Eat It : Stellina's Gelato

Stellina is the Betty to next door Sorella's Veronica. It's perky and bright (literally - the place is all white tile and marble); Sorella is sultry and dark. When Stellina was just being conceived, we fawned over the gelato sampler one night at Sorella and were delighted when told of plans for a sister gelateria.
Bananimal (banana gelato, caramel swirl, animal crackers) and PBC (pistachio gelato, blueberry jam, cheesecake swirl, candied pistachios)
Bananimal is not cloying at all - in fact, it's my second favorite flavor here, despite my neutral-to-mild-dislike of all things banana.
Chunky Sorella (salted caramel gelato, chocolate fudge swirl, chocolate-covered pretzels) and PBC (pistachio gelato, blueberry jam, cheesecake swirl, candied pistachios)
We've been to Stellina an embarrassing number of times in the past few weeks, and Chunky Sorella is always a part of my order. My obsession with salted caramel sealed that deal on the first visit.
I can also vouch for the the Chunky Stellina (raspberry buttermilk gelato, raspberry swirl, white chocolate-covered waffle cones) and the Pazzo (peanut butter gelato, salted peanut brittle). Far from being a gelato purist, I love chunks and texture, so I haven't gotten around to trying the more traditional flavors (including a beautiful-looking - and lower-calorie - dark chocolate sorbet).

All pictures by Embarrassment of Riches - please credit and link back if you use them.

Scenes from the Brooklyn Flea

Fewer spring milestones are happier than when the Brooklyn Flea emerges from its indoor space. We've visited the new Sunday digs in Williamsburg (North 6th St between Kent Ave and the East River) the past two weekends in a row. It's positively spacious. (And hard to spot Shawn: a good portion of the men there have long shaggy hair, beards, and a camera.)
The view of Manhattan cannot be beat.
I look forward to the Flea mostly for the food. (Beyond excited about Smorgasburg, a food-only Flea in the same Williamsburg space on Saturdays starting May 21.) Last weekend was our first time trying Dough's treats. We split three gigantic-yet-fluffy doughnuts: Cafe au Lait, Toasted Coconut, and Dulce de Leche. Words cannot describe the deliciousness.Vintage typewriters.
Once I sampled This & That Jams, I had to buy a jar of the Honey Cardamon Pepita Butter. Isn't the packaging cute? Not that I have any space for them, but I'd love some old seltzer bottles for our apartment.Brooklyn's Saltie had a presence.
Even if it's downright chilly (as it was two weekends ago), even if we're not at all hungry (thanks to the doughnuts), a plum shaved ice from People's Pops is a non-negotiable. Watching them take a blade to that huge block of ice never gets old.Old kids' books.
What I wore (last weekend): thrifted Proenza Schouler top, black Topshop jeggings, Steve Madden Pasport boots (seen here), Rebecca Minkoff Morning After Mini (seen here), Michael Kors watch (seen here) and Rebecca Minkoff bracelet.

Most of these photos were taken by me with Shawn's Nikon D90, which I have "inherited" from him. A few were taken by Shawn with his film Olympus FM2. See his Hasselblad 120 film shots of the Brooklyn Flea (which are amazing) here.

Worth the Wait: No. 7 Sub

Yesterday we took advantage of the glorious weather and I met Shawn on my lunch hour at Madison Square Park. He had picked up two sandwiches for us, selected from amongst the five vegetarian options. Ever the fan of variety, I insisted that we would both eat half of each. No. 7 Sub has limited hours (if you can't make it there before 5 PM on weekdays, you're out of luck), it's not terribly convenient to my work, they're slow, and I've been sulking that they changed my beloved Broccoli sandwich.I needn't have worried. The Broccoli now comes with lychee muchim, ricotta salata, and pine nuts, a surprising improvement on the last incarnation (with fried lemon slices, mozzarella, and Thai basil pesto).We both agreed: the Zucchini Parm with fontina, sweet onion, pickled jalapenos, and BBQ potato chips was the best thing we've tasted in recent memory. If we hadn't each eaten our half of the Broccoli first, I would have wanted to keep the whole Zucchini Parm all to myself. It was spicy, sweet, crunchy, gooey, and crispy. It doesn't look like much in the picture, I know, but trust that it was phenomenal.

Lunch in Madison Square Park - What I Wore

Diane von Furstenbrg Palm Vine Turquoise Jude wrap dress, Uniqlo slip, Zara sandals, Michael Kors watch, Botkier purse, street merchant sunglasses
Inside that brown bag are quite possibly the best sandwiches I've ever had...more on that later!

Westville: a Tale of Two Dinners

he had a beer too, of course
Westville has one of the three best veggie burgers in New York City (the others can be found at Hillstone and Five Napkin). It's basically a big, crispy-fried croquette of flavorful goodness. I'm normally disappointed by anything other than a sesame-seed bun (brioche rolls being an exception), but the Portuguese muffins Westville uses are actually wonderful. Mushrooms and plenty of tartar sauce round out the mix. Add a slice of cheese and choose fries, not a side salad, if (like Shawn) you decide to throw dietary caution to the wind.sauteed kale with shallots, zucchini with cherry tomatoes and mozzarella, cauliflower dijonaise, and snow peas with sesame and ginger
The lure of Westville's veggie burger is strong, but their plate of four sides usually wins out. Feeling virtuous has little to do with it - as it gets warmer, I crave produce almost exclusively. (Does that mean I refuse a bite of Shawn's greasy sandwich when he offers? Never!) There is something to be said for variety: I love choosing from the list of about two dozen preparations of fresh vegetables and then working my way around my plate, bite by bite.

Westville is fast becoming our default when we can't figure out where to go: there are three locations (all downtown), it's open all day (even at that tricky post-lunch pre-dinner time), it's unpretentious, and there's something on the menu that's bound to make anyone happy.

Adventures in Thrifting

Friend and fellow blogger Sonia of In Pursuit of Style and I met up this past Saturday for brunch and shopping. Our mission was to scour downtown Manhattan's thrift and consignment clothing stores for hidden gems.

There's no shortage of fabulous brunch places in our target neighborhoods, but we started out at {1} Five Points (31 Great Jones St between Bowery and Lafayette) because they accept reservations. On any given Saturday I'll happily wait as long as necessary for amazing French toast or pancakes, but on this particular morning we were on a mission.

Bellies full, we began in earnest at {2} Screaming Mimi's (382 Lafayette between Great Jones and E 4th St), which fell on the "thrift" end of our itinerary's spectrum. Make no mistake about it; thanks to the zip code, the prices were high despite the mostly label-less offerings. The window of Screaming Mimi's
{3} AvaMaria (107 Crosby St between Houston and Prince) was a tiny but beautiful shop selling designer deadstock. We spotted a Diane von Furstenberg wrap, two Issa dresses (a label surprisingly difficult to come by in New York City), and gorgeous Choos.

Just across the street was {4} Housing Works Thrift Shop (130 Crosby St between Jersey & Houston), a secondhand store akin to Goodwill. Two designer standouts were a double-breasted Christian Dior blazer (only $65) and a $25 olive Donna Karen jacket. The latter looked ordinary on the hanger but remarkable on Sonia (as evidenced below) so she smartly snapped it up. {5} Ina (21 Prince St between Mott and Elizabeth) is a mini-chain of resale boutiques with consistently beautiful stock. Shoshanna and Tracey Reese pieces share rack space with Prada and Gucci. I've never felt particularly welcomed by the staff here, especially compared to their Thompson and Bleeker Street locations.

{6} Bit & Piece (246 Mott St between Prince and Houston) has their own house line along with discounted pieces from contemporary mid-range designers like Alice+Olivia. Nearby {7} Use Your Head (262 Mott St Between Prince and Houston) is an incredibly worthy cause: all profits go to ACE Programs for the Homeless.

{8} Second Time Around (262 Mott St between Prince and Houston) Was hit or miss: pre-worn J Brand Houlihans for over $100 (too high, considering new ones can be found cheaper), but they had a sparkly hot pink pair of Louboutin heels in the $300 range - a steal.

We popped into another location of {9} Ina (15 Bleeker St between Lafayette and Bowery) - same great merchandise; friendlier staff.The crown jewel of our day - possibly my favorite store on the entire island - was {10} Tokio 7 (83 E. 7th St between 2nd Ave and 1st Ave). I could wax poetic about the steals I've come across in the past here (including this lavender Zac Posen for $150), but Saturday's purchases speak for themselves. Sonia found a pair of cream wide-legged Chloe trouser (circa Stella McCartney's reign) for $80; I bought a Spring 2010 tie-dyed Proenza Schouler tee for $50. Everyone shops there - including the city's other resale boutiques: pieces originally found at Tokio 7 always seem to make their way to other stores mentioned in this post (at a much higher cost), so if time is of the essence, head straight to the one place where the merchandise is phenomenal - and less expensive. Head over to In Pursuit of Style for Sonia's take on our day.

Thrifting in Nolita: What I Wore

Just a sneak peak of my next post about this past weekend's vintage and consignment store crawl with Sonia.

J Crew denim jacket, Vince leather jacket, H&M leopard top and striped tank, Topshop jeggings, Hunter wellies, Michael Kors watch, Rebecca Minkoff purse

I'll probably be leaving the fashion blogging to the experts, in part because my outfits are usually variations on this one.

...annnnnd we're back

Today marks my triumphant return to blogging. I had always intended to tell you all about my exploits from my forty-day break, but actually remembering them proved harder than I imagined. So strict was my Lenten ban on anything blog-related that I had no record of our activities. Shawn then suggested I take a gander at my bank statements to jog my memory. Well, rest assured I continued to lead the same fiscally irresponsible lifestyle even without the self-imposed pressure of having to document it for Embarrassment of Riches:

I still ate and drank with semi-reckless abandonSome new-to-us standouts were The Good Fork, Blue Hill (for our six-year wedding anniversary), 'ino, Five Napkin Burger, and Hundred Acres. (No, I have not developed a sudden appetite for beer; it's just that my lilliputian flute of cava didn't have the same visual effect as holding a giant mug of ale did.)

We got a new toy Our decision to order an iPad 2 was rash. As luck would (almost) have it, we would have ended up with two iPads had the Butler Bulldogs won the NCAA tournament, making me the winner of the NY Times bracket challenge. Alas, we're still a one-iPad household.

I changed my lookIt was a momentous day indeed when I wore my new Warby Parker glasses instead of contacts, but what really blew peoples' minds (once they realized it was me) was when I wore my hair up to work. Factor in an unintended (but welcome) weight loss, mostly affecting my face and chest, and sometimes I don't even recognize myself.

We partook in cultureTara Donovan's installations, particularly this room-sized mylar one, made us glad we spent one chilly Saturday gallery-hopping in Chelsea. I also surprised Shawn with tickets to the perennially sold-out documentary Bill Cunningham New York. We - along with the rest of the audience - left the theater with giant smiles plastered on our faces.

I ran (part of) a half marathon
My best friend gained entry into the NYC Marathon legitimately (via lottery); I gained entry by hopping in next to her from the sideline at mile 8. I hopped back out before the finish, where New York Road Runner officials hunted down (and flung aside) race interlopers.

I'm sure it will come as no surprise when I admit that I entertained thoughts (in fact, at times I was absolutely certain) that my break would not be temporary. I couldn't stay away though, so I'm back...with a caveat. Recently I have tried to decrease my dependency on the work of others for Embarrassment of Riches. (Plumb my deep archives and you'll see this sadly hasn't always been the case.) During my blogging vacation I decided to commit fully to blogging only my experiences, ideas, and - most importantly - images (well, I hope you'll forgive me if I still lean heavily on Shawn in that department). This means posts may be a bit fewer and farther between (say, a few times a week instead of every day). My goal is less frequent (but longer) posts with more and better images. Sound good?

Thank you for the tremendous send-off forty days ago. It's one of the reasons I'm glad to be back - I missed you!