Spot & BCD Tofu

I recently tried two new food places that I will most definitely recommend to others. The first is Spot Dessert Bar in the East Village. My friend Lauren and I came across it while I was on my way to pick new eyeglasses from Fabulous Fanny's (best place for eyewear) we popped in for a mid-day snack and ordered 2 cupcakes and a dessert tapas.

"Yuku Eskimo" with a block of yuzu ice-cream, oreo crust, raspberry foam, sliced strawberries, and chocolate ganache. The whole dessert wasn't too sweet and the texture of the ice cream was so good..more like a yogurt.

Chocolate cupcake with green tea frosting with jam inside, it tasted like apricot - yum!

This was the cupcake special of the day. Sea salt caramel apple! Unlike cupcakes from Magnolia's or Billy's, the frosting at Spot is sweet but not super sugary and has much lighter texture. So does the crumb part, they're not dense like Magnolia's. Not knocking on those famous cupcakes because I happen to like them, but a lot of people don't because they think it's too dry.

So, I'm Korean and probably one of the few who until now wasn't a big fan of my own culture's food. I used to be an extremely picky eater to the point that it was almost ridiculous but I've expanded my palate tremendously in recent years. But after a whole day of visiting the MoMA and shopping I was freaking HUNGRY. Brian and I were around Koreatown and I got the most random craving for Korean bbq so we popped into BCD Tofu because people have told me great things. Omg...it was so deliiiiicious!

Assorted mini dishes that are usually served in Korean places. Steamed broccoli with sesame oil, two different kimchis, mashed potatoes, pickles, and a fried mackerel. Those are good but the damn bones are tiny and so annoying to pluck out.

We ordered kalbee, which are short ribs marinated in a sweet sauce with garlic and then grilled. Theirs was one of the best I've ever had because it was more on the sweeter side, which I prefer.

We also got a kimchi soon-doo-boo which is a spicy stew with soft tofu. So good over rice.

And since we are such fatties, we got an additional order of kalbee, but this time we wanted to grill it ourselves on the table. Do you see the smiley face on the onion? Lol

The rice they serve with the soon-doo-boo comes in hot stone bowls, which the servers scoop out for you allowing the remaining rice in the bowl gets crunchy from the heat. They come back with hot water so when the rice soaks in there for a while, it becomes a little clear rice soup. It can be so satisfying when you're feeling under the weather.