ashleyd /

Bloggers in the City

Good morning from rainy New York City. This is one of those weeks when I’m so blessed to live in New York City! A few times a year, I’m lucky enough to catch up with friends due to events or work commitments which bring them to New York City! It’s even sweeter when their hotel is only a few blocks from my apartment!

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Even though it’s Wednesday, I won’t be heading to the office this morning. Instead, I’m using a vacation day so that I may participate in Fitness Magazine’s Fitness Blogger Meet & Tweet (#FitBlogNYC) event! I was invited to particpate through Fitfluential and am looking forward to learning about new products, fitness trends, digital media, and blogging from the staff at Fitness and a few inspirational bloggers and friends such as Julie, Tina and the amazing Kelly Olexa!

Since this event is taking place just down the street from my apartment, I was able to spend some much needed girl time with a few of these ladies last night at Greensquare Tavern, where we met for a delicious dinner and fun conversation.

IMG_2190  IMG_2197 Located at 21st and Fifth, Greensquare Tavern is a new to me farm to table restaurant with a relaxed atmosphere and a menu balanced between healthy and indulgent seasonal items. Tina and I went with the Lancaster County Honey Roast Chicken which was marinated in honey and herbs and complemented by a side of sweet potato mash and steamed vegetables. While the vegetables lacked seasoning, the sweet potatoes and chicken were divine! I’d definitely go back there, especially for dinner or brunch!

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After dinner we met up with Anne who had just finished dinner with a friend in the city. Never one to turn down time with our out of town friends, Theodora and I gladly accompanied them to Tina’s hotel bar where we sipped Prosecco and discussed today’s event and our upcoming Reach the Beach weekend!

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Only seven hours later, I was up and back in their hotel picking up my morning workout partner, Julie! While we’ve been at many of the same events historically, we’ve never had the chance to spend time together. When she saw me tweet about a possible morning Soul Cycle session, she quickly jumped on the opportunity. Due to popularity, I wasn’t able to snag us bikes in the 7am Union Square class. But, always the trooper, Julie was more than happy to meet me at the early hour of 5:30 so we could walk to the 6am class with Ben T..

Fondly known as the “rooster class” the class left us sweaty and energized. His class was heavier on the arm work which I loved while his second to last track’s hills left me breathless. I’m so happy Kristine convinced us that the early hour would be worth it.

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I’ll be back later to share today’s adventures with you and my own Marathon & Moderation guest post!

Question: What is your favorite workout song right now? I just downloaded a ton of new songs and am seriously loving Back in Time, the new Pitbull song from Men In Black III.

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Ashley D /

Landmarc at the Time Warner Center

Living in New York City is this amazing opportunity which I look at as a gift each day. While Bo and I do our best to spend time in many different areas of the city, we still rarely make it up to the Upper West Side or Upper East Side in the evenings. Luckily, my client was able to remind me what a beautiful part of the city it is during our dinner in Columbus Circle this evening. It’s hard not to fall in love with the city all over again as you cross the intersection and find yourself surrounded by tulips and daffodils in the shadow of the golden statue.

Though many of the restaurants in the Time Warner Center come highly recommended, until tonight I had never dined there for dinner. It’s an area of town that Bo and I rarely visit during the evening hours, often losing the destination battle to the West Village, Gramercy, Lower East Side, or Tribecca. Due to the formal nature of the area, I worried that dinner at Landmarc, the restaurant our client chose, would be stuffy. Much to my surprise it was anything but. Upon walking into Landmarc at the early hour of 6:30, we were greeted by a friendly, smiling host who was eager to seat us in an area that would be conducive to conversation, per our request. While we weren’t able to snag a seat overlooking the park or Trump Towers, our table was comfortably located towards the entrance, along the makeshift fence, allowing for prime people watching.

The menu, which featured everything from pasta to steak, was overwhelming to say the least. Luckily my manager took the reigns and ordered three appetizers and the pasta special for our group of four to share as an appetizer course.

Top Left: Warm Goat Cheese Profiteroles served with herb & roasted red pepper salad
 (underwhelming)

Top Right: Smoked Mozzarella & Ricotta Fritters served with fried zucchini & spicy tomato sauce (perfectly fried)

Bottom Left: Roasted Potato Flatbread topped with carmelized onion & herbed ricotta
 (The winner by far!)

Bottom Right: Pasta special of the day, spaghetti alla carbonara (Holy bacon chunks!)

While the appetizer course was delicious and truly allowed us to each try a different type of dish from the menu, the highlight of the meal was definitely my main course. If you’re a frequent reader of my blog, you know that I rarely eat red meat. However, when I am dining at a restaurant whose specialty is their meat dishes, I am always inclined to taste what they do best. Therefore, ordering a filet tonight was a no brainer. Perfectly cooked to a medium rare deep pink and encrusted with salt, pepper, and seasonings this piece of meat is what creates carnivore dreams. When paired with the crispy french fries and French bistro style green salad, this entree was hard to beat.

If you’re looking for a lunch or dinner spot near Columbus Circle, I can’t recommend Landmarc enough. The service was perfectly attentive, the location is perfect, and the food left me in a blissful food coma. In fact, I hear they are also wonderful when planning events for corporate events or parties with friends.

Landmarc
Location: 10 Columbus Circle {Time Warner Center}
Website: http://www.landmarc-restaurant.com/

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DBGB Kitchen and Bar

A few weeks ago, Frank and Melissa invited us to join them on a double date at one of Frank’s new favorite restaurants, DBGB Kitchen & Bar. In all honesty, I didn’t do my normal menu research ahead of time. I knew that the DB in the name stood for Daniel Boulud and therefore I knew that the menu and meal wouldn’t disappoint.

When we walked in for our 9:30 dinner reservation, we were immediately fans of the open space and design. The space seemed larger than expected due to the use of mirrors and glass, which featured hand written quotes, specials of the day, and more. Throughout the bar, random tools and ingredients which would be found in a butcher or kitchen, broke up the mirrors. DBGB is Boulud’s first venture south of 44th in New York City.

We were escorted to a dark wood table in the back room, flanked on one side by the open kitchen’s expediting area and on the other side by ample space. For once, we didn’t feel cramped in a New York City restaurant, which was a pleasant treat.

004A few minutes later, I finally had a chance to study the menu and understood why Bo was so excited for this restaurant. The menu featured over 10 types of sausage, handmade on sight each day.

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Our men put together their ordering game plan while Melissa and I reviewed the fish and vegetable options and munched no the crusty, warm bread.

005While the menu is definitely a carnivore’s dream, there were enough options for Melissa and I find a few delicious options.

We shared the tuna crudo: harissa-sesame sauced, cucumber, radish, crispy rice and butternut squash soup spaghetti squash, pumpernickel croutons, caraway cream and pumpkin seed oil.  The butternut squash was the clear winner in this duel, leaving everyone wishing there was more.

006 007While we shared our appetizers, Bo and Frank sampled four different types of house made sausages dishes: espagnole– fresh chorizo sausage with pierade, basil oil, toscane– pan roasted italian sausage slow cooked fennel & tomato, vermont pork & cheddar link and hash browns, and louisiane with New Orleans style garlic & pepper andouille.

008 009Their two favorite sausages were the Italian and the Espagnole, both of which left them convincing Melissa and me that we had to try at least a bite. Neither of us are vegetarians, but neither of us were very excited to try any. While the bite I did try was tasty, that one bite was plenty. The flavoring was perfect but the combination was too rich for my palette.

For our main courses, Melissa and I both ordered the chop-chop salad with lobster which was amazing. A step above an average steak house salad, the chop-chop included fresh avocado, grapefruit, peppers, carrots, and fresh lobster chunks. Even the boys were jealous of our lobster.  011But, the boys’ jealous didn’t last long as The Piggie left them smiling from ear to ear. You can’t really argue with the combination even if you aren’t a burger lover. The 6 ounce burger is topped with housemade pulled pork, spicy mayonnaise, and a perfectly proportioned toasted cheddar bun. One bite actually left me a little jealous that I hadn’t ordered the same thing. Even the fries were perfectly crisp and salted.

012If you are a beer or meat lover, than DBGB Kitchen and Bar is a perfect choice. While some items are over-priced, the overall experience and food is worth it. The only change I would make to last night’s experience would be saving room for their famous sundaes!

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