NYC Roundup: November 2013

Week before last, we headed up for our regular working trip to NYC. While it was a quick trip, we enjoyed many of our favorite things to do and places to see, but also had the chance to knock off a couple bucket list items we've had and wanted to share.

First up, Cronuts. Oh, the cronuts. Let us tellllll you about trying to get a cronut...

It didn't happen. However, we did give it an honest try so we're counting it as crossing it off our bucket list even though we haven't actually tasted one yet. Long story short, we drove into the city early to stand in the famous line outside of Dominique Ansel's bakery for 2 hours in hopes of getting one of their popular cronuts. They make a limited amount each day and are known for their long line out the door to get one.

After the 1 hour mark, we were still pretty pumped about the idea, taking photos and posting about waiting in line all over social media:

Just after the 2 hour mark, our legs were much more tired and the cold was getting to us after the long drive into the city — then the baker came outside to let those of still waiting in line know that there would essentially be "no cronuts for you." We were bummed to say the least, but happy to be able to move on to our next adventure uptown and get out of the cold.

Next up, Andre's Cafe. Andre's is a Hungarian cafe located in NYC's Little Hungary, waaaaay uptown.

Tim's been to Andre's before, but had been wanting to take me since we both share a passion for Hungarian food. Tim's a first generation Hungarian on his dad's side and I'm a second generation Hungarian on my mom's side. Tim likes to tease me that one of the reasons he loves me so much is my large Hungarian-esque appetite.

We ordered some of our favorite traditional Hungarian dishes and talked about how much they tasted like the real deal when we visited Budapest together early in our relationship. I ordered the "Turoscsusza Tepertovel," which could also be called "Heart Attack on a Plate:"

It consists of buttered noodles generously topped with bacon, farmer's cheese and a giant dollop of sour cream. It was heaven. I almost cried when they brought it out.

Tim got the Veal Goulash with Nokedli (noodles), which was perfect for warming up our bones on that chilly day. We overindulged and ordered dessert since everything was so authentic and we knew this would be a few and far between visit. We HAD to order the Kremes since it's Tim's dad's favorite (and maybe mine too). We also ordered the Dobos Torte, a chocolate layered pastry. We kept texting food pictures to Tim's dad (who grew up in Hungary) since we knew he'd be excited to see what we chose.

We'd met up with our good friend, Jenn, (who used to work with me at Etsy) since her apartment is very close to Andre's and quite frankly, there was more than enough food to go around!

Outside of our Sunday eating adventures, it was great to be in the city. I always look forward to this view of the Manhattan Bridge just before stepping into the building that houses the Brooklyn Etsy offices. For some reason, I get that rushed sense of familiarity and wonder every time I see the bridge from this angle.

I got a chance to work alongside a few of the Etsy office dogs while in town and each of them asked me when Tim and I will bring Basil along with us for an office visit.

Speaking of dogs, I got caught up looking at all the fun dog toys at the West Elm Market across the street from the office — how cute is this anchor?

It' probably a good thing there isn't a West Elm Market in Richmond since I fell in love with pretty much everything in there.

Wednesday, Tim had volunteered to help a small team of Etsy employees and GrowNYC winterize the DUMBO neighborhood community urban garden:

They were primarily building a structure to house tools and supplies:

I think the final result turned out well, plus Tim left with a few new ideas for our own urban garden space:

It was fun for me to get different picture texts from what Tim was up to while I was at the office. Now that he can work anywhere he can carry the laptop, he'd have different views each day:

A few times I'd get picture texts like these:

Tim went on a few jewelry supply runs for me while running around the city during the week — it was funny and awesome to see what he'd send next. I sure am lucky.

So, these were all the bigger highlights from our trip this time. We did get a chance to try out Whiskey Soda Lounge, but didn't snap any pics while there other than the lit up city skyline while walking back to our hotel. We'll be heading back up in December and can't wait to see all the holiday decorations — it's absolutely beautiful during the holidays in the city.

Find out more about our favorite places to visit while in the city in these past photo roundups: September 2011, June 2012, August 2012, October 2012, February 2013 & September 2013.

Have you been to NYC? Where are your favorite places to stop in?

Discover More:

NYC High Line | Secret NYC Jewelry Supply Warehouse | All NYC Posts

P.S. I've been trying to convince Tim to go ice skating with me during our next trip up. I'd love to say it's a new bucket list item, but since he's a little resistant to the idea I'll just have to keep you posted!