Macbar

54 Prince St.  New York, NY
www.macbar.net

Price: $$
Favorite flavor: Four Cheese

Mac and cheese lovers rejoice! Finally, a restaurant solely devoted to the beloved all-American favorite of Macaroni and Cheese. Macbar makes their devotion clear the second you walk in their doors. The interior decor is all yellow, and the food is served in macaroni-shaped yellow plastic packaging. Clearly they are obsessed and committed to all things mac and cheese.
The restaurant seems like it is mostly for carry-out, in that the seating is a bit scarce, especially for a crowded night. There is one row of small tables to one side, and that is it. However, their neighbor restaurant, Delicatessen, has a whole section of their menu serving up Macbar specialties. If you're looking for a sit-down, and a slightly nicer meal, then I would recommend trying their Mac and Cheese over there.
Erica, Jenna, and I went to MacBar recently, and we had been anticipating this visit since we first got together this summer. When ordering, you can choose your size, and from what we got, there was really no noticeable difference in size between the small and medium (but there was a slight difference in price).


Here's what we got:

MacBar seating area

Two classics, and one 4-cheese. YUM

CHEEEEESY

The Four Cheese, with queso blanco, fontina, emmental, and gouda.

The Classic…elbow macaroni with American and Cheddar Cheese.

I think she likes it.

she's a little camera shy :)

look at that cheese

come to me

looks too good

Honestly, for Mac and Cheese lovers, MacBar could easily become an addiction. For me, I thought the Mac and Cheese was good, but not fantastic. It hit the spot, and was as comforting as always, but I wouldn't say it was the best I'd ever had. Erica and Jenna might beg to differ, as they seemed to love theirs.
I do like the fact that this restaurant specializes in one thing, and gives customers many many options to choose from…some of them being quite unique, like the Mac Lobsta' and the Margarita Mac. After finishing your Mac, you can conveniently take leftovers home with you in your plastic Macaroni to-go container. (I took mine home as a souvenir). Too cute!

XOXO,
Danielle

Balaboosta

214 Mulberry St.  New York, NY

www.balaboostanyc.com

Price: $$$

Favorite dish: Patatas Bravas 

A few weeks back, my parents, my uncle, my cousin Allison and I went out to dinner the night before my parents went back home. This was the night after we visited Smorgasburg in Brooklyn, so I have no idea how I was hungry. But I was, so why not go out for a great meal? My parents had wanted to take me to Balaboosta, which means 'perfect housewife' in Yiddish. If the food is being prepared by a Balaboosta, we should be in good hands. The food is Mediterranean and has Israeli roots. Absolutely my kind of restaurant!

Here is what we got:

For a starter and pre-dinner treat, we were served little crisps that were well seasoned, as well as crunchy, light, and airy. They were extremely addictive, and to add extra flavor, we started adding a little bit of the black salt, because why not?!

Some black salt for the table to pinch and drizzle over everything.

For a starter, how could we resist the Hummus, served with a mortar and pestle. It came along with straight out of the oven pita bread covered with an amazing amount of seasoning (which I'm sure you can tell from the photo).  The hummus was really really good, and super fresh. The pita was my favorite part though… so warm and flavorful.

For another starter, we got the Burrata... always a classic. It was local burrata cheese, with Challah toast, a wonderful whole roasted tomato, and a hint of basil. The cheese was really fresh and creamy, and the tomato was awesome.

Probably my favorite part of the meal was our last appetizer: the Patatas Bravas, which was chunks of crispy potatoes, with za'atar and a roasted garlic aioli. The potatoes were SO HOT…I burnt my tongue twice, but that's probably because I was so obsessed. I think it was the aioli that really made it so good. The Za'atar was amazing (a blend of herbs, sesame, and salt), and all in all, the potatoes and the dip made a heavenly couple.

Allie and I both ordered the Boneless Half Chicken, cooked "under the brick," served with Israeli couscous with dried apricots and green leeks, and a gremolata sauce. We decided that we definitely should have shared had we known the actual size of the chicken, but it was really really good! The chicken was juicy and had a nice skin. I really liked the sweetness of the couscous along with it. 

My dad got one of the specials of the evening featuring a fresh fish selection, with roasted vegetables and a tomato sauce.

My Uncle got an amazing Grilled Spice Rubbed Skirt steak. The steak was bursting with flavor. It was absolutely delicious. I hadn't had steak in a while which made it all the better. The meat was tender and juicy and perfect.

My mom was still full from Smorgasburg earlier in the day, so she ate light. She got the appetizer portion of the Ceviche, which was made with a white fish, bulgar, cilantro, orange, chili, and lemon. I am a huge fan of ceviche, and this one was really fresh tasting and had a really good flavor combinations.

I was really excited to eat at Balaboosta because it was my first really good full Mediterranean meal of the summer! It was totally worth visiting and, having browsed through their lunch and brunch menus, I definitely see another visit in my future (Shakshouka here I come!)

XOXO,
Danielle