In addition to seeing Grand Central Terminal and eating at Shake Shack my first night in New York City, I also got the chance to try a Magnolia Bakery cupcake.

I'm not sure if there's a hierarchy of which locations are the best, and I'd imagine a train station may not be the most glamorous place, but this cupcake was still pretty bangin'. It was late, and their options were running out. But, a vanilla cupcake was exactly what I would have wanted anyway.

Moist cake, sweet icing that's not too whipped and a nice sweet bite to end my first night in NYC. I can dig it.


Grade: A

I finally made it to New York City - the place I dreamed of since I was a little girl. I thought one day I could be the editor of the New York Times. Lofty goals, I know. But I had never had the chance to visit New York City ... until this fall. I meticulously planned places to go, things to see and, of course, food to eat.

My incredible friends Kaitlynn and Josh drove into the city from Boston on a Friday night. As soon as we got to the city, we immediately went to Grand Central Terminal - a beautiful, beautiful site.

Not only did I want to see Grand Central Terminal, but I could also get a burger at Shake Shack. It was pretty busy, so we got in line and waited our turn. I paid. Then, we got a buzzer for when our order would be ready. When mine went off, I went to the front of the line. The woman behind the counter grabbed the bag with my name on it, looked up and said "it's empty." I gave her a puzzled look back. "That means somebody probably took it." Oh. So, my order went back in queue, and I waited some more.

When my buzzer went off this time, my burger was there - as well as a complementary order of fries for having to wait. I took my single Shackburger (cheeseburger topped with lettuce, tomato and ShackSauce) and order of fries back to an open table.

These burgers are good! For a fast food burger, it's damn good. It's a good patty, the toppings were fresh, and I dig the sauce.

And even though I didn't order the fries, they were still good. Free fries taste even better.

Grade: A

Ah, lobster rolls. The delicious fruit of New England makes me so happy. A lobster roll is a split-top bun filled with lobster meat soaked in butter. Some contain celery, scallions or mayo. Neptune Oyster is known for having one of the best lobster rolls around.

The oyster bar is very small, so we had a bit of a wait. We walked down the street and hung out for a bit before coming back. When our name was called, we were seated at the bar in very, very tight quarters.

Neptune Oyster focuses on its raw bar, but it also serves up crudo, cioppino, scallops, clambake and, of course, that lobster roll. The Maine lobster roll comes with a toasted roll available hot with butter or cold with mayo.

I ordered the hot with butter lobster roll, which comes in at $30! Much pricier than the average lobster roll. Dear god, it is delicious. It has huge chunks of lobster meat soaked in butter and this toasted bun is the vehicle to heaven.


Yes, it's pricey. But would I pay that much for it again? Yes.



Grade: A

Aeronaut Brewing Company was opened by three MIT graduate students (and one Yale student), who are working with others in the same building space to make a really cool "food incubator." This includes food trucks, bands and other social events that make this place a central gathering spot.

The space has an industrial hipster feel, with lawn chairs and balloons hanging from the ceiling, and a game system projected onto the wall. When I was here, a band was playing loudly - so loudly it made conversation difficult. We were having a mini WVU reunion, so I was hoping to talk with my friends a bit more.

I ordered a Saison of the Western Ghats - a French-style farmhouse ale. Light and spicy. Pretty good.

A nice place with a pretty cool environment. I think next time, though, I may choose a different night.



Grade: B

I read a list of the bucket list items to try in Boston, and near the top of the list was Oleana's Baked Alaska ($14). This stuck out to me for a few reasons: Oleana wasn't too far away, and what the hell is baked Alaska?

The dessert is made with six ingredients: ice cream, sponge cake, egg whites, sugar, vanilla, and salt. A scoop of ice cream on a bed of cake is smothered in a generous layer of meringue and baked in an ultra-hot oven. A few minutes later, out comes an irresistible confection, one with a piping hot exterior, like that of a toasted marshmallow, encapsulating the ice cream, which remains frozen. It’s an ice cream dessert that is actually baked.

We didn't care to eat inside since we only wanted dessert, so we had to convince them to get this dish to go. You can see why this could be problematic. You need to eat it almost as soon as it's served. As soon as it was served to us, we hopped in the car, headed home and raced up the stairs.

Oleana's Baked Alaska is built upon a chewy coconut macaron base. Atop that is a housemade coconut ice cream, and it's all wrapped in a torched meringue. I loved the chewy macaron, which gave some nice texture. The odd part is a tangy, bitter passionfruit sauce. It definitely tones down the sweetness, but it also made me pucker a bit.

It's a pricey dessert, and I could do without the passionfruit sauce, but the macaron, ice cream and meringue were a unique flavor combination I've never had before. I think it's definitely something to try!

Grade: B