Sushi Park After Dark

After dark, Sushi Park is one of the most happening Japanese spots in the East Village. Located just a few feet from the famous St. Marks Place, it is a place the locals love to eat. I know what you are thinking, "There are tons of sushi spots in NYC, why is this place so popular?" The answer to your mind boggling question is, it's 50% off all the time! Obviously, this is a marking technique but its working for them!

Two weeks ago I had my first sushi experience ever. My friend Jill introduced me to this place and I liked it so much that I had to take my boyfriend Alex to it the next weekend. The place was packed full of people and the food full of flavor. During our visit we grubbed on a few different sushi rolls like Avocado & Cucumber, Shrimp Tempura, Mango Shrimp and deep fried Spicy Tuna & Asparagus. We also had some Edamame and fried pork dumplings. Talk about a masterpiece.

Avocado & Cucumber Roll

It's a sushi party!

Edamame

Pork dumplings

 The menu is great because there are so many options. They have over 30 different types of sushi rolls.If you are not into sushi, they also have dinner entrees. Check out the full menu here.

Sushi Park is located 121 2nd Ave. New York, New York 10003. Prices are a steal because all sushi is 50% of the price on the menu. If you love sushi or if you've never tried it, you have got to check this place out. You are going to fishing-love it.


PS- Before Sushi Park we saw Soul Doctor on Broadway. Oh. My. Gosh. I cried like three times because it was so stinkin' good. Go see it today!

The Soul Doctor himself!

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Two8Two Burger

Friday nights are the perfect time for a burger, wouldn't you agree? After using my new favorite tool, yelp.com, I decided to test the waters at what Yelpers concluded was the best burger joint in Brooklyn. After a nice walk through the neighborhood, Alex and I arrived at Two8Two Burger.

In the front of the restaurant there is a beautiful dimly lit bar. As you continue to the back of the restaurant, there are tables of Brooklynites enjoying these fantastic burgers. In the very back of Two8Two Burger there is a cozy outside patio with umbrellas and picnic tables. We decided to sit outside and enjoy the late night crisp air.

The menu is short and sweet. It consists of mouthwatering burgers, uniquely topped hot dogs, Greek salad, nachos and a few sandwiches. They also have a full bar with eight beers on tap and over ten specialty cocktails. Check out the full menu here.

During our visit, naturally, I had to try their most popular burger: Two8Two Burger. This hamburger is topped with roasted poblano chilies, cheddar cheese and the special two8two sauce. Needless to say, it was phenomenal and my Yelpers hit the nail right on the head with this one. Alex ate the Pub Burger: 9oz hamburger with grilled onions, cheddar cheese, bacon and two8two sauce. We also shared some Greek fries topped with feta and oregano. Best fries of my life!

Two8Two Burger

Greek fries

Two8Two Burger is located at 282 Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn. They are open daily from 12pm-12am to satisfy all your burger cravings. Nothing on the menu is over $12, so feel free to treat yourself. So next time you want to eat like the Brooklynites do, head on over to Two8Two Burger and enjoy!

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Baked by Melissa's Bite-size Cupcakes

“Ever since she was a little girl, Melissa loved to bake.”Her passion became her career in 2008 after being fired from a job in advertisingand thank goodness for that! Baked by Melissa specializes in bite-size cupcakesso you can try more flavors without the post-dessert guilt trip. Genius.

With locations all over NYC and one in NJ, Melissa serves upover 12 unique bite-size cupcake flavors a day. Some of the incising flavorsinclude: Tie-Dye, Mint Chocolate Chip, Red Velvet, Chocolate Chip Pancake,Cookie Dough, Peanut Butter & Jelly  andof course the flavor of the month. My favorite is Cinnamon. Too delicious tosum up properly. Recently, they have also introduced “In Chocolate” which is abite-size cupcake dipped in chocolate.

There are three ways to get your paws on these babies solisten up! You can pick up, ship or choose delivery (Manhattan only).  Planning a large event? If you order over 300cupcakes, YOU can be the cupcake creator and choose your cake, icing, stuffingand toppings. You can buy Baked by Melissa cupcakes in whatever amount youlike. Whether it’s one cupcake to satisfy your afternoon craving  or 500 for your next holiday party, Baked byMelissa has got you covered. Single cupcakes are $1 and the more you buy the morethe rate goes down.

Baked by Melissa 100 Pack

Check out all Baked by Melissa locations here. And by theway, each cupcake is under 50 calories, so indulge a little!

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Carmine's Pizzeria

For over 30 years the Gangone family has been making some of the best pies in Brooklyn. After being recommended to me twice, I deiced to try it out for myself.

Carmine's is a cozy restaurant where you can sit and stay awhile or grab a slice on the run. Serving up authentic Italian cuisine in Williamsburg, Brooklyn has been their specialty for years. From pizza to pasta to fried calamari, Carmine's meets every Italian foodies needs. During my visit with friends, we indulged in a few of the 12" gourmet pizzas: Chicken Ranch and Prosciutto and Artichoke. We also had some delicious fried zucchini and mozzarella sticks. Everything was fabulously flavorful and it definitely lived up to the hype. Find something you'll love too! Check out the full menu here. 
 

Prosciutto and Artichoke Pizza

Chicken Ranch Pizza

Bruschetta

Fried Zucchini

Mozzarella Sticks

Not only is Carmine's an amazing pizza joint, they also host awesome charity fundraising events like "Evenings With Baseball Legends." Find out more about this great fundraising opportunity and how you can attend one in the future here.

Ready to chow down? Visit either Carmine's locations at 358 Graham Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11211 or 436 Union Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11211 and get ready for a mouthwatering experience. Pies range from $11.50 to $34.00 depending on size and toppings and slices start at $2.50. Get 'em while they're
hot folks!

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Empanada Mama

I am in love with this place! Empanada Mama is delicious and the variety of empanadas can't be beat. Their menu is huge. They make corn empanadas, wheat empanadas, oven baked empanadas and dessert empanadas. With classic choices like beef or chicken to brocoli and cheese, there are plenty of choices for everyone to find a favorite. Along with empanadas, they also serve tapas, arepas and sides like rice and beans and guac with plantain chips. YUM! Check out the full menu here.

Empanada Mama has two locations at 763 9th Avenue NY, NY and 189 East Houston Street NY, NY. This is a great place for dinner before a broadway show or before a night of drinking and dancing. Service is quick and the food is just so damn tasty. Empanadas range from $2.50-$3.75 each. So, take your Mama and have an empanada today!

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12 Corners Coffee Shop

12 Corners is a hidden gem tucked away in the Lower EastSide of New York City. It is a place to sit, relax and watch the world go by…witha Cup of Joe that is. While I usually like to take the credit for discoveringgreat foodie finds, my boyfriend Alex gets all the credit on this one. Wefrequently take the bus from Chinatown to Pennsylvania to visit our familiesand that is when Alex came across this great spot.

 12 Corners is a cozy coffee shop with limited seating but itseems to be just enough. What I love most about this place is mini library onthe back wall. I love that they encourage the busy people on New York City tohave a cup of coffee or tea, gab and book and take a breather. The menu isshort and sweet containing coffee standards like lattes, cappuccinos, hotchocolate and iced Americanos. They also have a few pastries to choose fromsuch as muffins and chocolate chip banana bread.

Our favorite thing here, hands down, is the vanilla latte. Itssweet and delicious and when paired with a book from the mini library it’s allyou need for a relaxing afternoon.

Check this place out for yourself at 155 East Broadway, NY,NY 10002. They are open Monday- Friday 7am-7pm and Saturday-Sunday from 8am-6pm.Drinks range from $2.25-$5. And don’t forget to tell them Hungry White Girl sent you! 

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Mini Cakes at Black Hound

It's about time for a sweet treat and thankfully, Black Hound has plenty of mini cakes to go around. As soon as I saw the display or darling mini cakes from the window, I had to go inside and see what Black Hound was all about. I am so happy that a place like this exists because these are the most perfect mini cakes I have ever seen!

 

With flavors like Almond Apricot, Crazy Daisy, Chocolate Raspberry, Coconut, Carrot and Busy Bee, Black Hound has something for everyone. Not in the mood for cake? There are plenty of other scrumptious options to choose from like Chocolate Hazelnut Clusters, Sugar Spiced Pecans, Cookies and Chocolate Truffles. Check out the full menu here.

During my visit, I indulged in the 3" Chocolate Mouse Cake. It's "one layer of bittersweet chocolate mousse, one layer of milk chocolate mousse, and three thin layers of chocolate butter cake blanketed in white chocolate buttercream and decorated with bittersweet and milk chocolate polka dots." Ready for yours yet?

Black Hound  is located at 170 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10003 and mini cakes range from $7-$10 each. Mid-week blues got you in a funk? No worries. You can order Black Hound right from the comfort of your own living room and ship it to your house. It can't get much better than that folks so go get some Black Hound today!

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Nicoletta

As an avid Instagramer, one day I came across a photo of what appeared to the most fantastic looking meatballs ever. Naturally, I had to check the place out for myself so I took my boyfriend, Alex and my friend Little Leeron to see what all the fuss was about.

Alex- always happy to eat.

Little Leeron

Nicoletta is known for their "made fresh to order" pizzas but they are so much more than that. Although the pizzas I saw on the walk to my table did look amazing, I had to get my hands on those meatballs! Know to the chef as Polpette, these brick-oven baked Neapolitan meatballs topped with pomadara and bread crumbs are to die for!  We also tried the Stromboil and the Pollo alla Parmigiana: "breaded chicken breast fried to a beautiful golden brown, covered with Chef White's pomodoro sauce and topped with melted mozzarella cheese served with a side of spinach, sautéed with onions, garlic & chile flakes." Both were equally amazing. Check out the full menu here.

Polpette

Stromboli

Pollo alla Parmigiana

Nicoletta is located in the East Village at 160 Second Avenue, NY, NY. The menu is reasonably priced with appetizers starting at $5, pastas staring at $17 and pizza ranging from $17-$23. This is a great date spot and they have a nice outside seating area. For more information on Nicoletta, check out their website here.

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Some photos from Tasting Table

"So Jazzy, So Brooklyn, SOCO!"

Peter Best, Malissa Browne and Slim Walker are a force to be reckoned with when it comes to serving up some of the most mouth-watering Southern Fusion cuisine in Brooklyn. Half restaurant, half cocktail bar, SoCo has been described as "the Brooklyn Bridge turned into a restaurant." The designer Andres Aladin, cleverly incorporated things into the space so it feels "relaxed enough for casual lunches but sexy enough for dinner dates," and for that he will always hold a special place in my heart.

When you enter SoCo, it's as if life outside those doors do not exist. The atmosphere is relaxing yet chic and the menu is so creative and unique that it's hard not to order one of everything. SoCo describes their menu style as "a mixture of cajun/creole, barbecue and soul food dreamt up with everything else you can imagine."

 While keeping true to roots of Southern food, one of their most popular menu items is the Buttermilk Fried Chicken. This dish is two pieces of organic buttermilk chicken served on top of a red velvet waffle with Bourbon syrup on the side.  Another dish that will tempt your taste buds is the Mac and Cheese served in an iron skillet. From the B.Q.E. Salmon Burger to the Smoked Butternut Squash Ravioli you can't go wrong. Craving more? Check out the full menu here. 

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Mac and Cheese

Pecan Crusted Pork Chop

B54 Burger

Strawberry Shortcake

SoCo is open seven days a week from noon to at least 11pm, with a daily intermission from 3:30pm - 5pm. They are located in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Clinton Hill at 509 Myrtle Avenue and dinner for two will cost you around $50. What are you waiting for!? Grab a date and head on over to SoCo. You are going to love it!

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Some photos from: Brooklyn Bred Brooklyn Fed

Grimaldi's Coal Brick-Oven Pizza

While meandering throughout Brooklyn Bridge Park this weekend, I stumbled upon something I knew had to be delicious. From a quarter mile away I could see people lined out the door and around the corner anxiously waiting to get into Grimaldi's Coal Brick-Over Pizzeria. Naturally, I was very curious and  jumped right in line.

Look for the Rayban's and you'll find me!

 After an hour wait, we finally made it to the front of the line and a few moments later we were in the door. We sat at the bar and patiently waited for our half cheese, half pepperoni coal brick-oven pizza and admired the decor. The walls are filled with photos of famous celebrities that have dinned at Grimaldi's, the tables are cozy and the pizza's are hand crafted by their hard working team in the center of the restaurant.

To serve the loyal fans of Grimaldi's, the coal brick-oven must heated by 100 pounds of coal a day, with temperatures that reach 1200 degrees. That's one hot mamma.

The menu is pretty standard and simple. Choose your pie size: small or large, then choose your toppings. Some of the toppings they offer are pepperoni, ham, mushrooms, onions, basil and fresh mozzarella. Check out the full list here. The pizza's range from $12-$16 and toppings range from $2-$4 per topping.

Because the pizza is so good and the fans will do anything to experience this piece of heaven, they have some rules: no credit cards, no slices, no reservations and no delivery.

After every inch of our pizza was devoured, it was easy to understand why Grimaldi's Coal Brick-Over Pizzeria has been voted "Best Pizza" year after year by Zagat. Grimaldi's  has locations throughout New York City and Hoboken, NJ. Check out the full list of locations here.

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