New York Food Tour

New York Foods
In the first week of December, I took a girl's trip to New York City with my best friend.  While we were there, we had the wonderful opportunity of going on a food tour to taste all of the best local New York foods.  We did our tour with the Foods of New York Tours company.  We selected the original Greenwich Village food tour, and our guide's name was Raheem.  I would definitely suggest this company, they supply you with many samples, water, and a fantastic guide.  Raheem was very knowledgeable- not only about the places we toured but the places around us, the city and other restaurants.  
We started with some great authentic New York-style pizza, went to a nicer Italian restaurant- where we ate the biggest meatballs you have ever seen.  Then towards the end, we also had some amazing cookies and ate at a local deli somewhere in between.  
We'll start with this amazing New York pizza- Raheem informed us that most pizza places advertised as New York pizza is really just generic pizza you can get anywhere.  He took us to Joe's Pizza, which is on the corner of Carmine Street.  Joe Pozzuoli, who is originally from Naples, Italy, is the owner of several different locations of Joe's Pizza.  Raised Italian, he now makes the best pizza in New York the crust is perfectly crunchy and golden, while the simple sauce is perfectly sweet- topped with mozzarella cheese, it's the best combination for a spectacular pizza.  Also, huge pizzas, for huge slices!
Joe's Pizza

Following Joe's Pizza, we went to Oliviers & Co, this isn't a restaurant, but an olive oil specialty store.  They sell things like truffle oil, balsamic vinegar, salts, and of course olive oil.  At this stop on the tour, we compared a less expensive olive oil to an expensive one and the same with two different balsamic vinegars.  We ended up buying some of the nicer balsamic vinegar and olive oil because it was so good.  Raheem explained the differences in how it was made, the taste, and the price.  

 After trying our olive oils, we headed over to Faicco's Italian Specialties, where we tried Sicilian Rice Balls which I, unfortunately, didn't get any pictures of, but they were incredible.  Creamy, risotto-like texture, deep-fried into a perfectly crunchy, golden brown ball.  

 Pesce Pata was our next stop on the tour, here we tried giant meatballs, packed with flavor.  These great meatballs were topped with sweet marinara sauce and a little bit of fresh parmesan cheese.  You could tell with every bite that these were made with authentic Italian cuisine in mind.  

For more Italian flavors, we stopped down the street at Rafele Ristorante, where we had stuffed eggplant like you've never had before.  Chef Raffele Ronca is a winner of the Food Network show Chopped.  He is also a James Beard Foundation collaborator, which I could never leave out, as The James Beard Foundation is giving me the opportunities that I have in school, by supporting me with scholarships.  I didn't get pictures of the eggplant but separate from the tour we also ordered his original New York cheesecake, which has been voted the best in New York, and I could agree! 

We took a short walk through Palma, just to do see the beautiful restaurant, and while we didn't get to sample anything, just how simple and elegant the inside was, the stop- totally worth it! 
For dessert we stopped in at Milk and Cookies bakery.  We got an original chocolate chip cookie, baked to golden perfection.  Here we also got to meet the owner, and author of her own cook book!  I bought a copy of the book in store, where she also signed it for me.  
 
Lastly, as our second dessert, (of course because we're on vacation- you can have two desserts) we went too Rocco's Pasticceria for freshly made cannolis, filled with sweet cream and chocolate chips!  I also didn't get any pictures of the cannolis, so I'll finish this post with some beautiful New York photos! 
Raheem and I 

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