New York quick eats

The first couple of days after arriving in New York city, being somewhat sleep-deprived, I really wasn't in much mood to prepare any meals. Instead we wandered around downtown near our apartment for some food.

Our first meal in town was a late lunch at a cafe called Stir Cafe that offered a large variety of sandwiches, burgers, pasta and salad. After eating airplane food for the previous 12 hours, I wanted something refreshing and light and also something substantial so we ordered a Grilled Chicken Burger Deluxe (US$5.95) but without the fries, and a large Salad Toss with dressing on the side (US$7.65). I think we got the Ranchero salad which contained a combination of vegetables, crispy bacon and chicken pieces with a very creamy dressing. These were substantial enough for us to skip dinner and opt for an early night to ward off jet lag symptoms.

Chicken burger (without fries) and salad, taken with Rob's iPhone:


The following day, lunch was at Zeytuna, a market/deli where I often get my fresh fruits and vegetables. It's also a popular take-away haunt with a cafe and al-fresco dining area, and although I shopped here for two months during our last stay in NYC two years ago, this was my first time buying prepared food to take away. We got the Italiano Chicken Panini (US$6.45 per piece) and a piece of Chicken Lasagne (US$5.95/lb, this piece cost around US$4). The panini was a delicious combination of chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. The lasagne was also nice with generous amount of minced chicken, but it paled in comparison to the panini. There were many more delicious food behind the glass in the display shelf, and I hope to get more opportunities to try them.

The panini and lasagne (it only occurred to me after we ate that I should have unwrapped the panini for the shot):