Chez Ma Tante

Those who know me well know that my favorite meal of the day is breakfast/brunch, and I will wake up 30-45 min earlier just to cook myself a nice, hearty breakfast to kickstart my day. With that being said, I do enjoy trying out different brunch spots on the weekends as a sweet little treat to myself. Thank you, self. :) 

Although they opened their doors in May of 2017, it has since received such wonderful reviews, and continues to stand out in the NYC sea of restaurants. I'll have to make it back to this French-Canadian Bistro in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, for dinner because I bet it's equally amazing. 

Kyle + I arrived at 90 CALYER ST at about 11:10, and surprisingly, there was only one couple in front of us in line. I was thinking "YES! We will for sure get a table." HAH! I was wrong. More people started to come and wait leading to the doors opening at 11:30am. After we informed this hostess that we did not have a reservation, she kindly told us that the couple in front of us took the last available seats in the restaurant for those without reservations. I was looking around this empty room and I just chuckled under my breath because honestly every table was vacant. But anyways, we just took a seat at the bar, made friends with the bartender, and proceeded to order our food. We ordered the pancakes, which were just unbelievably delicious. I actually don't like pancakes too much, but that didn't apply here. BUT oh my gosh LET. ME. TELL. YOU. this sausage egg and cheese will change your world. Seriously, I was honestly speechless and didn't even want to split it with Kyle (typical). The sausage was just perfectly cooked with this soft scrambled egg, topped with pickled chiles and cheese. It just all melted in your mouth. Their garlick-y aioli on the sandwich is a game changer, and so we ordered the fries as well after that. I'm actually drooling.

P.S. Brunch is only offered on the weekends. Oh and make a reservation :)

Check them out & read all the amazing reviews: Chez Ma Tante // My Foursquare Tip: Chez Ma Tante

Russ & Daughters

Standing strong for four generations, Russ & Daughters have become a staple in NYC, delivering quality food to the people who step foot inside. Joel Russ, a Jewish immigrant from Poland, started this business in 1907 by selling schmaltz herring out of a barrel to Eastern European Jews on the Lower East Side... and here it is now! Did you know that they were the first business in the United States to have “& Daughters” in its name? 

It was about 8am on a brisk 38° Saturday morning in April, and I was HUNGRY for a high quality lox breakfast sandwich. I have not been to Russ & Daughters in the past, but I've heard only great things, so I was eager to try them out. I woke up Kyle at 6:45am, dragged him out of bed, and hopped on the PATH from Jersey City to 179 E. HOUSTON STREET. We decided to go to the original location as opposed to the cafe, but I would honestly try that as well. 

Kyle + I ordered the classic salmon sandwich. They had an overwhelmingly huge selection of fish, salmon, cream cheese, etc. So just between the salmon we had to choose from GASPE NOVA, SCOTTISH, IRISH SMOKED, NORWEGIAN SMOKED, BELLY LOX (SALT-CURED), GRAVLOX, PASTRAMI-CURED, LOIN-CUT SMOKED, WILD WESTERN NOVA OR NEW ZEALAND KING SALMON.... so I mean if you know me, I just honestly stared at the worker for the longest period of time before even saying a word. We asked the the kind man who assisted us his recommended salmon and he said the SCOTTISH, so that's exactly what we got! Let me tell you, I have not seen someone so gracefully slice a huge piece of salmon and carefully place it on my warm, toasted, homemade everything bagel with a smear of plain cream cheese. Doesn't it sound so simple? But they have perfected everything about it. As usual, Kyle + I ate without saying a word to each other except for "wow" at the very end. If you are hesitant to try a lox sandwich, I can't think of a better place to start. 

 

read more about them: Russ & Daughters  // my Foursquare tip: Russ & Daughters