Packing for Adventure

We may have traveled to NYC to sample the pizza, but I had a side quest.

I grew up watching Seinfeld. I was 11-years old when the fateful final episode aired, but it played on syndication twice a day for YEARS. Maybe it still does? Do people still watch live tv??

I wanted to do as much of a Seinfeld pilgrimage as time would allow.

As much as I would have loved to visit the Tom’s Restaurant (Monk’s Diner) and swim in the East River, we just didn’t have the time.

Here’s what I did get to do:

Travel on the Subway

We did a LOT of this. Fortunately we didn’t run into any naked guys or experience a blackout.

Bagels

Not from H&H Bagels, and not made by Kramer. But they were DELICIOUS. And NYC does not mess around with the cream cheese! I LOVE a good bagel, but where I come from, they are as hard to come by as New York style pizza!

• Russ & Daughters | 179 E Houston St, New York, NY 10002
  • I got a simple toasted bagel with cream cheese for breakfast. It tasted anything but simple! It’s probably the best bagel I’ve ever had. It was the exact experience and atmosphere I had hoped for as a tourist. I would have loved to try the nova lox, but it was more expensive than I wanted to spend for breakfast. I should’ve tried it anyway!
• Liberty Bagels Midtown | 260 W 35th St, New York, NY 10001
  • Breakfast on another day, but this time I got an Asiago bagel with cream cheese. They wouldn’t toast the Asiago bagel for some reason, but it was still delicious.

Cinnamon Babka

Cinnamon Babka takes a backseat to no one!

While getting a bagel from Russ & Daughters, I saw they had prepackaged mini babkas- both chocolate and cinnamon. I couldn’t help myself and grabbed a cinnamon one! It was okay- the bagel was better!

Black & White Cookie

Again, couldn’t help myself. I’ve actually had one before at a New York style deli back home once, but it wasn’t anything special.

We knew we wanted an authentic New York Cheesecake while we were here, and reviews pointed to Junior’s Bakery. We stopped there while we were walking through Times Square. I saw the Black & White cookies while picking up a cheesecake. Based on my prior experience, I wasn’t expecting much, but it was pretty darn good! It’s like a cross between a cookie and a cake. I was impressed enough that I actually ordered a dozen to be shipped to my house so I could give some to my parents as a thank you for watching the kiddos (and a couple for me of course).

And no, I didn’t vomit. Look to the cookie!

Did you grow up watching Seinfeld? Which reference would you track down in NYC?

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