If I had to Leave Queens, I’d Miss you the most

5 Burro. I would miss being able to walk to 5 Burro Cafe. Its so sad to admit, but i have been there at least once a week for the past 3 months… Yes. The hostess doesnt know my name just yet but shes got that familiar “Heeeey” going on… you know the really long “Heeey” you say when the name of the person you are greeting escapes you? I am very fond of the long “hey”. Anywho. I had a friend come visit me and he wanted to thank me for letting him crash on my couch so he offered to take me out… and since 5 burro cafe, in my opinion is an impressive little hole in the wall I suggested we go there for lunch.
I want to gush for a second about my new Sigg Bottle! YAY! I need to drink more water. I had to toss my camelbac and this was the next best thing! LOOOOVE IT!

For breakfast, I wasnt very hungry and I knew that I was going to be eating a large Linner… so i made myself a fancy cafe con leche with foam and bit of cinnamon! Dee-Lish! For any Keurig owners, my old roomie just told me there is a new “steaming wand” attachment… im all over it. I will report back with my findings.

At 5 burro cafe….

I got a cool toy. I must say I am disppointed to note that lately, the toys have been few 😦 They need to get on that ASAP. I got my raspberry margarita.

My friend made a fuss about the margs being frozen and opted out of a straight up margarita.

So he got the shark attack. I have never tried it…nor have I had any desire to try it other than the fact that I wanted a shark to add to my collection. (the shark is in my possession as we speak). My friends verdict: Not good.

I was shocked. I probably should have tried it just so i can say for myself if it was good or not. The description of the beverage escapes me but there were quite a few elements in there… and he said you could taste every single one of them.

REALLY?

that doesn’t sound right.

Having skipped breakfast i ordered the steak fajitas. What the hell else would i order? As a matter of fact I FINALLY gave in to getting a salad over the weekend and my other guests talked me out of it. I WILL GET A SALAD! I WILL GET ONE EVENTUALLY! I made my friend taste the steak. He was slightly impressed.

That pissed me off.

I know this blog is called Food Snob. I know that I talk shit about a few places every now and again but when someone talks shit about something I know is GOOD- i get a little offended. Its one thing not to like something – which you have every right not to like but its quite another to tear apart every single part of the meal, the drinks, the establishment and etc when you are taking someone to their favorite place. That joint was MY choice. Rather than let him bug me, I bit my lip and continued to munch away and thanked the heavens that he and I are nothing more than friends.

He ordered the Enchiladas with Mole Sauce. My mom ordered the enchilidas last time she was there and she didnt like them- her idea of enchilidas are more like burritos smothered with sauce and cheese. The mole sauce tasted creamy and smoky. But I didnt recommend them. he ordered them anyway and ate 1/4 of it. *shrug*

Everyone is different. I cant twist his arm to make him like something and its not the first time I have taken someone somewhere and they didnt love the food as much as I did. I acknowledge this…maybe he was trying to impress me with his knowledge of food since he knew i would blog about the things I eat.

Who knows! after we left we were having a conversation about going out again and he shocked the shit out of me when he said he would go back to 5 burro because he liked it..

I just booked an appointment with the doctor to check my hearing. Coulda sworn he hated the place- but whatever. Hes gonna go back? Score one for Mo Diva!

Later that evening, I went home after a day of window shopping and sinus headaches and remembered i had some goodies from whole foods.

A giant bottle of lambics, “red wine”, and discount cheddar cheese.

Dont mind if I do…. i helped myself to the entire bottle of lambics. Its raspberry beer that should be avoided when you are thirsty. It tastes like soda… and I chugged the first half of this.

along side my cheap cheese and pita chips. My hangover the next day was indescribable. And when i went to visit my mother she opened the fridge and offered me a glass of lambics… i am still woozy at the sight of this stuff. haha

Stay Dry sweeties!

Tres Ammmigas

If you know how to swim, you probably weren’t remotely phased by the downpour that hit the tri-state area over the weekend…I am a great swimmer so getting around over the weekend was easy. JK
In all seriousness- the tsunami that we called “a little rain” was gross and put a damper on some of my weekend plans- BUT NOT ALL of them!
Mari, Missy, and Myself (the three M’s- thanks mari) had planned a girls day a few weeks back filled with Margaritas and Tex Mex… and even as I was cursing the rain while walking my dog, the thought of margaritas was making the day seem beautiful. Especially Margaritas from 5 Burro Cafe.
The three of us met up at 3 pm on Saturday.
I got there first and wasted no time in ordering my poison: Raspberry Margarita. I would have take a fresh pic but I was being scoped out by a couple who was mesmerized by my beverage and were asking me questions about it. I felt whipping out my camera to take a pic of it might be a little weird- best if i have a few glugs and then take pic of it… or wait till Missy got there.
Missy arrived next and sat beside me while her apricot margarita was made. Just as she got her drink, Mari arrived and we got to be seated.

The waiter kindly placed this tempting bowl of tortilla chips and fresh pico de gallo on our table. Having only nibbled on some toast in the morning, i was ready to dive in face-first. I nibbled…okay- maybe i shoved chips into my mouth while glugging a perfectly thick and potent raspberry margarita!

Mari, was a good girl (who gave up meat for Lent) and had a gorgeous Shrimp salad. I always say Im gonna try the salads there… but I feel like if im gonna be at 5 burro, its a SIN to not get the steak.

Missy was also being good and ordered the veggie salad. I have to say this was a gorgeous salad. I love how generous they are with the veggies… and I spotted a huge chuck of avocado in there! nice!
The ladies split a side of house made guac. Clearly, that shit is legit! I would love nothing more that to eat this guac right out of the ramekin with a spoon. But i didnt because this was not my guac and despite what you all think…i do have SOME self control (some!)

But self control went out the window when i ordered my steak tacos…

and when the ladies wanted to take a pic of my food… I’m not an ugly girl but I love taking weird ass pics like this. SMH. This pic is called “a Ravenous Mo”. I was enjoying tender juicy chunks of skirt steak smothered in guac, garlic and onions (kiss me?) and skipped the wraps and dove into my mexican rice and refried beans (musical fruit indeed).

While stuffing my face, my drink needed replenishing:

Ah, thats better! Its important to remember that if you plan on drinking heavily you should have extra protein (preferably meat), since that is the key to alcohol absorption. Since I inhaled my steak I was feeling a nice buzz from my margarita… and the second one sealed the deal.

Thanks Mr. Waiter, for taking a nice pic of us! We are so hot. and tipsy.

We decided to take a walk… and when mari and Missy nearly FLEW away (oh, those skinny girls – jk) we walked into Barnes and Noble which might have been a mistake.

Photo ops. Loud conversations, random giggling and several pee breaks… we got a lot of attention. Too bad i didnt care.

I’m holding the “New York Bartenders Guide” paying homage to my drunkeness. ALL Hail the Margarita!

And since we were in Queens and we are bloggers and we love dessert we walked our sobering behinds to the alley with The Lite Choice.

Can you see my excitement? Cuz Im really excited. Stephanie was there! Our homegirl who took care of us the last time. She remembered us (and probably thought “OH NO, NOT THESE GIRLS AGAIN!) and she took very good care of us!

Peanut Butter Fudge Beyotches!

with oreo topping.

Me and Mari. Mari got the caramel with waffle cone crumbs and Missy got the oreo mix that she loves to pieces.

thanks Stephanie for taking our pic! We had a great time just dishing, and eating out soft serve… we were gonna go back to get a mini margarita from 5 burro (i know- where AA when you need it?) but mother nature turned on me and I got the worst headache of my life. I suffer from seasonal allergies and now that spring is coming I get the worst sinus headaches ever… so i called it a night.

Feeling stuffed and headache-y, mari and I decided to walk most of the 1.5 miles… in the tsunami.

This is what I look like after getting rained on and whipped with high speed winds and a headache.

Stay Tuned… next month the Tres Ammmigas hit up Brooklyn. WATCHOUT BK… we Thirsty!

NYC Blogger Meet-up

Being a blogger for a little over a year now I have FINALLY had my first blogger meet up. Over the last year I have had the pleasure of connecting with local bloggers via email and the rare face to face meetup and I have been DYING to meet everyone. Mari and Sarah decided to round up the locals and Missy chose the venue. Since she is a big fan of 5 burro Cafe she thought the others would enjoy it as well… lucky for me I have been here before and I LOVE IT HERE!
the Attendees were Me, Missy, Mari, Sarah, Julie, Joanne, Dawn, and Jen.
Missy did us a favor and got there early to get our name on the list. This place is a little on the small side and even on a slow night there is a wait. Luckily we waited about 15 minutes….if that!
We were seated in a nice long table in the back. They served us some corn tortilla chips and fresh homemade salsa. We were so busy chatting and giggling that we kind of forgot that they were there (good thing for me!)… and then the cameras came out! 8 bloggers plus 8 cameras- sooo many awesome pics!

from left to right, Joanne, Mari and Sarah. I snapped this pic as Jen was coming in.

Missy, Julie, and Dawn.

And I must say, this is one gorgeous group of blogging ladies! And we all had a lot in common!

Time for drinks! I love their margaritas! The kind of margaritas that sneak up on you with their potency. I got the raspberry. Only one! I was on cold meds and didnt want to chance getting loopy on everyone (even though I am already a little loopy as it is).

Missy was the only one to snap a picture of the toast. But cheers to a fantastic group of ladies!

Stole this pic from Mari- its a great pic- if i must say myself. I’ve known missy via email for a year so it was so nice to finally meet her!

Me, Missy, Julie and Dawn.

Our food took forevs to arrive! And the consensus was that the Steak Fajitas were the cats pajamas! So good. Buttery and juicy skirt steak seasoned perfectly along with yummy grilled peppers and onions, rice, guac and sour cream. Julie got a shrimp salad and it looked REALLY good!!!

The poor waiter got stuck with 8 cameras and made us say Tequila about 16 times! But he managed to get everyone and it came out great! The meal was fantastic! and I was most looking forward to what was coming next!

No, we didnt bar hop!

Last week, when Mari and I had our tour at The Lite Choice, they heard about our blogger meet up and arranged for the Forrest Hills Location to stay open an extra hour JUST FOR US! We were so psyched!

The walk to TLC was short and when we walked into the store, My big mouth announced “the bloggers have arrived”!

wasting no time, i asked Stephanie for a snickers. Any Flavor, any time! She served me some chocolate soft serve and put a healthy portion of fresh peanut butter and mixed away!

Delicious! Before I put my spoon in i offered tastes to the other ladies who were still deciding.. the majority declared it was yummy! I loved the fresh peanut butter in it! it made for a yummy texture! I saw they had some pints prepared and one of them was called O’Henry. Henry will be home after his 3 month business trip this coming thursday and I think that will be a cute little surprise! Here we are! Enjoying out Lite Choice Soft Serve!

thank you to THE LITE CHOICE for accomodating us! It was the perfect end to a great night!

Happy Birthday Maribel

Jay and Maribel Strike a pose.

Its been AGES since I have hung out with Jay. Its been almost a year *gulp*. But good friends are always there and he is always reaching out to me for a night of fun on the town. How could I say no to that face? It was his BFF’s 40th birthday (doesnt she look amazing!!?!) and both of them were delighted to have me. jay and I decided to pregame a bit… which is a disclaimer for the quality or lack there of in the photos to come. Having remained, for the most part, sober for the last 11 months, I drank like a party girl again for the first time in a while and the effects of alcohol are apparent if you continue to read. I will however note how impressed I am with myself that admist a night of debauchery I still managed to hold a camera and snap pics of the food that I ate. (I have no explanation for the mass texts that I sent out that night though… so to all those that received one- Please accept my deepest apologies)
See these? Yea. $4. What do you get when you have two cosmos before dinner? Blurry shots of $4 margaritas. How many margaritas can you get for $4 a piece… 5. So 7 drinks in one night…(shivers)

The place was El Cantinero and its in Union Square area. Actually its on the same block as Bowlmor lanes. Cantinero has two floors and on the 2nd floor is a bar area. On Saturday nights they have happy hour if you stay in the bar but you can dine all over this place.

We started with tortilla chips and homemade salsa. The salsa was great but I havent been anywhere that screws up salsa. It was a little thin, i like chunky salsa.

Being a little tipsy, I tend to eat with my eyes. So Jay and I agreed to share everything right from the start. WINGS! How do you serve wings with NO BLUE CHEESE!?!?! Not that Im big on the stuff but I like to dip a small piece into the stuff for its cooling effect. But the wings were OK at best.

I felt Steak Fajitas were a perfect dish to share and i was right. We got a sizzling platter of steak, peppers, and onions with some other stuff

With guac, sour cream, and pico de gallo on the side. After dining at 5 burro cafe, this place was not up to par. The meat was skimpy and the strips were scrawny. At first bite they were grisly and not moist like those at 5 burro. I crave the beef strips at 5 burro cafe whereas here… not so much. I could have probably done without the fajitas. I was full of tequila- which impaired my judgement- which allowed me to continue eating sub par fajitas.

Drunk shots.

Everyone now! See the rosy cheeks? Thats the best way to tell if I had been drinking. What a mistake it was to imbibe so much! I woke up with a RAGING hangover. I am definitely getting older (in 5 days to be exact). So next time I will remember not to drink on an empty stomach, not to say yes when the waitress says “want another one?” and NOT to text ANYONE while in my drunken stupor.

Revisiting 5 Burro Cafe

Having some free time on my hands now that my significant other is away. My good friends Dan and Nechama thought some Margaritas were in order… I can’t argue when Margaritas are on the line. And I have already been to 5 Burro Cafe, but this time I was determined to take blog worthy photos…
We got there early and only waited for about 10 minutes. Normally, when I eat here, I wait about 40 minutes. I was excited when we sat down because they have fantastic margaritas. They kick you in the ass! I had a strawberry margarita with a gross garnish.
They were gooey feeling- so gross. But the margarita itself was thick, potent and DELICIOUS. If you aren’t into Mexican Food- go there for a frozen margarita…i highly recommend them.
Nechama and I were starving and eating with out eyes. We decided on a starter. Buffalo wings. Nothing special about these wings. I am a bit trashy cuz i prefer my wings from Hooters – 5 burros wings were not very spicy and kind of soggy. When it comes to wings- i want crispy and HOT…like “holy shit thats hot!” However, the complimentary chips tasted great in the bleu cheese dip…yum!

onto the entrees! Normally I order chicken… well I make an effort to order chicken but one thing 5 burro cafe does right is beef.
Dan ordered the 3 tacos with mexican rice, refried beans and cheese, guac and sour cream. He licked the plate clean, the tacos were soft and full of tender strips of beef. He used his chips to clean up his cour cream and guac.
Nechama got the steak Fajitas. A mountain of grilled steak strips with peppers and onions, mexican rice, refried beans, sour cream and guac. Because we hogged it out over some “okay” wings, she was pretty full when she got her entree… she nibbled and took the meat home to her dogs…
Mickey, you arent getting any of my steak!

I, on the other hand was considering a number of dishes. Lately, i totally SUCK at ordering at restaurants. I am turning into my mother. (cries) So I thought I would order a combo of chicken, shrimp, and steak. the same fixings on the side as everyone else. I also got some tortillas to wrap but I was fine just using a fork… no sense in filling up on bread with all this delicious protein in front of me. The steak was seasoned wonderfully and cooked to a juicy strip of perfection. The chicken was just as good so now when I go back I will be ordering chicken. However, the shrimp were just okay. They were cooked fine but they were poorly seasoned. Dan got excited and picked the shrimp out of my dish and after one bite, he didnt want any either. And Dan will eat anything… I hardly touched the rice and beans but cleaned up my sour cream and guac.

When the waiter came back to check on me, I was considering ordering a 2nd margarita… but i still had half a margarita to go and my knees started to tingle. Thats the tell-tale sign that the alcohol is working…. so i stopped there. By the time i finished my margarita I felt relaxed and really full. And No, Mickey did not get any steak, shrimp, or chicken. Only Nechama’s dogs are spoiled. 🙂

Mom, I hope you’re reading this – I’m taking you to this place for a serious margarita and grown up girl chat. xoxox

Right, so do i recommend? Yes. But if you want to eat get there early or be prepared to wait… and if you hate crowds- definitely get there early. Get the steak. Its worth it!

Home Brewing for Beginners

Iced Tea!
Not from powder. Not bottled. Straight up, Home brewed Iced Tea.
I really do appreciate my overworked and underpaid days at Starbucks because I was ignorant in the preparation of a lot of things I took for granted… like iced tea. Back at home my iced tea came from a tin of powder and I would just add water. Then when I got a job… I felt so ignorant to the fact I never thought of making iced tea with actual tea bags.
Before I lose all credibility here I must note that my darling Henry asked me while we were in Trader Joes:
“If I buy these tea bags… can I brew them and then put them in the fridge to make iced tea?”

Oh my darling boyfriend.

Fate has put your ignorant ass in my life for a reason!

“Babe, if you buy the box, I will show you how to make iced tea out of it”
A hug in Trader Joes in front of the Coffee and teas.
Alright, homemade iced tea is as easy as homemade iced coffee. You gotta brew the tea at double strength (that means two times more than one serving), pour it over ice and add water, sweeten if you like and serve.
My pitcher holds eight cups so I brewed 8 bags of jasmine tea with 8 bags of blueberry tea. I the tea into 4 cups of boiling water and let them steep for 8 minutes.

I drained the tea bags to get all the tea goodness out of them.

And I filled my pitcher with ice about 3/4 of the way.

I poured in my concentrated tea which smelled fruity and floral…

and added water and some truvia. I gave it a squirt of lemon as well and was quite pleased with the aroma.

Its a very light tea and very refreshing. I like making homemade tea from time to time because it tastes better… you feel better about drinking it and also.. its cheaper than buying the “Iced Tea Kits” I have seen in the super market. Please experiment with the tea you already have at home! You can even make it by the glass! Brew two tea bags in 4 oz of water and pour over a glass of ice. Add some water and sweet stuff and there you go!

(My fav combo is tazo orange mandarin tea with a passion tea- like fruit punch!!!)

Okay…

After Shopping Henry and I were hungry for dinner… we had leftovers from the other night.

I didnt want to reheat the fajitas because they would be off in some terrible way. Rather than waste it, I decided to make quesadillas.

Don’t be impressed. Its essentially all of the ingredients plus the addition of cheese.

I reheated the steak and onions over a nonstick skillet. Not too much because I didnt want to dry out the steak. Just enough to get it warmed up.

I took a leftover tortilla and smothered it with a light blend of mexican cheeses

Put the sides and steak on stop of the cheesy tortilla. Added more cheese and another tortilla and placed it in the toaster oven at 400 for 10 mins on each side.

20 mins later. A fresh quesadilla.

The tortilla toasted nicely and had the consistency of a cracker. I loved it. We used guac, salsa and sour cream to dip the quesadillas.

Nothing fancy or difficult to concoct but just a way to kick it up a notch.

Whats your favorite type of Cuisine?

Mine is a 3 way tie between japanese indian and mexican.

Inspired by Hungry-Girl

Howdy Folks, Happy Friday.
If you haven’t been influenced by Hungry-Girl and her incredibly amazing recipes, prepare yourself.
I was feeling bored with my normal “go to” foods and boredom can lead to wandering off the beaten path to an over-eaten path… We don’t want that.
Sometimes I like to take my cookbooks (all 25 of them) and scatter them onto the floor, i sit in the middle of them all armed with a highlighter, some post its and a notepad and I get busy planning or getting ideas. This week was a major success as I am going to share two recipes from the first Hungry Girl cookbook that have really impressed me… and hopefully you too!
The first thing that caught my eye was the veggie Scramble.
one Dr. Praegger’s Veggie Burger ( i used the Tex Mex flavor)
2 egg whites or 1 egg or 1/4 cup of egg substitute

Heat or defrost veggie burger and crumbled into a pan of egg whites. You can either make an omelet or a scramble. i chose scramble since i was in a hurry.

I topped it with lite mexican cheese…

and served it taco style on a whole wheat tortilla. This was amazing! Like a veggie huevos rancheros! I am keeping this EASY recipe in the vault (aka my brain) for later uses! this hearty mama jamma was about 200 calories!

take that!

Next up I decided to try hungrygirls Buffalo Chicken Salad… its an easy one too.

One chicken breast- cooked any way you please. I chose to grill it.

Next, slice it, dice it, and pour 2 tbsp of Franks red Hot and 1 tbsp of parm cheese on it and mix up.

Mix it up and heat for 45 sec in the micro… careful- this smells like some crazy good buffalo wings minus the grease…

Serve it on a bed of chopped romaine and carrots. I drizzled mine with low fat ranch.

this salad was amazingly satisfying and easy to make. I love salads but the regular ol‘ chicken salad can get boring. this is a great way to add variety to your foods without adding tons of fat and cals. yes, this one is going in the vault.

After behaving all day, i came home to this.

Fajitas.

By.

The.

Pound.

Oh me, oh my!

2 Fajitas and I called it a day… stay tuned for lots of mexican fare in the next posts.

Just a note on how much i love Hungry Girl. Her recipes are easy because they are meant for usually one to two people and consist of ingredients that you have in your cupboards already.

Do you have any healthy mock ups of your fave foods that you would like to share with the class???

5 Burro Cafe and Drunken Blurry Shots

For as long as I have lived in Queens and even before that, my friend Dan has been pestering me to go to 5 Burros Cafe with him and his wife. He doesn’t call himself a foodie but he should own the title because every place he has recommended has been fantabulous! When we got there we waited for an hour. The place is small but its always packed in there and it smells great! A sure sign that the wait is worth it!

While we waited Dan suggested we start on their margaritas. They are frozen and pack a serious punch. The kind of punch that sneaks up on you because the beverage is so damn tasty. This didnt taste strong at all and was so thick and frosty and perfect that you will notice in the quality of these photos that i was not on my best behavior. I loved that they served the Margaritas in mason jars and garnished them with plastic bugs. So cute!

While I was finishing my first margarita (already starting to feel it) I ordered a second and stole the garnish from my friends drink. A turtle! So cute.

Upon the recommendation of Nechama, Dan’s wife, I ordered the Fajitas de Carne, or the Steak Fajitas.

The steak was so tender and juicy that after the first fajita, I ditched the wraps and ate the steak dipped in guacamole. I needed the protein after that doozy of a drink but by then it was too late and the sillyness began.

“Hey Turtle, Stop hoggin the Margarita!” And then Jess started doing this weird lil dance in her seat while shruggin her shoulders saying “Turtle, Turtle”.

And Dan got a lil cooky with his drink and his wifes.

And then he threw them peace signs at me. And his poor wife… just smiled and acted like she didnt know him.

After like 7 shots, I finally got one with BOTH of them looking at me and smiling. Arlenys is on the left and Jess, AKA Turtle Dancer, is on the right.

This place was fantastic! If you are ever in Forrest Hills, I highly recommend this place and I recommend the entire menu!

Only thing is, if you hate crowds, and hate waiting this place might not make you happy… but they have margaritas to make those better.