Warmth, inside and out

Some of the fondest memories I have in my life are related to food. No surprise there, huh? Not only of how the food tasted though, but of the people around me at that time. Our conversation, our laughter, the sharing of the food... these all add to my enjoyment. One type of meal I've always loved is hot pot. I liked that it was a slow meal; nobody ever rushed through one of these dinners. Even in the warm climate of Miami, I have memories of my uncles and parents getting together outside by the pool area in front of a big pot. And then as I got older, my university friends and I would stretch together a small budget to accommodate as much food as possible, and then throw in some rice to cook in the residual soup to make sure everyone went home full and happy.

So with the weather turning cooler in New York these past few days, we thought that it was the perfect time for the three Yuen siblings to go have some hot pot. I had found a great online coupon for a place nearby, and so off we went! The food was slightly pricey but of good quality, and we even got some free dessert afterwards!

Our assortment of meats and veggies

Our soup base seemed pretty healthy! There was ginseng, and red
jujube dates in a pork/chicken broth. Best part is, we got to take it
home afterwards! It's going to be great with noodles tomorrow!

Jon, looking in awe at the huge platter
of condiments placed in front of us.

Sibling time!

With the arrival of my sister to New York for the week, all three Yuen siblings are now under the same roof! Hijinks, adventures, and lots of food are sure to be on the agenda.

Today, we took advantage of a particularly beautiful Fall day, and headed over to Brooklyn Bridge Park. About 20 vendors were out in full force for Smorgasburg, an outdoor food event that takes place every weekend. Everything from Filipino spring rolls, to pizza, to Colombian arepas were being sold. We wasted no time and got down to business, buying up a veritable... smorgasbord... of goodies to eat!

Hungry visitors milling around food booths

Our impromptu picnic lunch! Glazed pork chop sandwich, Salvadorean
Pupusas, maple glazed bacon on a stick, and fresh pizza.

The weather was absolutely perfect; sunny and around 60 degrees. The view was pretty neat too; we found a spot right between the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. It was a great spot to have lunch, and to lay around for a little post-lunch nap!

We look happy... I think it was a bacon-induced high

Jon is saying, "If I pose for this picture, can I have more bacon?"

Don't we look great?! With view of Brooklyn Bridge as a backdrop.

YunNan Flavor Snack

The weather has been crazy freaky here the past few weeks. From a hybrid hurricane superstorm to an early nor'easter, this area has been dumped on by mother nature. We have continued to be very lucky; having heat and electricity is half the battle. The other half... is finding something really warm to eat!

One of my favorite places in the neighborhood is a tiny dumpy hole in the wall. There's about 12 different menu items, none over $5. The cuisine is from Yunnan (雲南), near the southwest corner of China. Although definitely Chinese, the food has a distinctly Southeastern Asian flavor to it. My favorite item on the menu is simply called "Dumplings in Hot and Sour Sauce" in English.

This bowl holds such a wealth of incredible flavors. There's a vinegary tang to the soup base, and spiked with a generous amount of chili peppers. The dumplings are very thin-skinned like a wonton, filled with pork. Combined together, the savory-sour-spicy combo hits you full in the taste buds, wakening your senses and clearing your sinuses. A light scattering of scallions and cilantro offers up a light herb-y freshness to the party.

To my knowledge, this is the only Yunnan eatery in all of NYC. Unique and packed with flavor, it is the perfect meal to warm you up on a cold, blustery, miserable day!

Skewers of Yumminess

Food on a stick is always appealing!

Which one to eat first?

Minimal damage

Whew! On Monday evening, Jon and I sat in our apartment watching the news as the wind howled outside. As Hurricane/Hybrid Superstorm Sandy came onto shore in New Jersey, we just crossed our fingers and hoped that we won't lose power.

News stories coming in were pretty dramatic: storm surges in Battery Park, Atlantic City being under water. The first fatality came not too long afterwards; a 30 year old man in Flushing was killed in bed when a tree fell on his house. There's an explosion at a power substation in Manhattan. Backup generators at an NYU hospital fails and emergency workers are frantically trying to get dozens of babies transferred to another hospital. We nervously look around whenever the wind picks up; I mentally brace myself for the electricity to suddenly cut out. I even receive an automated call from ConEd saying that they may cut power to the area preemptively.

And yet... the power holds up, even as the storm reaches its plateau and then oh so slowly starts to lessen. I wake up Tuesday morning, and we still have power! Yay! Looking at the news broadcasts today, I think we have gotten incredibly lucky. A stroll outside shows amazingly little damage to our neighborhood... we didn't even see any downed trees!

Picture of my block. Looks like someone swept the
sidewalk already!

A few downed branches at the park

This is probably the extent of the damage that we saw

We're not completely out of the woods yet though. All public transportation is still down, and it sounds like it will take days (if not longer) for full service to be restored. Luckily, the subway line near our apartment doesn't go through an underground tunnel into Manhattan (those are currently flooded with seawater); instead, it crosses via the Manhattan Bridge. So... hopefully that means service can be restored faster.

Still, it feels good to have escaped this storm unscathed, unlike so many other people who live in this area. Hopefully life will return to normal for them very soon as well.

Hunkering down

So my brother Jon has arrived in New York.... just in time for the hurricane!

IT'S COMINNNGGGGG!!!!

We're as prepared as we could be though; there's water, food, and snacks. Our neighborhood is inland, on higher ground, so the dreaded storm surges are not going to affect us. Also, our windows face an internal courtyard so I'm hoping that shields us from the worst winds. The main concern is electricity; really really hoping that we get lucky and don't lose it!

Fingers crossed!

Moving in, one box at a time

One of the best things about moving into a new place is decorating. It's so much fun to work with a new layout, and buy new accessories. For this apartment, I really had to start from scratch in a lot of cases, so it's been a really busy week! Multiple visits to Target and IKEA has resulted in plenty of exercise; I live on the 3rd floor and had to haul a lot of things up all those stairs!

Putting together the bed frame

Almost done; slats are used instead of a boxspring

Whoo hoo! I have a bed! (Yeah, I need to get a new
duvet cover; I've had the same one for years)

Making good use of the one closet!

New kitchen cabinets. So nice. So clean.

AND I have a new fridge! The cabinets are on the small
side, so I put up that bar for the pots. Faaaancy, no?

Now I'll have to decide on artwork. Since I didn't re-paint and kept the walls white, they seriously need something to liven the place up. Luckily, I have all sorts of things already... I'll post more pictures as the apartment evolves!