Five Friends. Five Lives. One Love for Food.

We started our journey together in Taiwan. Despite life taking us down different paths, two things that have stayed constant are our friendship and a love for food.

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

Macho Taco (Taipei, Taiwan)

No. 3, Lane 126, Yanji St. Taipei, Taiwan

Before leaving Taiwan, A, J and I went on a food trip where we visited one too many restaurants and coffee shops (our stomachs were not pleased). Macho Taco turned out to be one of my favorites.

I grew up in Texas and since moving to Taiwan, I've always been on the hunt for good Mexican food. I wish I knew about this little taco shop sooner, which specializes in authentic baja cuisine. The interior, though not big, is a fun space. We especially enjoyed the Corona chandelier.

Since it was one of our first stops that day, we didn't want to order too much. We got three chicken tacos. I now wish I had been more original and ordered something different. But regardless, the taco was delicious! We got there at around 2PM and people kept coming in and out. I definitely recommend Macho Taco to everyone-- I don't know how I didn't find out about it sooner!

-Y

(Credit to J for pictures!)

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

Carlo's Bake Shop, made famous by the show, Cake Boss. Finally got the opportunity to venture over to Hoboken, NJ to experience the 2-hour wait outside the shop and around the block. Nevertheless, I would say it was worth it. We picked up cannolis and lobster tails (also called "sfogliatelle"), both of which are Italian pastries. Cannolis I've had in the past were never that great--many contained cream filling that was too sweet or too foamy. However, the cannolis we got at Carlo's Bake Shop were perfect. The cream filling was creamy and sweet, but not tooth-achingly sweet or too creamy enough to require a glass of milk. The outer shell was also crispy enough without seeming too fried and oily. And then we get to the lobster tails. Biting into one feels like heaven. The outer layer is ridged and flaky, and the inside is filled cream similar to the cream used in the cannolis. I don't think I could ever get sick of eating lobster tails. 

Definitely recommend checking out Carlo's Bake Shop at least once in your lifetime, if you're ever in Hoboken!

-J

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

Turkey and american cheese croissants, simple midnight snack! -liz

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

Had dinner at Pata Negra, a tapas bar in the East Village (where all the amazing food is...). It's a really small, intimate restaurant decorated with exposed brick walls and Spanish art/sculpture, perfect for a date or in my case...a girls' night out. We started with a pitcher of sangria then ordered the Degustacion de Jamon (Tasting of 3 Hams), Classic Spanish Omelet, Garlic Shrimp, Chorizo, Wagyu beef meatballs w/ piquillo sauce, Roasted Asparagus with Goat Cheese, and two orders of toast points (toasted baguette slices with ham and cheese)....basically a lot of food, but it turned out to be just right.

Highlight was the ham (a kind of cured ham produced only in Spain), extremely fatty and almost melts in your mouth, which went perfectly with the tomato bread they provided. Garlic shrimp was also awesome. Came up to around $25 per person which is pretty good for a nice night out in NY.

-B

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

There's this small taco shop on Carson Street in Pittsburgh Yo Rita! I have no idea why a taco place is called Yo Rita! but whatever peels their banana. I ordered two tacos but I can only distinctly remember one -- the seared tuna taco. It consisted of roasted vidalia and poblano, horseradish sauce, and cucumber relish. I'm a huge fan of seared tuna, so it was one of the best tacos I've ever had. Unfortunately, one individual tuna taco costs $9 (with prices ranging between $5-9 for a taco) and it's not filling, so although I'd love to go back more often, I probably won't. Sorry, Rita.

Menu located (here)

-J

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

A few of my food highlights from this past semester!

(Left to Right)

The Meatball Shop | 64 Greenwich Avenue | New York City, NY I'm not a fan of meatballs (never get them in my spaghetti), but these meatballs were good. I'd go back for more.

Homemade Nachos to satisfy my Tex-Mex craving. The recipe made so much that it fed me for the rest of the week.

Ippudo NY | 65 Fourth Avenue | New York City, NY Normally restaurants with long lines have food that's not really worth the wait. Two hours later and on a full stomach, the bowl of ramen didn't disappoint. Affordable and delectable.

T-5 days until Taiwan. I can't wait for food adventures with some of my favorite people!

-Y

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

I went to Cioppino earlier this semester with two of my good friends. We shared a tuna tartare appetizer. It was really well-seasoned and it came with Italian bread toasted with butter. Mm. I ordered the mac & cheese with crab cakes and it was literally the best mac & cheese I've ever had (second to your Thanksgiving '10 Velveeta creation, Droo...). There was the right amount of buttery creaminess, but not so much that it coats your throat until you suffocate. The crab cakes were a little on the oily side, but the crab they used was very fresh and it definitely more crab than cake, which is awesome. I realized that at a lot of cheaper places, they batter and breadcrumb up the crab cakes a lot to make them look bigger and cut back on crab, but Cioppino didn't :). Lastly, I ordered Chocolate Covered Cherry Creme Brulee. It was a trio of Brulee: cherry, chocolate, and brandy-vanilla bean. The chocolate one really good, kind of like a mix between creme brulee and chocolate mousse. The brandy-vanilla bean one was really alcoholic, haha. 

DEFINITELY recommend this place! It was reasonably priced for what it was, entrees were between maybe...$20-$40?

-J

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

Had a family style meal with sam's greek family and my greek family. :) It was nice! - Liz

[gluttonoustravelers-blog]

Epitome of our Thanksgiving in NYC.

-J