Ayada Thai

I knew the hype.  The viral mango sticky rice.  Michelin-recommend. Yadda yadda.  I honestly didn't pay much attention to it, despite the fact that I work right next to Chelsea Market, and despite the fact that I do quite like mango sticky rice.  I've mostly just been over mango in the United States since living in Sydney for a while and having it locally grown.  It is just so dramatically better there than anything we have here (and I'm sure Thailand and others are great too).  But when my mom recently visited me in New York, and we did the tourist thing of wandering through Chelsea Market, I had to at least get *something* out of enduring that right?  Viral mango sticky rice it was.

Ayada Thai actually has a full sit down restaurant, that I've never heard anyone talk about.  I don't think it is noteworthy in any way, besides their sticky rice. The sticky rice got so popular that they opened a second business a few doors down, a much smaller space, that is literally just for the mango sticky rice. There are a few seats but it is basically a very efficient take out spot.  Since they sell one thing only, the line moves fast (and yes, there was a line).  All you do is say how many you want, and it is handed over instantly, as the containers are all ready to go.  They have multiple staff members off to the side doing nothing but cutting mango, and someone else packaging it up with the rice and sauce, so even though not made to order, it really did seem likely made within the last 20 minutes at most.  The level of streamlining they have done is impressive.

Mango Sticky Rice. $12.

The product however didn't look very impressive.  Packaged for takeout, the rice wrapped in plastic, the coconut cream in a little container. The mango fairly pale.  I didn't think it would be anything special, and sorta rolled my eyes at myself for even caring enough to get it.

But once I got home and warmed up that sticky rice and plated it up ... well, damn.  It is the best I've had in the US.  The sticky rice itself was actually perhaps the best I've had anywhere, which is shocking for takeout that I heated up at home a bit later.  The level of sticky, the sweetness in it, all was just perfect. I have no memory of having a better version.

The mango didn't look particularly ripe or like it would be better than average, but, it was.  Perfectly ripe actually, flavorful, pleasant sweetness.  I've had much, much better mango in other countries, but I don't think I've had better here.  The coconut cream was standard.

Put it all together, and no question, the best I've had in the US.  Yes, I'd get it again.  Yes, this is dangerous knowledge as I work across the street.  4.5/5.

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Zaab Zaab

I spent a significant amount of time in Sydney over the years, and whenever I was there, I ate southeast Asian food basically the entire time (with a bit of "Australian" thrown in from time to time, but mostly, southeast Asian).  It was just sooo good there, considerably better than anything I had in San Francisco.  I had kinda stopped eating that food in the US for the most part, as I was always let down. But since moving to New York, I've started warming to the idea of finding good Thai (and Singaporean and Malaysian, hopefully) food, particularly after loving some dishes from Thai Diner and Fish Cheeks.

I still didn't actually seek out Zaab Zaab, a local Thai restaurant, with two locations, one in Brooklyn, one in Queens.  They actually came to my office to do a catered meal, which is obviously a different experience than visiting their real restaurant.

Menu.

"All Khao Soi's are served with your choice of protein, egg noodles, broccoli, chopped garlic shallots, lime, and optional dried chili, topped fried noodles."

Our menu was one main dish: khao soi, which delighted me, as it has been my recent favorite Thai dish anywhere.  I liked the visual display with the real product, which probably was helpful to those less familiar.  For proteins, the options were fried chicken, regular or spicy pork belly, or fried tofu.  Interestingly, at the restaurant, they have only one version, with beef shank (which we didn't have).

Assembly Line.

Dishes were assembled to order, assembly line style.  Pick your base (rice, noodles), your protein (chicken, pork belly, tofu), your toppings (broccoli, garlic shallots, lime, herbs).  Items were added to your bowl, which was then finished with a ladle or two of the curry sauce, and crispy noodles.  Chili was on the side for us to add ourselves to customize the spice level, and it was legit spicy, I greatly appreciated this.

Khao Soi, Tofu.

I got noodles as my base, all the toppings, and fried tofu, as I was just not in the mood for pork belly, although it looked crispy, fatty, and excellent.

I liked this.  The noodles in the base were well cooked, not too mushy.  The curry was creamy and flavorful, relatively complex and balanced.  My scoop of chili definitely put the spice level in a nice place.  The toppings were all standard and good, the broccoli nicely crisp.  Of course I adored the crispy noodles on top.  The fried tofu had a really fresh flavor, strong soy, and I liked the fried aspect.

This was all good, average for a real Thai restaurant.  I liked it, it was comforting, and it seemed relatively authentic, but I wouldn't call it a destination dish.  Just, good.  3.5/5.

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Princeton Popcorn

Oh popcorn. It is my ultimate snack food, my complete weakness.  No matter the bag size, popcorn is a serving size = 1 in my world.  I'm an avid snacker and popcorn really does make up a rather ridiculous portion of my weekly diet.  I just love it so much (but strangely, I really don't care for microwave popcorn, or even movie theater popcorn.  I like bagged popcorn, artisanal popcorn from specialty shops, kettle corn from farmer's markets, but not the others.  I can't explain it).

Anyway, I always seek out new brands to try, which lead me Princeton Popcorn.  It is a small family run business, located in Kansas.  They specialize in mushroom popcorn, the kind that pops into bigger kernels with no shattered edges, but rather, big puffy kernels.  Most of their products are quite wholesome, including several styles of popcorn kernels for popping on the stovetop (no microwave popcorn), wheat berries, and whole grains such as wheat, oats, millet, flax, rye, etc.  It is,well, a farm after all. But they do make one single ready-to-eat snack food, dubbed PuffyCrunch, and that one is all I needed.  It was glorious.

Peanut Butter Caramel Popcorn.

"Farmer Bob's mushroom popcorn coated in caramel, then rolled in peanut butter from whole peanuts."

This was glorious.  Now, I am a popcorn-o-holic, and big huge mushroom popcorn is going to win me over in most cases anyway.  And I do love peanut butter, and had been going through a peanut butter craving phase (literally, earlier that day I had chocolate peanut butter spread on crackers as a snack, and a pb cup alongside my coffee in the morning, the day before I had Trader Joe's PB&J snack duos as my evening snack, and a Reese's Fast Break earlier in the day, etc).  So I kinda knew I'd like it, but it still was better than I imagined it would be.

The kernels were so big and puffy.  Perfect crunch. The name "PuffyCrunch" really is apt.  Fantastic base of popcorn. Then, the light caramel coating, just enough to make them slightly sweet, nothing like cloying sweet caramel corn you may anticipate.  And the peanut butter coating?  So deeply nutty.  The fact that these are made with very few ingredients really does come across as you taste the pure peanuts and no other junk mixed in.  

There is nothing I'd change about this product, other than the fact that oops, it is supposed to be 6 servings, and I ate it all in a day (900 calories for a little snack, oops).  5/5.  More please.

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Birdie's Frozen Yogurt

2026.  The summer of froyo in NYC.   My blog has had a label just for froyo for years, so clearly, I'm a fan of this resurgence of froyo and the plethora of options to pick from (less a fan of the ridiculous 1-2 hour lines, and the high price tags though).

I started a bi-weekly froyo crawl with some coworkers, sticking with options relatively close by our office, which limited things, but still allowed us to try a number from my list, including Birdie's, one that was further down on my list, but most convenient for us, only a 10 minute walk away, and likely to not have lines.

"Birdie’s is bringing back delicious frozen yogurt and a curated candy selection to the heart of the West Village, named after our beloved Brussels Griffon."

Birdie's has two concepts: froyo, obviously, and pick and mix candy.  The candy is self-serve, pay-by-weight, but the froyo is not.  As someone who really prefers self-serve froyo, this is a bummer. 

Outside Seating.

The outside of the store really is charming, with cute patio furniture, and their signature pale blue color scheme.  That they have seating is a nice bonus, as most froyo shops do not.

Menu.

Inside follows the same decor theme, again with the pale blue, and the cutesy style.  There are a reasonable number of seats inside.

Birdie's offers 6 flavors, on our visit it was vanilla, chocolate, tart, raspberry tart, peanut butter and vegan chocolate.  I'm not sure how often they change, as those are the only flavors I've ever seen in reviews as well.  You can swirl tart and raspberry tart, vanilla and chocolate, or peanut butter and vegan chocolate, or you can get any two side by side. There are 3 sizes available, for $8/$10/$12.

I asked to sample two flavors, the tart raspberry and peanut butter.  The peanut butter tasted like my memories of JP Licks peanut butter yogurt; it was definitely a sweet, ice cream like style, not a Greek yogurt style.  The tart raspberry was fine; it was still a sweet style, but a bit icier and thin than ice cream would be.  I also tried the vegan chocolate that my coworker got; it tasted exactly like my memory of a fudgsicle.  None left me particularly excited.

Toppings.

Cups are assembled for you, but one unique feature is that they put toppings both on top and on the bottom, although the toppings are pretty pricey ($1.50 for regular, $2.50 for premium).  One non-premium topping is included in the price.  

The lineup included a few fresh fruits, standards like mini choc chips and yogurt chips, plus slightly unique things like mochi or dark chocolate covered pretzels.  The premium toppings were definitely the. most interesting, with different crunch sauces, homemade brownies, and the most famous one, brown butter cookie dough.  All of these are still the type of toppings you'd find at most generic froyo places, again, nothing like what the more trendy Greek yogurt places have featuring kadaif and slews of elaborate sauces.

Peanut Butter and Vanilla/Chocolate Swirl.
Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Sauce / Strawberries / Yogurt Chips.
Medium ($10) + $1.50 topping + $2.50 premium topping = $14.

I thought the peanut butter was relatively good when I sampled it, but I wanted to try something else too. I opted for both the vanilla and chocolate as a swirl for my second choice, as I thought the tart options would contrast strangely with peanut butter, and I couldn't decide between vanilla or chocolate.

I wasn't really into the chocolate, which I should have known, as I rarely like chocolate ice cream, particularly soft serve.  Oops.  I really thought it would go well with the peanut butter, though; that's why I risked it.  The vanilla was fine but lacked a particularly strong vanilla flavor.  The peanut butter was fine, which I knew from my sample.  All were quite sweet, like typical ice cream, with average thickness and creaminess.  No flavor was particularly memorable, nor did any really taste like yogurt.  

The strawberries were fine, the yogurt chips were as expected, the crunch sauce didn't seem any different from that offered at 16 Handles, I don't think they made any toppings besides the cookie dough and brownies in house.

Basically, it seemed like any generic froyo place, with nothing premium, nothing unique, very little housemade, just a cute decor and on-trend with the summer it opened.  I don't see a real reason to return, but I wouldn't say no if someone wanted to go.

3/5.

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O'Briens Bar & Grill

A sports bar near Madison Square Garden.  Definitely not a place you'd expect me to stumble into, and yet, I did, to O'Briens Bar & Grill.  I never would have discovered if it wasn't for the summer of Paze*, and this isn't one I'll be returning to, but it was quasi-interesting to check out.  The service wasn't particularly friendly, and my orders were never ready when they said they would be, but at least that meant I got hot fresh food.

*If you are unfamiliar, Paze is a digital wallet system (like Paypal or Google Pay) that you can use to check out with some merchants.  In the summer of 2026, when they launched, they had a promotion with most major credit cards and banks to give you back a $10 credit, up to 10 times, per card/account, if you spent $10 and paid with Paze.  One of their launch partners was Clover, the company behind many restaurant POS systems, so if you ordered online through their Clover storefront, and paid with Paze, you got $10 free (over and over, again, 10 times per card/account).  Tax, tip, it all counts towards the $10, so you could get something <$10, and just tip up to the $10 to trigger the credit.  I love a freebie, and I love excuses to check out places that I wouldn't normally stumble into, so I used Clover and Paze to go on little missions every weekend, gettings $100s in free food along the way.

Exterior.

The outside looks like basically any bar anywhere.  No outside seating, no particularly inviting signage.

Inside.

Inside was considerably bigger than I expected, with two long bars with seating, table seating, and booths on the other side.  Pretty classic sports bar setup with TVs too.

It was entirely vacant the first time I visited at 12pm on a weekend, but quite full during the week at 7:30pm.  Clearly an evening venue.

Onion Rings. $5.50.

The first time, my order was still being prepared when I arrived, so my onion rings were served hot and fresh out of the frier.  They were pretty greasy, and seemed like they were left in a bit too long (or maybe I just prefer a lighter golden color), but I liked the sizes and the amount of coating (although the batter could be more flavorful).  Basically, they were fine, I enjoyed them, but I wouldn't go back for them.  Higher 3/5.

They don't have any dipping sauces available, but included a bunch of ketchup, along with a single mustard and single mayo.

Apple Crumble. $7.95.

Who orders takeout from a sport bar and gets ... the apple crumble?  Um, yeah, me.  I saw it on the menu when I was browsing a few days prior, and I couldn't get it out of my head.  I really wanted apple crumble!  I also wasn't quite sure if this would be a slice of pie with crumble topping, an actual fruit crisp/crumble, or even something more like a crumb cake.  I really didn't want a crumb cake, but either of the previous options would be fine with me.

The answer?  A crumble topped pie. I had pretty low expectations, I knew it wouldn't be made in house, or anything special, so I was quite surprised when I opened my takeout bag to find that 1) they served it warm, 2) they included several sauces, 3) they included whipped cream!  They actually were trying here.

The slice of pie was actually kinda small, I mean, it was a reasonable portion in terms of what a human should eat, but certainly not standard restaurant sized, and felt a bit skimpy for the price.  But that said, it was pretty decent pie.  It had a generous crumble on top that was sweet, crispy, and pretty satisfying, slices of well seasoned and not too mushy apples that didn't have too much goo, and a strangely crisp back and bottom crust that wasn't really standard flaky pie crust, but also wasn't a shortcrust either.  Besides the crust being overly crisp, it really was quite decent.  The crust wasn't bad, it just wasn't any standard kind of pastry crust, and the level of crunchy certainly isn't expected.  Again, I'm sure they purchase this frozen and just reheat it, but hey, it was good. 3.5/5 pie.  That is ... until I found mold.  Yes, mold.  In my pie slice.  I obviously stopped eating it when I tasted (and then saw) it.  Clearly, they have some issues with expiration dates.

 

The whipped cream was a thoughtful touch to include for takeout, and I'm sure when you get it in the restaurant it stays looking nice, but I live a 5 minute walk away, and it was entirely deflated when I reached home.  I'm sure it was standard spray can whipped cream, and that just never holds up.  It didn't taste like plastic-y Reddi-whip, which earns them another point.  I drizzled it over my pie like, well, cream, instead.  

The sauces were a complete surprise to me.  I really didn't expect sauces included, and wouldn't have expected them dining in either.  One was standard chocolate sauce, which made no sense to me with apple pie, and sorta screamed out tacky plating style with chocolate sauce drizzled on every plate for no reason.  But hey, now I have some chocolate sauce for my next ice cream sundae at home.

The other was ... I'm still not sure.  It sorta tasted apple to me, like, cidery almost, which could make sense drizzled over apple pie.  But it was sorta reddish and looked more like a strawberry sauce.  I find it crazy that I can't really tell you which of these things it was, if either, but it sorta tasted like both and neither at the same time.  I did like it though, both with the pie, and I suspect I'll enjoy it on ice cream later too.

Overall, this was a really pleasant surprise, until the whole mold situation.  For a sport's bar dessert, far, far above average, let's even say 4.5/5. If it was served a hotel buffet/restaurant, still quite a bit above average, 4/5.  If I compare to regular mid-range restaurant, about on par, 3/5.  That leaves me somewhere around 3.5/5 as a overall rating, particularly because they included the sauces.  But, they sold me old, moldy pie, and that is unforgivable.  0/5.

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Nuovo York Pizza

I moved to New York, and became a cliché.

After years of not caring about pizza, I suddenly crave it, all the time.

"We focus on delivering authentic New York style pizza built on consistency, quality, and precision. Every slice is designed to meet a clear standard with balanced flavor, proper texture, and a reliable experience you can count on every time you search for great pizza near you. Our process starts with carefully selected ingredients and a dough that is fermented for optimal flavor and structure. From the sauce to the cheese to the final bake, every step is controlled and repeatable. We do not rely on shortcuts or guesswork. We rely on systems, measurements, and constant refinement. That is how we maintain the same quality across every order. Rooted in classic New York pizza tradition, our approach is focused on improvement, not imitation. We aim for a clean and well balanced slice with the right crisp, the right chew, and a flavor profile that stands out without being overwhelming. "

In particular, what I've been craving is classic New York slice shop slices.  Yes, I've also had all the fancier well known places (e.g. L'Industrie Pizzeria, where I was completely blown away, finding their crust to be exceptionally crisped and lightly chewy, and their signature burrata slice to be totally flawless and well worth the hype, Slicehaus Pizzeria, that I noted that while it is far more accessible than its peers with no crazy lines and great 48-hour fermented dough, and Mama's Too!, where I found their heavy Sicilian-style square focaccia bases to be far too greasy and spongy, though I did enjoy the toppings and sauce on slices like the upside-down and poached pear). But lately I've been into trying out random slice shops (ok, not totally random, at least ones that have good reviews, just not ones I see anyone really talking about much).

Setting

Nuovo York Pizza is one such place, located in the East Village.

Slices.

The setup is pretty standard slice shop, with mixed pies on display, and slices plucked from there and heated up to order.

Seating.

They had a reasonable amount of seating, with a few seats at tables, and high chairs along a counter.  Oregano, garlic, red pepper flakes, and hot sauce available to garnish.  Slice shop style, so no table service or anything.

Food

Pizza comes in two styles: round or square.  Round has the largest selection with 8 styles by the slice (your standard cheese, pepperoni, margherita, plus common white or vodka, then three more unique ones: pepperoni pesto, "cherry charm" (with cherry tomatoes and fresh burrata), and their signature spinach and mushroom white pie), plus two more that are whole pizza only.  Squares are either plain, pepperoni, or bbq chicken or buffalo chicken by the slice, or a few more whole.  No custom orders.  Pizza is available by the slice, one size only round pie (18"), or one size only square pie (16").

For sides, they offer 3 kinds of dough based products: garlic knots (orders of 3 or 6), parmesan bread bites, or cheese sticks. There are no salads, fries, wings or other options for sides, just more pizza dough based items.

Garlic Knots (6).  $4.

For a side, I went for the garlic knots, not really wanting more cheese along with the very cheesy pizza. 

The garlic knots were great.  Puffy, nice golden edges, great garlic flavor.  Buttery but not overly oily.  I really enjoyed these.  3.5/5.

The marinara sauce was fairly standard, a sweeter style but not overly so, nicely seasoned.  Some small chunks of tomato.  Not necessarily better than a really good jarred sauce, but still good. 3/5.

These are available as a trio for $2 or half-dozen for $4.  I actually ordered just 3, but got 6.  One dipping sauce is included, choice of marinara/ranch/blue cheese.

Spinach Mushroom White Pie. $33.

I'll admit that a white pie was an odd choice for me, as I usually do want the marinara.  But I saw so many reviews raving about this pizza, and I knew it was their signature thing, so, hey, why not try it.

My pizza was ready right as I walked it, plucked from the pizza oven and boxed up on the spot.  Can't beat that freshness.

It was a well executed pizza: NY slice thin crust (not fancy thin crust), thick enough to hold up to being eaten without utensils, but not overly bready.  Nicely crisp, slight char on the undercarriage.  Back crust was sufficient for holding but not bigger, so you didn't fill up on crust.  Fairly classic New York slice, executed pretty well.  The slices were massive, 8 to a pie, and 18" diameter, so these were very big, although not very evenly sliced (which I preferred actually, but for a brand that talks about precision, the slicing was not).

The cheese was a very thick layer, and it had nice cheese pull to it.  The white sauce ricotta was creamy under it all.  Definitely some garlic and seasoning in it.  The spinach wasn't dominant, and was barely noticeable, but I suspect it did add a bit to the flavor, even if I didn't quite detect it.  I liked the hearty style of mushrooms used, but they weren't particularly evenly applied.  The toppings came together well, and I liked how creamy it was, but it was pretty heavy with all the cheese.  I think I'd prefer a little less of it.  

So overall, a reasonably well executed slice, and a slightly unique offering, but, not completely assembled with care, and probably not something I'd get again.  I still enjoyed it though.  3.5/5.

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Gnocchi on 9th

I can't say I eat a lot of gnocchi, but I do like it from time to time, so I was excited when Gnocchi on 9th was doing a popup event at my office.  Gnocchi on 9th is a small chain that started only in 2024, that somehow has 10 locations now.

The place doesn't actually get that great of reviews, but it certainly is well known (and people seem to love at festivals and winter markets).  A lot of the hype seems to be the unique serving style (in takeout Chinese food containers), and the fact that you can get a bit blog of burrata perched on top.  Still, I had hope.  Alas.

Storefront.

I did not visit the actual restaurant, but I have walked by it many times.  Instead, they came to us with a catering setup.

The restaurant has a very streamlined menu of basically just gnocchi, but for our event, it was even more minimal, only two options, alla vodka or al pesto.  No toppings or add-ons.  Boo.  At the actual restaurants, you can add burrata (definitely what gets all the Instagram notice), or shrimp.  They also have a few more sauce options to choose from, such as bolognese, cacio e pepe, truffle alfredo, along with a gluten free version, and salad and tiramisu to round it out.

Gnocchi alla Vodka.

"Gnocchi in a luscious, tomato and cream sauce. Everybody’s favorite choice."

I'll cut right to chase.  I did not like this.

The gnocchi was gloopy. Way too mushy. The sauce reminded me of something very, very distinct, instantly: Chef Boyardee.  Or actually, I guess Campbells, as it gave VERY strong SpaghettiOs flashbacks.  Granted, I haven't tried those in many, many years but my brain identified the taste shockingly fast.  

I did not like this.  1/5.

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