Sinanation

I thought the Irish were only known for their lagers. Maybe I was mistaken. Lily O’Brien’s, named after the founder’s daughter, is an Irish chocolate shop that made its way across the ocean into Manhattan. The shop, located on 40th street between 5th and 6th Avenues, overlooks the Bryant Park. If you are around the area, I definitely recommend you stop by for the hot chocolate and the shortcake milk chocolate clusters. Take everything to go and enjoy them in the park (weather permitting).

Thanks to my girlfriend’s notification, we were able to visit the 12th Annual Chocolate Show at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York last Sunday. It was a 3-day event running from October 30th until November 1st. To tell you honestly, I wasn’t aware of a chocolate show until I visited this one. I now know how huge it is, running in multiple cities every year from New York to Moscow. You  are required to buy tickets to attend, but once inside you realize that it is worth every dime. Numerous chocolate shops open up small booths at this event, giving out free samples of their delicious products.  Some charge a small amount for the tasting of extraordinary deserts such as Lily O’Brien’s chocolate fondue fountain. Visitors also have the opportunity to buy the chocolate they like (generally with cash, but some shops take credit cards).

Some fun facts from the program book we received:

• Chocolate manufacturers consume 40% of world’s almonds, 20% of the peanuts and 8% of the sugar.
• Chocolate does not cause acne (contrary to popular belief)  and is low in caffeine.

My three favorites from the show:

• Chocolatier Mathez’s Mon Ami truffles. This is simply the best truffle I have ever tasted. It is marketed under the slogan “No Chewing Allowed!” by the 75 years-old family-owned chocolatier. It is messy, but literally melts in your mouth. The company was wise enough to open up a seperate online store for these goodies at www.nochewingallowed.com. Remember to keep it in cool place (aka the fridge). I didn’t and the box turned into a jar of Nutella.

• Peanut Butter & Co’s Cinnamon Raisin Swirl and Dark Chocolate Dreams. I am not a huge peanut butter fan, but I could change my mind after tasting these two flavors. They can be found at the company’s NYC store (240 Sulliwan St. (between Bleecker & West 3rd) and online at www.ilovepeanutbutter.com

• Berkshire Bark Chocolate’s White Lightning. Ingredients include white chocolate, roasted cashews, crystallized ginger and lemon zest, making it the best white chocolate I have tasted so far. Sale locations are available at www.berkshirebark.com

At first the idea of going through a random black door, taking the scary, endless stairs through a restaurant kitchen to party seemed like a cool idea. Like many other New Yorkers, I felt like I was making my way through an adventure to finally reach my destination: a regular night out at a popular NYC nightclub. I felt special for exploring sights only a few other insiders were aware of (or so I thought). Nowadays this idea has gotten out of hand. Many adventurers realize that the “secret” entrances they went through actually became as obvious and famous as the gates to Disneyland. Everywhere we go to party seem to have a single entrance, stairs too narrow to have two rows and a claustrophobic low ceiling. The places are beyond ordinary in terms of decoration, but seem to make the quota just because they have a “hidden” entrance. They are all packed without any extra room to move around: no signs of secrecy or exclusivity other than a disrespectful bouncer. Here are a few of those infamous spots I know about:

• Bijoux (Should now be closed)
  57 Gansevoort St. Used to be the “secret” lounge of Merkato 55’s owner, right below the restaurant and right next to its kitchen. The almost-too-difficult-to-locate street entrance would take you through the black stairs lit with tiny candles. Once you made it to the short corridor, you would pass by the kitchen to reach a plain white door that finally opened up to the black interior of Bijoux.
• Southside
  1 Cleveland Place. Run by the Martignetti Brothers, Southside has the most unexpected entrance that opens up to narrow, shady stairs leading to a black & white marbled dungeon dressed almost like Bettle Juice.
• Philippe Downstairs
  33 E. 60th St. One of the famous creators of the Mr. Chow brand in New York, Philippe Chow, took things into his own hands by opening Philippe on the Upper East Side. The place is just another cool, too-black-to-criticize restaurant if you are not close enough with the managers to try the tiny mafia’s room downstairs. Going inside the red velvet curtain, you make your way downstairs through the kitchen’s steep and narrow stairs  in between the huge copper casseroles and pans and confused waiters. You step into a tiny room with 3-4 tables and a low ceiling. Another set of curtains close behind you. At first, it is almost too shady to feel comfortable. Things only get better after the drinks come in and you hook up your own iPod to the sound system.
• Simyone Lounge
  409 W. 14th St. Guys from Tenjune took up the famous Lotus Lounge and turned it into the new gem of the Meatpacking district. Simyone Lounge or SL in short was carefully crafted underground with a mix of marble, wood, dimmed lights and x-ray documents. Like always  you take a long line of stairs to make it to the though-door lounge.
• Beatrice Inn (now closed)
• Cabin Down Below
  10 Ave. A. A few frequenters of Beatrice Inn felt so bad when it closed down that they decided to provide its crowd with another “secret” spot. The Cabin Down Below is hidden behind the East Village joint, Pizza Shop. Haven’t been to this one yet.
• BEast
  171 E. Broadway. Tucked below the restaurant, Broadway East, BEast comes with a secret buzzer and an impressive hallway. It is rated as one of the best with its great sound system. It has been in my list of to-go-tos.
• La Esquina Downstairs
  114 Kenmare St. You might wonder how a laid-back Mexican joint like this could quickly turn into a tough, stuck-up lounge after you run into the two bouncers in front of the “employees only” door. You should know better. You have to make a reservation weeks before to enjoy the “exclusive”, below the ground maze of this simple, comfort food downtown spot.
• RDV
  409 W. 13th St. Below the famous Bagatelle Restaurant and Kiss&Fly lies a very-well decorated lounge with a completely black and tight entrance. As usual, dark stairs take you below the ground into this unexpected luxury apartment packed with a large mix of frequenters from flashy Russians to models and throphy-wife-to-bes. The drinks are expensive enough to make you enjoy every single sip and the music is good enough to make you groove.

Having been to a few famous burger shops around Manhattan, I thought it would be wise to compile the best ones in a list. Here are my favorites so far. Grilled, juicy and rare hidden in between two soft buns:

5 Napkin Burger

Located in Midtown on the corner of 45th and 9th Ave., 5 Napkin burger came highly recommended by my girlfriend. She was not mistaken. The place has one of the best burgers I have ever eaten in Manhattan. So do not be alarmed by the small section of sushi on the menu. Get the onion rings to start and then a medium rare 5 Napkin Original Burger. The melted comte cheese on top with caramelized onions makes all the difference. Smores shake for desert.

Ruby’s

Located in SoHo on 219 Mulberry St., Ruby’s is a tiny burger sport run by Australians. Bronte from the burger list is my favorite. Bear in mind that it is a little on the sweeter side because of the sweet chili. The creamy chicken pasta is also delicious. Ruby’s accepts cash only.

Shake Shack

The famous burger stand found inside Madison Square Park. There is always an unbelievable line. Shack Stack with beer is the favorite.

Burgers at Le Parker Meridien

You will feel like you are in an adventure while spotting this simple burger joint inside the fancy lobby of Le Parker Meridien Hotel located at 119 W. 56th street. It is actually located right behind the front desk and is definitely worth trying. Keep in mind that the place accepts cash only.

Five Guys

The only chain in the list that deserves unique credit. Five Guys has multiple locations around Manhattan. The menu is pretty self-explanatory.