NYC Part 2: Café Grumpy

After visiting the MOMA, we headed to Chelsea for coffee at Café Grumpy. I had never been to a Grumpy before, but with a name and logo like that, how could I not? The Chelsea Grumpy is cute and tiny. Parking was not a problem and the location is a few doors down from the NYPD #10th Precinct. Also, it is the first coffee shop that I have ever been in that has a laptop ban.

I ultimately decided on a coffee flight to give three out of the four caffeinated choices a try.

• Top: Nicaragua - Santa Teresa
• Bottom Left: Kenya - Gethumbwini
• Bottom Right: Colombia - Desarrollo Co-op.

Thorough descriptions here. All were pleasant, but I enjoyed the Gethumbwini the most.

After the coffee, I naively decided that I wanted to walk the half mile to Chelsea Market.

I say naively because it was excruciatingly hot outside. I usually do not have a problem with heat and humidity, but I regretted drinking the hot coffee and wearing pants. Inside the Chelsea Market, I immediately wandered into the Chelsea Wine Vault where they were having a free wine tasting. Although I did not care for the free wine offered, I did enjoy the rest of the establishment and purchased some Whistle Pig Rye Whiskey for my brother. Whistle Pig is 100% Rye Whiskey which was released in 2010. Apparently, PA does not sell any brand of 100% rye whiskey. Unfortunately, this is not too surprising considering the existence of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.

NYC Part 1: MOMA

I am currently in PA for a few days to see my family. Aside from my awkward sleep schedule that will not budge (5am-11am), it has been a very pleasant trip. On Sunday my parents and I went up to NYC for the day. We started the morning at MOMA.

A Few of My Favorites:

René Magritte’s “The Palace of Curtains, III” (1928-29). The word ciel is French for sky. In the coffin-like misshaped frame on the left is a representation of a sky. In the frame on the right is the word “ciel.” Get it? Surreally cool.

Roy Lichtenstein’s “Drowning Girl” (1963). She’s right though, if she called Brad, he would never let her forget he saved her from drowning.

Ger van Elk’s “The Co-founder of the Word O.K.” (1971). I had never heard of this Danish photographer before, but loved his clever photos and of course the imagery of Hollywood in the 70’s. If you look closely, Ger van Elk is posed in profile to the right of a framed yellow bubble letter “O” in each picture. He is posing as the letter “K” by raising his arm and leg. As a result, he is “O.K.” on a street, a block from the Hollywood Colonial, and outside a store.

Homemade Pizza / Recessionizza

I’ve waited days for my cold/bronchitis to go away so I could use the ingredients I bought last week to make pizza. It is now day eight and I’m still coughing, congested, and frustrated. This evening, I decided I did not want to wait any longer.

Even though I love pizza, I do not eat it too often because of health and economic reasons. I usually buy Amy’s frozen pizza to mitigate the health concerns, but afterwards I feel guilty for spending six dollars on such a small frozen serving. Having just opened a Mint account to budget myself, I have become ultra aware of my spending and decided it was time to start making my own pizza. For my first attempt, I kept it easy and used whole wheat pita, low-fat mozzarella cheese, Muir Glen pizza sauce, garlic, fresh farmer’s market asparagus, onion, and kalamata olives (thanks roomie!). Delicious. In the future, I plan to make the dough and sauce myself and also get more creative with the toppings.

My Latest Favorite Thing

I am hesitant to post about how much I love my Made By Hank handmade bag because I know these bags (and anything else Katie Henry makes) sell out immediately after she posts them (if not before!). But, it really is one of my favorite things in the world. So here is one of several pieces I have in my Made By Hank collection. I highly suggest checking out her bags on her website and then ultimately buying one (for me :P) on etsy if you can. Also, Katie Henry is from Philadelphia. And she owns an adorable pug!

so tired

Must stay awake…

Note: This picture is from my recent trip to PA over Christmas. I had such a bad red eye flight (no sleep) that I bought a blueberry coffee with espresso (white cup) and asked for side of milk (brown cup on top of white cup). This is interesting because when I went to Dunkin Donuts near my parents house, they would not give me a side of milk in a different cup; the airport kiosk was more accommodating than an actual store.

Note 2: I don’t have enough time to finish the post I intended to write and Wednesday sleepiness is partly to blame so this is my way of saying I am still around and haven’t forgotten about FS.

Note 3: Do you like the holiday design: Happy HoliDDay?

Panda Heaven

I rarely ever crave Chinese food, but a few days ago it felt like the best idea ever. Panda Heaven is a random restaurant near the Coventry Mall in Pottstown, Pennsylvania that serves both Chinese and Japanese food. The staff is always friendly and the food reinforced that it was the best idea ever.

House Chow Fun - Delicious wide noodles.

Pennsylvania Roll - I forgot to write down what was in this roll, but it was quite yummy.

Fortune Cookie

Panda Heaven
118 Coventry Square Mall
Pottstown, PA 19464
(610) 970-6953‎

New Years Day Dinner

Every year my family follows the Pennsylvania Dutch (Deutsch) tradition of serving Pork and Sauerkraut for New Years Day. It is a long held belief that this meal will help bring good luck for the upcoming year. I’ll eat to that!