

And I think I need to give up on my hope that I will be able to own the Loewe bag that I've wanted for all of these years. My adventures in Europe this past summer turned up empty and the shop that carries the brand here in NY doesn't have it anymore. I'm actually devastated about this realization. I'm thoroughly hoping that the company will bring back the large logo format of the Amazona in the future. They've got to. Everything comes back at some point. Sigh.

Occupy _________

The Occupy *insert whatever location name here* thing that's been going on doesn't really interest me. Well, the actual issues that it stands for doesn't but witnessing the 'occupation' does. I think I'm running out of time to see people 'occupying Toronto' and I definitely won't have time to make my way out to their location until next week. Maybe I'll be able to see some Occupy Wall Street action while I'm in the city.

Random fact about me

When I get a migraine, my senses get hyper-sensitive. For example, I can't wear my gorgeous leather jackets because the smell of the leather is unbearable.

What the?!?

Apparently I used up $80 of my pay-as-you-go money last week. And those who know me knows that there's no way that I could have actually done it intentionally. I mean, I barely use my phone at all. The fact that I even have $80 on my account has got to say something about my phone usage. And I still have money left on my account! Darn cell phone doesn't stay locked in my bag.
So. Annoyed.