My Life in Meals

You’ve probably heard about all you can drink brunches, but an all you can drink dinner?!

Welcome to Piola in Union Square, a large Italian eatery where on Wednesday nights ladies can have unlimited house wine (red or white) with any entrée after 8pm.  As you can imagine it’s full of groups of girls from NYU (which was my friends and I just a few years ago), as well as those long graduated (which is us now!).

They have an enormous selection of specialty pizzas, as well as a more limited menu of salads and pastas. The food is consistently good, not life changing or anything - but you’re obviously not coming here for the food!

On our last visit here, we ordered two pizzas and a pasta to share between three of us. I’ve tried a number of their pizzas over the years and I have never gotten a bad one. The Penne Rosate pasta (pictured above), with smoked salmon, tomato sauce, cream and parsley is my favorite pasta on the menu, but the gnocchi is very good as well.

Mareverde Pizza - Shrimp, brie cheese, arugola, tomato sauce and mozzarella (pictured above).

Ortomisto Pizza - Fresh tomatoes, eggplant, spinach, sweet peppers, zucchini, broccoli, tomato sauce and mozzarella (pictured above).

Piola runs all sorts of other gimmicky nightly specials like all you can eat gnocchi night on the 29^th of each month, or all you can eat pizza night on Sunday evenings. Check out all their specials and promotions here.

I highly recommend you plan your next ladies night here! It gets pretty packed, so make a reservation for a guaranteed table with minimal amount of wait time!

Piola
48 East 12th Street
New York, NY 10003
(212) 777-7781
Website
Price: $$

Last weekend was finally sunny and beautiful, and we wanted to find a brunch spot with outdoor seating so we could bring the pup with us. After a quick Google search, we found out that The Blind Pig offers an all you can drink brunch on Sat & Sun from 11am to 4pm, and is fully equipped with outdoor seating. Let me start by saying that if you are coming here to drink, then don’t bother coming at all because the mimosas included in the all you can drink special are utterly watered down. But, the food on the other hand was awesome! The atmosphere was also great on this particular day, as it just happened to be the same day as an Arsenal soccer match. Apparently, The Blind Pig is the watering hole of choice for local New York fans!

I ordered the Eggs Benedict off the brunch menu, and although it did not state that it contained meat (so be careful vegetarians!), it arrived with thick cut chunks of juicy ham underneath the eggs. What a great touch! The waffle fries they were served with were crispy and perfectly seasoned. I can never resist a good french fry!

My fiance (who accidentally deleted the photo!) ordered from the regular menu and got the Macaroni and Cheese, made with 4 cheeses, bacon, and breadcrumbs. He also asked them to put jalapenos in, but instead they brought them out on the side. Regardless, the mac and cheese was PERFECT and we finished every bite!

Unfortunately, we had to keep our dog Mocha on the other side of the enclosure, which she was extremely unhappy about. If you have a fussy dog like ours who wants to sit at your feet then this is not the place to bring them!

The Blind Pig
233 East 14th Street
New York, NY 10003-4113
(212) 209-1573
Website
Price: $$

Do you like Chipolte? If so, your going to really love Dos Toros Taqueria, a more fresh and authentic version of the fast food giant. Although they have a very similar menu, if you want to have really really good tortillas, tacos, and quesadillas, you should definitely skip on the Chipolte and head on over to Dos Toros. Located near Union Square, this is a great $10 and under spot. Warning: it’s really small, so if your looking for a seat, be prepared to wait it out.

We started with the Soft Tacos with rice, black beans and guacamole (1 plain and 1 with steak). The rice was delicious, the meat seasoned to perfection and the tortilla had melted cheese spread across it, all making for a perfect pairing that melts in your mouth. We also got a side of the guacamole and chips, and although the portion of guac could be a little bigger, it’s extremely fresh and much more then you would expect from your average fast food joint. If you like EXTRA spicy food like me, then ask for the extra hot habenero red sauce (or ask for the milder green serrano and jalapeño sauce if you want just want a touch of spice). This hot sauce is a must have! 

Next, we sampled the Carnitas (Pork) Quesadilla, which was undoubtedly better then most you’ll find in the city. The flour tortilla is crisped in front of you on the griddle with a thin slice of Jack cheese, and the pork (just like the steak) was extremely tender and seasoned to the tee. Unfortunately, they were not as crispy as the New York Times described here. The flavors were great but it was seriously lacking the crunch a great quesadilla requires. Maybe they were having an off day - definitely an item worth revisiting.

Last came the Vegetarian Burrito with cheese, black beans, guacamole, salsa and hot sauce. According to my vegetarian friend - Dos Toros accomplishes the rare feat of providing a satisfying vegetarian option, without the second class feeling she frequently feels that accompany vegetarian entrees when she is dining out.  But, word to the wise for any veggies: skip the rice, as it is made with chicken stock.  The staff was kind enough to inform us of this and provided extra black beans to make up for it. 

All in all - a great value for tasty Mexican fast food without having to take the 7 train down to Queens!

Dos Toros Taqueria
137 4th Avenue
New York, NY, 10003
Website
Price: $