Holiday Market at Columbus Circle

What a treat to go to have a Pies N Thighs outpost in Manhattan...if only through Dec. 24 at the Holiday Market at Columbus Circle. But it saves me a trip to Williamsburg Brooklyn.

Fo $6 I had a chicken biscuit - a fried chicken breast on a yummy biscuit with hot sauce. It was easy to hold and walk around while I shopped at the other vendors' booths.

Du Bois Pastry Shoppe

...is located in NYC borough of Queens at 84-08A Broadway in Elmhurst.

I tried the mini pecan pie ($3) and palmiere ($1.50) - both were very good.

Tote Bag

I bought this cute cotton tote from the J Crew store in NYC's Soho before Christmas. It was originally $10 and marked down to $5.99 with an additional 30% off.

The Counter

"A" and tried this new Times Square burger place for lunch today. The Counter is located at 1451 Broadway.

It's a small place for this area and quickly became very crowded after we had been seated.

"A" and I both had a 1/3 beef burger ($8.95) with your choice of cheese (I had Gruyere), 4 toppings (I had pickle ships, tomatoes, corn salsa and grilled onions), sauce (steak) and bun (we both ordered whole grain). And you can add extra cheese or toppings ("A" added bacon for $1).

And we shared a Fifty-Fifty side which was a combination of onion rings and fries ($5.95). The sides were served very quickly we ranch dressing and bbq sauce so we filled up on them. The onion rings were very good.

Our waitress said the burgers are usually cooked "very pink", but my burger was more medium well than medium rare. The burgers were good, but not fantasic.

Little Pie Company

...is located at 424 W. 43rd Street near NYC's Times Square.
I am a big fan of their Sour Cream Apple Pie, but this time I tried a coconut cupcake ($3). It was moist and had a cream filled center.

Fred Flare

Brooklyn's Fred Flare set up a pop up shop in NYC's Chelsea Market for the holidays. Some of the items offered included a book all about macarons, this cupcake hat ($30) and bacon wallet ($25).

Chop Tank

"E", "J" and I enjoyed a wonderful 3 course prix-fixe dinner at Chop Tank located in NYC's Greenwich Village at 308 Bleecker Street. Also included was a wine tasting with each course.

Each table was served a basket of home made Old Bay potato chips - very addictive.

"E" and I decided to have the white wines and "J" had the red wines.

"E" started with the shrimp taco while "J" and I both had the fried oysters - crisp on the outside and very moist on the inside.

"J" had the fried chicken - which was several pieces of chicken coated with extra crunchy batter.

"E" and I both had the lump crab cake entree.

For dessert "E" had 2 scoops of the homemade cinnamon ice cream and "J" had 2 scoops of homemade vanilla ice cream. I had the Smith Island layer cake - 10 layers of vanilla cake with chocolate frosting - excellent!

The food and service was excellent, but the restaurant was quite noisy.

Plaza Food Hall

...is located in the Plaza in NYC's Midtown at 5th Avenue and Central Park South.

I tried the Red Velvet Cake ($7) which was moist, a pistachio macaron ($1.75) which was good and hot apple cider ($3).

They offer sandwiches, cooked food, coffee and gifts. This is a great, inexpensive New York dining experience for tourists.

DuBois Bakery

...is located in NYC's borough of Queens at 84-08A Broadway in Elmhurst. I popped in for an almond croissant ($1.50) - yum.

Gingerbread Houses

Le Parker Meridien in NYC's Midtown has an annual Gingerbread House display. This year's theme was movies made in NY and there were 6 on display. King Kong was my favorite.

FoodParc

I went back to FoodParc located in NYC's Chelsea at 29th Street and Sixth Avenue with "J".

We sat in the theatre style seating section.

I had a 3B's cheeseburger with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, crispy onions and secret sauce ($6.70), fries ($2.75) and black & white milkshake ($5.50). The burger was juicy and cooked to perfection. The fries were thin and crispy and the milkshake was thick and very good.

Landmarc

...is located at 10 Columbus Circle. They have a great hamburger served with a tossed salad and fries ($15) plus your choice of cheese (add $2) - I had gruyere.