Kung Fu Tea, New York

As an Asian, I am always in the search for the best bubble tea. I think it is the combination of sweet creamy liquid and chewy texture that just gets me all the time. Even though there are TONS of bubble tea shops out there, some good, some bad, and some just plain ugly, there are certain stores that you can always rely on to buy this delicious beverage, and my go-to store is Kung Fu Tea!

Kung Fu Tea is great because it doesn’t add too much water to the mixture and uses a special milk that makes the drinks very flavorful - not bland at all, like most other bubble teas.

My go-to beverage at my go-to bubble tea store is the Black Milk Tea with Herbal Jelly and 30% sugar (bubble optional, depending on my mood):

I really like this combination because it’s light, since there is no bubble, and not too sweet, since there’s only 30% sugar (you can customize the sugar content of your drinks). The Herbal Jelly somehow makes me feel less bad about drinking it, because it’s herbal and HERBAL GOOD!

 One famous beverage from Kung Fu Tea is the Wow Milk, which is basically a very creamy milk, I believe, mixed with condensed milk (someone please confirm or deny this!). A lot of people like Wow Milk, but I prefer the milk tea because it has more taste. A blogger mentioned that  Wow Milk tastes better warm, which I have never tried before and would definitely be up for in the future (follow up review coming!). And so to add to that, yes, Kung Fu does serve hot versions of most of its beverages, so definitely experiment!

So there you go. New time you are in New York or Boston, definitely stop by one of Kung Fu Tea’s locations and try out this liquid gold!

Indita

13 June 4 Permalink

Raw Ice Cream Company

There I was, alone in the apartment and food-less, so I decided to go to the Wholefoods market nearby and buy some organic meals/snacks. As I was searching for muesli, I passed by the frozen goods section and decided to check out some healthy ice creams and yogurts.

This is what I stumbled upon:

Raw vegan ice cream.

Now before I start, I gotta say that I am quite judgmental on raw veganism because of this. However, I have always admired raw vegans, because of their commitment on being healthy and ability to resist the cooked food taste. So I am always intrigued to try any alternative food, such as raw vegan products, just to experience how it’s like to do the diet.

Back to the ice cream; I picked the Mint Chip flavor, because I wanted something refreshing. So I took a small pint of the frozen good and happily purchased it.

Got back home, observed the product even more, and this is my review:

Of course, since its raw and vegan, the ice cream doesn’t look as green as the processed ones:

In fact, it looks just like normal vanilla ice cream with chocolate chips.

Looking at the ingredients, the ice cream is basically made out of beans, nuts, water, nectar and salt for taste and the chocolate bits. So no signs of milk whatsoever.

Taste-wise… Well… These are my stream of thoughts:

First impression: “What. The. Fuck. Is. This.”

Second impression (basically second bite): “Okay, fine. I guess it’s not that bad. It kind of tastes like red bean, but it’s supposed to be vanilla. The chocolate tastes like chocolate but the texture is like paper.”

Third impression: “Dear god I really want to like this but I cant. How am I supposed to finish this? Thank god it only comes in a third of the normal ice cream pint.”

Overall, I’m not sure if I would recommend this to people. It is quite of an interesting experience. However, if you don’t feel like spending on something you don’t like, then do not buy this ice cream.

Indita

12 June 2 Permalink

Sandy

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Although I live in New York City, my neighborhood was not as much affected by the hurricane as the downtown area. But I hope that people who are without power are fine and taking shelter. For those who are running out of food, here are some useful links to places that are/might be open:

http://ny.eater.com/archives/2012/10/the_ultimate_hurricane_sandy_dining_guide_to_nyc.php

http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20121029/new-york-city/whats-still-open-whats-closed-amid-hurricane-sandy

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/2012/10/restaurants_open_hurricane_sandy_nyc.php

I know that D’Agostino is currently closed, but they announced on Twitter that they will be open today at 2 pm, which means MORE FOOD SUPPLIES!

Also, if you don’t have electricity, I suggest to buy magazines, snacks (chips, salsa, hummus, guac), order a delivery, clean the apartment (always useful) and exercise. And if your area is not that bad, got out and take some pictures! Cos that’s what I’m gonna do. Be careful though.

Good luck,

Indita

30 October 1 Permalink

Totto Ramen, NYC

After living in NYC for about 3 years, I finally got the energy and time to wait in line at Totto Ramen. My friends were visiting from Jakarta, so I thought, “why not be touristy??” Not that Totto Ramen is such a touristy place, but apparently it’s the one noodle/ramen place to check out.

Reading this link might be useful:

http://blog.zagat.com/2012/10/new-york-citys-8-best-noodle-shops.html

We arrived at about 8:20pm and we finally got in at almost 10 pm. It was raining and overall boring. But thank god my friends were pretty entertaining. And by the way, there is a food massage place right across the street. I think it’s $18 for a 20 minute massage. Try that place out to kill some time.

Moving on to the food. I got the Totto Miso Ramen with extra Char Siu Pork.

I think that the ramen itself was fine, but the pork was a little overcooked, the broth was delish and, of course, like any other ramen places, the portion was too much. You can ask for sesame chilli oil (Rayu) on the side for $1.25. Trust me, it’s worth the price. The sauce made such a difference to the flavor of the broth and it wasn’t even THAT spicy.

You can find the full menu below:

http://tottoramen.com/?page_id=50

The waiters and cooks were really friendly Japanese people. One cook actually knew one Indonesian word, “merdeka,” which basically means… Independence? Random, but funny. If you come here alone, you will definitely not feel lonely. They’ll try to make you as happy and comfortable as possible, knowing how long you have to wait to get in.

The place was REALLY small. So small that it only fits about 20 chairs max, probably. Hence the long wait. But it doesn’t feel stuffy at all though, so all is good.

So, was it worth the wait? If you haven’t tried it then yes it was worth the wait. But next time I’m craving for a ramen, I’d rather go to Menchanko Tei.

Indita

Totto Ramen

366 W 52nd Street

New York, NY 10019

30 October Permalink