The GVA Foodie Goes to New York!

Well my dear friends, all work and no play makes the GVA Foodie a dull girl, so I decided to take some time off and enjoy a few days in one of the world's most iconic destinations: New York City. Now it's fun to be in New York for numerous reasons and you know food is definitely one of them! So if you stick around, I'll be posting individual reviews of the different places I visited and the different eats I definitely enjoyed!

I hadn't been to New York in a while, so you know, a couple of stops by Dunkin' were inevitable. Not something you should be eating every day, but if your last visit was several years ago, maybe having a few doughnuts here and there isn't all that bad...?



This isn't going to make me sound very young, but there was a time in the '80s/'90s when you could pretty much walk into any pizza by the slice joint in NYC and enjoy something vaguely resembling an authentic New York style pizza. Those days seem long gone, and now a little research may be required to locate the places that still make these gems.



A trip to New York City without stopping by its very own Katz Deli for a pastrami on rye? No way!



Levain's Bakery on the Upper West Side makes the most sinfully delicious cookies. I can't wait to post my review!



Rice gelato at Macy's Stella restaurant... wait, rice gelato? I am sooooooo in! Hope this delectable treat makes its way here someday soon.



Magnolia Bakery is known for its wonderful cupcakes, not to mention its famous banana pudding. Guaranteed to satisfy your sweet tooth!



New York is also home to many burger joints with sides of onion rings on many a menu.



Manhattan will also serve up some of the most exquisite Italian food in the world. Fresh ingredients, Mediterranean flavors and a great atmosphere to boot... how can you go wrong?



But maybe Chinese food is what you were craving? I loved these scallion pancakes and wish they'd make that kind of thing here more often.



More deli sandwiches in NYC -- corned beef on a roll that particular night.



Shake Shack has many locations around the city, and they know their way around a burger, fries or even a hot dog if that's what you fancy!





So please stay tuned, I will be posting a number of reviews in the next couple of weeks, and I hope you'll enjoy them.

Nero's Pizza

Is the food truck movement starting to take off in Geneva? After the highly successful Hamburger Foundation food truck, Genevans can now treat themselves to fresh slices of pizza in various parts of town thanks to Nero's Pizza truck. I was recently able to test Nero's Pizza because, as serendipity would have it, they happened to be parked right opposite me when I walked out of a building a few days ago. Their pizza is definitely worth checking out -- though the final product feels more like a focaccia to me -- they offer a large variety of toppings, and all of their ingredients are clearly fresh. I look forward to trying more of their food in the near future!

Pictured below: a ricotta and spinach pizza followed by a shot of their bufala and no-cheese marinara pizzas.

The Evolution of Pizza by Buzzfeed

This is so awesome - I just had to share it!

 

A Showcase of Beautiful Food Photos

I thought I'd do something a little different this time and showcase beautiful photos from Flickr. There's such a wealth of content on the image hosting website, it is difficult to choose just a few photos for a blog post but here's an initial selection I hope you'll enjoy!


Fettucini Alfredo by Amy Pospiech


Cupcakes by Keith Chu


Shrimp Lo Mein by Matt


Pastrami sandwich by Leon Brocard


Koshary by Wedstock 2011


Pepperoni pizza by Hungry Dudes


Brownies by jeffreyw


Dim sum by Morten Båtbukt


Naan by stu_spivack


Sushi by keg-shine


Garlic bread by Jasmin Foo


Pad thai by stu_spivack


Falafel wrap by Gloria Cabada-Leman


Gnocchi by Enrico Matteucci


Cheeseburger by entity


Lemon meringue pie by makemesomepie


Pea risotto by Anna Mayer


Fried chicken and biscuits by Niall Kennedy


Sour Cream Apple Pie with Pecan Streusel by I Believe I Can Fry


Cinnamon rolls by Timothy Vollmer


Spinach, ricotta and green garlic ravioli by Robb & Jessie Stankey


Pot stickers by Naotake Murayama


Fish & chips by David Ascher


The photos above are provided under the Creative Commons license. All photos have been changed for the purposes of this post, they have been resized, cropped and the colors were also altered some. Furthermore a stroke was added to each photo to remain consistent with previous blog posts.

Capocaccia Acacias

In addition to its Confédération Centre restaurant/bar, Capocaccia recently opened a new location in Acacias. The restaurant boasts an extensive menu of daily specials, salads, sandwiches and numerous snacks.

Pictured below: a slice of pizza in teglia (a thick crust pizza, sort of like a Sicilian slice), a bresaola salad and a pesto pasta dish.

Chez Lopez

Chez Lopez is an unpretentious neighborhood restaurant located in Eaux-Vives, they make a decent pizza, and since we just happened to be in the area one night and we wanted to grab a quick bite, we figured we'd drop by for a visit. Pictured below: an olive and anchovy pizza.

La Ferme

If you happen to be in Onex and you're craving a HUGE pizza, then La Ferme is the place to go! I doubt you'll be able to finish it!

Pictured below: a margherita pizza.

Ponte Vecchio

Ponte Vecchio is an Italian restaurant located in Plainpalais. Their food is good, the staff is friendly and their menu boasts a number of pizzas, pasta dishes as well as many other house specialties. The pasta is pretty amazing, and while this is clearly no Luigia, even the pizza is quite good. Definitely worth a visit!

Pictured below: Penne Carbonara, Tortellini alla Pana, Pizza Margherita, Tagliatelle al Gorgonzola and Gnocchi al Gorgonzola.

Camilo's Place

Even though I never got a chance to sample their food myself, I've been hearing about Espresso Club and their pizza for quite a while. I would still like to pay them a visit but in the meantime, I was recently able to visit their other restaurant, Camilo's Place, located in Rue du Stand. They make an interesting pizza, though I wouldn't rank the crust as my favorite. Furthermore, at CHF 18.- the margherita is a little more expensive than it probably should be. On the other hand, the restaurant is rather conveniently located, the staff is nice, and the menu is absolutely huge! Definitely more pizzas to choose from than most other Geneva joints.

Pictured below: a margherita pizza

Happy New Year (and more dishes from Luigia)!

Is it already 2011? Yes it apparently is -- time certainly does fly when you're trying to review the city's best spots!

Anyway, to kick things off this year, I figured I'd pay a visit to a 2010 favorite, Luigia's. Nothing new to report, the restaurant was packed and the service was quick (though I was unfashionably late)...

Pictured below: calamari, margherita and vesuvio pizzas and Linguine alle vongole.