Last week I didn't get a lot of cooking done. And by not a lot, I mean none. I had to go to NYC for work. "Had to" -- oxymoron?? It was great. When work trips take you to a small town in Ohio in the middle of winter, they're not so awesome. But when it takes you to NYC on a beautiful summer weekend: B-A-D-A-S-S!! Jason took a couple days off and came with me and we made it a long weekend getaway. 

I believe this is the 5th time we've been to Manhattan in the last 5 years and I've decided this is a tradition we need to continue because it really is the best city in the world. Every time we go, we discover something new and every time we go, we have an amazing time!! It's always exciting to go somewhere new but it's also fun to go somewhere I'm familiar with because we can just chill and hit our favorite spots which is exactly what we did. Below are some of the best things we did:

1. Comedy Cellar improv show -- we always go to a comedy show but this is by far the best venue we've gone to yet. AND, this was confirmed when I was sharing with a co-worker (and true local who lives in NYC) at work on Monday and she said, "Oh, did you go to Comedy Cellar? That's definitely the best!"

2. Chelsea pier -- we've never been able to hang out much next to the water as we've always gone during the fall or winter time when it's a bit chilly. There's an awesome walking path all the way along the Hudson and this pier has grass and benches to chill out with a great view of downtown and Brooklyn. 

3. Chelsea market - one of my new favorites! We went for the first time last year when we came -- lots of delicious food and unique high quality gifts including clothing, paintings, jewelry, etc. 

4. Highline Park -- a really cool walking path elevated above the city on old train tracks. It's seriously cool!

5. Wandering - the best part about NYC is that every block has something interesting to look at -- old and/or huge buildings, cobblestone streets, parks, people. I can just walk around for hours and look at everything! AND I totally did AND I got a ton of Fitbit steps too, bonus :)

And, of course, the top food:

1. NY bagel sandwich at Bagels on the Square in the West Village. This is a local spot we discovered last time we came where you have to yell your order out and the line is always out the door. It's slightly reminiscent of the Soup Nazi episode from Seinfeld -- make sure you're with it on yelling your order or they're not happy...truthfully, they don't seem that happen even if you get it right...but, the bagel sandwich is totally worth it! "Bacon & Egg on Everything bagel, toasted, with Jalapeno cream cheese please!" 

2. Spinach Gnocchi at Malatesta Trattoria in the West Village -- a great local Italian restaurant we found a couple times ago that has all homemade pasta that's reasonably priced and delicious!

3. Chocolate shake from Shake Shack on the Upper West Side-- we took it to go and enjoyed in Central Park...mmm!

4. Gelato -- always a new spot but still yummy. This time we went to Dolce Gelato in the West Village.

5. Oysters -- this one surprised me as well. Usually I'm not an oyster person but I have to admit Fish, an oyster bar in the West Village recommended by a friend, had delicious fresh oysters and they were really good!