That's bread. Not cotton candy!

Their take on Korean fried chicken- fried broccoli with garlic sesame sauce.

Tomato cake with smoked feta and tomato leather, which sticks on the gums.

Raw and pickled fennel with caramelized yogurt on a carta di musica, which means a music sheet in Italian, bursting with flavors.

Not my favorite of the lot. Carrot sliders with special sauce on an all-carrot sesame seed bun.

Cauliflower and curry with green pea paneer, papaya chutney and papadum. One of my favorites on their tapa-style menu.

Chocolate cake with cocoa nibs. I usually don't pick chocolate desserts but I needed a sugar boost to last me until 5 am the next morning. The strong cocoa nibs plus green tea (not shown in pic) did the job!

Dirt Candy's menu summarizing its longstanding history.

 2. Kajitsu: I have a strong affinity for sleek, minimalist modern Japanese cuisine. When I found out about the Michelin-starred kaiseki-style vegetarian establishment in Murray Hill, I had to try it.

Kajitsu began as a small eatery specializing in vegan shojin ryori cuisine, an ancient vegetarian Buddhist diet originally consumed by monks in Zen Buddhist temples, about eight years ago in the East Village and moved to Murray Hill about four years ago. The building currently has a branch of the traditional Japanese tea bar Ippodo, wherein I was disappointed to learn that I couldn't take their drinks, particularly the iced matcha latte I was eyeing, up to Kajitsu, and a casual non-vegan restaurant Kokage both on the ground floor.

I always commend the Japanese's attention to detail from the dishes served to the staff training. They give every patron a tote box to place their bags in instead of placing it on the floor. The courteous, soft-spoken staff are signature gestures of the Japanese culture.

Authentic sesame tofu soup with leek, wakame seaweed and ginger that is a great meal opener.

August Colors: Mizuna, fried tofu, Mozuku seaweed, cucumber, orange peel, ginger, pearl onion, Mitsuba, Nama-fu, plum paste, shiso seeds, edamame, rikyu-fu, zucchini flower, potato, konnyaku, okra, Manganji togarashi, Kabocha, artichoke, Japanese taro potato, lotus roots. There are many things to look and taste so I took my time in savoring each "color".  The most intriguing of all is inside the orange flower.

Fresh yuba with yuzu foam. I'm all in when it comes to yuba, such as this yuba dessert from Benu.

White miso "nabe" with turnip, white gourd, scallion, chrysanthemum, nama-fu. I would crave for this every time I'm not feeling well. For some reason, when I tasted this soup, I felt 10x more alive and healthier.

Trippa in "namafu" con spaghetti aglio e olio prezzmolo. When my gastronome comrade and I came to Kajitsu, they had a special chef who runs an Italian restaurant in Japan. We were lucky to taste this uh-mazing Japanese-Italian pasta.

Zen pasta con "sasho" olio in carbo di banbu e "siso" erbe rosso. This is a very interesting dish that tingles the tongue at the last bite. The black ink also stains the lips and teeth. Good thing I wasn't on a date!

Peach daifuku. I obviously had fun with this mochi.

Soft and delicate.

Matcha with candy by Kyoto kagizen-yoshifusa. For our palette cleanser, the sweet melt-in-your-tongue candy paired well with the bitter matcha.

3. Amma: This establishment has been serving traditional Indian home-style cooking since 2003. Amma, which means "mother," has a homey feel but serves Indian dishes that are worth a Michelin star. I ordered the seafood special, Goan fish curry, with a chicken appetizer for lunch for $15.95, which is a bang for the buck for this midtown restaurant.

Spinach chaat for appetizer.

Bhel puri. A more sophisticated approach to this Indian snack.

Shrimp balchao. A Goan cuisine with pickled tomato and chili sauces that is fiercely flavorful. Yum!

Goan fish curry. This might not win best in presentation, but I cleaned my plate like a good food blogger.

The muse: a haute couture wedding dress by Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel with a 20-foot train.

Manus x Machina: Hand and Machine

In awe how these are created.

Clean lines, molded designs.

I'm a frustrated fashion designer.

The World Trade Center memorial is also undoubtedly an art form itself. FYI, the new Westfield also boasts stunning architecture that is reminiscent of the belly of a whale.

Take out those cameras for the new Westfield in the World Trade Center.

Waterfall in memorial of 911.

A touching tribute.

Blending in with the New 
4. 2nd City: Named after my hometown, Cebu City, the second largest city in the Philippines, 2nd City was only a few weeks old when I visited them at Greenwich Village. Built with a strategy to attract the foodie Instagrammers, this Filipino taqueria is a fun place to chill and take photos left and right.

Tip: Ask for their secret menu. 

Chicken adobo burrito. Of course, this fails my standards since I cook my own authentic Cebuano adobo.

The trio of sauces. Datu Puti in the middle.

Time for Instagram or Snapchat.

Jeepney on the wall.

Sunny in West Village.

Still under construction.

Strolling the High Line with New Jersey in the backdrop.