This has got to be the best version of soup dumplings I’ve ever had!  Instead of traditional Chinese soup dumplings, this restaurant turned a French standard into a whimsical brunch item.  Bite-sized dumplings filled with caramelized onion and broth were placed into an escargot dish, covered with melted gruyere cheese and garnished with a tiny crouton.  Delicious and fun!

Check out this amazing chandelier made by artist Ingo Maurer.  It’s title, Porca Miseria, means miserable sow in Italian and it is made entirely of plates and cutlery!   I saw it at the MoMA a few days ago and I just love it!

Last Monday I had tea at Takashimaya, a fancy Japanese department store on NYC’s 5th Avenue.   The tea was fabulous.  A friend and I shared two pots–one was a sweet tea flavored with peach, rosehips and citrus that was garnished with a stick of rock candy to sweeten the cup, the other was a savory tea made of toasted buckwheat soba.  However, the best part of out midday snack were the pressed rice sandwiches.

The sandwiches were made of triangular shaped patties of pressed sushi rice that had the slightest flavor of rice wine vinegar and wasabi, and were topped with paper thin slices of fresh cucumber and smoked salmon, and laid on a bed of seaweed salad.  The perfect accompaniment to the teas were ordered and a great Asian alternative to the English pairing of cucumber-watercress sandwiches and tea!

These high fashion lollipops were designed by artist Massimo Gammacurta and several powerhouse brands like Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel and Louis Vuitton to be passed out at runway shows.  How sweet is that?!

…there’s a new Mexican breakfast in town.

Molletes are a traditional (and lesser-known) Mexican breakfast item that consist of french bread cut in half, covered with refried black beans, melted chihuahua cheese, chorizo, pico de gallo and avocado. They are delicious (as you can see from my half-eaten plate above), especially when accompanied by a nice cafe con leche for brunch.

At my neighborhood Whole Foods, I came across emu eggs for sale.  Not that long ago, they had ostrich eggs for sale.  I’m not sure what I would use these for (a really large omelette?), but they certainly are pretty cool looking!

After reading Lorin’s blog entry on food bandages, I found myself purchasing a few boxes of those super cute cupcake bandages in the photo. This, of course, led to random internet searches for more cupcake stuff. The result: this photo of shark cupcakes, that seemed to have attacked a few life preserver cupcakes. Pretty cool, huh?!

These hand-built wraps are healthy, delicious, and very easy to duplicate at home.

Simply saute some very thin slices of pork in canola oil, seasoned with fresh garlic, chopped scallion and grated ginger.  Next, cook rice vermicelli noodles in boiling, salted water; once tender, drain and cool.

Then layer the pork slices, rice noodles, whole fresh mint leaves, thin strips of carrot, sliced cucumber and chopped peanuts onto large romaine lettuce leaves.  Squeeze a small wedge of fresh lime juice on top, roll up, and dig in!

My sweet tooth tends to take me in strange directions. For instance, my lastest purchase–cola gummies!

I found these at a small Chinese-owned corner store. One is “fizzy cola”, the other is “happy cola.” (How could I not buy them with names like fizzy and happy?!) Both are quite tasty, if you’re a fan of jelly candies and soft drinks combined. However, they definitely don’t quench thirst like the real deal, and certainly would not do well if mixed with rum…

In Spain, it’s chocolate con churros for a late-night snack. In Mexico, it’s cafe con churros for a early-bird breakfast. But down the street from my apartment, at my neighborhood doughnut shop, it’s Indian chai tea with churros to satisfy my mid-day munchies! All combinations are delicious, but this one is the best I’ve had so far. But that may be because it’s only a block away…