One Love Bite

My meet-up with Elaine (remember Divinejoybites?) in NYC saw us indulge in a good and unique dinner at Spice Market, where Asian cuisines mixed and fused with one another like I’ve never quite experienced before. Of special mention was the Ginger Fried Rice, which tasted really good and teased your senses no end.

Spice Market. 403 West 9th Avenue 13th Street, New York.

While the food is all basic, sloppy fare - eggs, (almost burnt) roast potatoes and corned beef for instance - there’s something cosy and comforting about eating in an old school American diner in the morning. 

Morning Star Restaurant. 949 2nd Avenue 50th Street, New York.

PJ Clarke’s in NYC is quite an institution in itself, having been around for years. The Steak above, while it looks quite charred, was pink and tender on the inside. Good quality stuff.

PJ Clarke’s. 915 3rd Avenue 55th Street, New York.

Premium Beef Burger from New York’s Hillstone Restaurant, full of juicy beefy goodness. Wish they had “fuller” fries to munch on though, they took the term “shoestring” quite literally here.

Hillstone Restaurant. 153 East 53rd Street, New York.

McDonald’s Angus Beef Burger was so good, I ate it thrice when I was in NYC. Simply delicious, and for a very, very small price.

Hotels in NYC during the UNGA will typically mark-up their room rates by astronomical proportions, and so we settled for the most cost-friendly one that was closest to the Singapore PR Mission. The Affinia 50 is small on the outside, but the rooms are spacious and comfortable (comes with a kitchenette too!). Not exactly close to Times Square but the point was to be close to the UN Headquarters.

Affinia 50 Hotel. 155 East 50th Street, New York.

I seriously did not expect that I would be having Roti Prata for breakfast, not when I was departing from Frankfurt and headed for New York. Somehow, the feeling was just superb I tell you, just imagine piping hot prata with chicken curry in a cold airplane. Lovely.

FRA-JFK: Singapore Airlines.

I made my first trip to the US in September last year for the 66th Session of the UN General Assembly. The (almost) 24-hour flight journey to and fro was an experience in itself, but one thing’s for sure I ate a lot on board. Juicy chunks of beef with creamy mashed potatoes, nom nom.

SIN-FRA: Singapore Airlines.

If you’re the sort of person who feels the need to use his Priority Pass at every single airport or airline lounge (like I do), I can only advise you not to waste your pass on the Air China Lounge at the Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport. There’s barely any food save for distasteful cup noodles and a tiny assortment of biscuits. The sitting area was cramped while the air-conditioning was terribly weak. 

Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, Transit Area. Chengdu.

The Shang is one of the best hotels in Chengdu, and with its luxurious and comfortable fitting it’s not too difficult to see why. Other than the wide spread at breakfast, the restaurant also serves up delicious local fare that is pleasing to the senses. I love the way they do their meat, in particular the beef and lamb, tastes good any way they do it.

Shangri-La Hotel. Binjiang Dong Road, Chengdu.