weekend trip: NYC in 2 days
Confession: I'm not much of a spontaneous traveler.
I like planning far in advance and making crazy (probably unnecessary) spreadsheets to detail out every single part. But a couple of weekends ago, I visited my friend Holly, who just moved to NYC, during Fourth of July weekend, and it was amazing. I was only there for a couple of days, but we managed to pack in a lot of food, fun, and fitness — keep on reading to find out what we were up to!
Dinner at Dafni
It was almost 8 pm by the time I arrived, so of course, we headed to dinner. Holly found a place called Dafni Greek Taverna, and I had definitely perused the menu while I was on the train. It was a rustic Greek place with lots of fresh seafood, which was amazing.
I got the fish of the day, which was a grilled sea bass with a side of potatoes and green vegetables. they asked if I wanted a whole fish or a filet, and me being the whole fish enthusiast I am (thank you, Asian heritage), definitely opted for the whole fish.
Holly got the Plaki, which was a baked fillet of striped bass with tomato sauce, onions, garlic, and white wine. Both of us are usually #teamnoleftovers (aka members of the clean plate club), but neither of us could finish our fish (mostly because it was basically two entire servings per person), and we happily brought it home.
Just a reminder that it's ok to eat all your food, and it's ok to have leftovers. Listen to your body.
Contrary to my normal grandma habits (i.e. going to bed at 10 pm and enthusing about staying in with a book and a lavender candle or reading blog posts while cuddling a stuffed cat), we got ready to go out and have fun in the city.
The food Instagrammer way to pregame?
Tequila, lime seltzer, and fresh mint. No weird mixers for us! Add some frozen pineapple and you are set.
I definitely came home and ate the rest of my fish and potatoes at 3:30 am. Thank God for leftovers (and not setting off the fire alarm making avo toast and eggs at 3 am like I've done in college #drunkeatofchoice).
The next morning found us having a slow start, snacking on bananas and nut butter (Holly, true to her IG name, has a very extensive nut butter collection), and walking over to Rumble for a boxing class. NYC has so many fun boutique fitness studios that it would be a shame not to try them.
Plus, who doesn't love boxing and brunch?
It was a 45-minute class, half on the floor with weights and half on the bags. They have teardrop-shaped water bags, which are different from the 100 lb heavy bags I'm used to, but definitely fun. The vibe reminded me a little of SoulCycle; it was an interesting change of pace from my typical TITLE Boxing class.
Post-Boxing Whole Foods Stop
We stopped by Whole Foods on our way home for coffee (because but first...coffee).
I was so excited and happily surprised to see that this WF had bulletproof coffee (and Eat Nuttzo samples!). I got an iced "Daily Brew" (the bottom one, because hello collagen) with ghee instead of the butter (I tend to digest that better — for more info on that, check out my last post on bulletproof coffee!). I also picked up a green apple and a probiotic ginger shot.
Brunchin' & Snackin'
By the time we had showered, changed, and walked over to brunch, it was almost 3 pm. Thank God for bulletproof coffee and the fats in it to keep me less hangry! Even so, we dug into this so enthusiastically.
Penelope was the cutest place ever (also love that they have pour-your-own large water bottles at the table). We were too hungry to really be in the mood for anything fancy, so we both got omelettes with a side of home fries. I got broccolini, bacon, and spinach in mine, with avocado instead of cheese.
The home fries and the omelette were both super satisfying (thank God). There's a place and time for poached eggs with smoked salmon, and there's a time for home fries and big omelettes.
After walking around the city for hours and doing a little shopping (hello Fourth of July sales), we were exhausted and ready for something cold (and also something sugary, probably).
Even though there's a Pressed Juicery in Boston, we were both feeling some freeze, so we headed over to the one by Union Square Park and picked one up to eat while we rested our feet in the park.
The High Line + Sunset Views
The short break gave us a second wind (though I still did need to stop in Whole Foods again to get a banana and a packet of nut butter because I was a little light-headed), so we headed to Chelsea Market and the High Line to walk around and people-watch.
We ended up walking all the way back... to Whole Foods for a late dinner (it was almost 9 pm by the time we got there).
Back at Whole Foods!
We could've gone to a nice, sit-down place for dinner. We could've tried to figure out something/someplace we both hadn't been before, but we opted for the comfort of a brown box from Whole Foods since we were both craving veggies.
And that was completely OK. Travel isn't always about finding the next mind-blowing meal. Sometimes it's finding somewhere you know will nourish your body with food that you love.
We loaded our boxes up. Like, you better believe it, because my box was $25. With the booch, it was $30.
Yes, I ate about 2 lbs of food. And, as Holly said, sometimes a brown box is a good form of self-care — you've had a long day, and you're feeding your body with all good things.
What was in my box? Plantains, chicken leg, roasted cauliflower, roasted carrots, beets, kale salad, and I'm sure some other things that I can't remember. I took advantage of NYC's bigger booch selection to try out this new flavor of Health-ade as well.
I had heard so many good things about Overthrow NYC — plus, Alicia Napoleon is a huge inspiration of mine and helped me love this part of myself that I always had trouble loving and appreciating.
She wasn't teaching that morning, but I wanted to try the 7 am boxing class anyway. There were only 2 of us in class because it was early on a holiday Monday, but no complaints because it was basically like a private session. It was so much fun; the instructor knew a ton about boxing and I got to mentally and physically challenge myself like I hadn't done in awhile.
I was so excited to finally try out Hu Kitchen post-workout. I met Anja, a fellow Paleo Instagrammer, for breakfast — she loves this spot.
I started out with a green smoothie while I waited for our food — I got the Wrath of the Rosenburg (kale — I subbed in spinach since they didn't have any more kale, almond butter, berries, maple water, maca, and added collagen for a protein boost). Per Anja's recommendation, I got the same thing as her: 2 eggs + 2 sides + housemade bread instead of the biscuit. I tried all the sauces as well and they were fantastic. I definitely wish this existed in Boston!
Train Snacks
RX bars are one of my travel staples. They're filling and protein-packed, and true to their name, have no BS ingredients.
Post-travel Eats
I finally arrived in Boston (to an empty fridge), so I took the opportunity to grab a shot from JUGOS and eat up my veggies at Sweetgreen.
And that's it! Let me know — what are your favorite places in NYC? Did I miss any? Any suggestions for next time (because I know I'll definitely be back)?