After what feels like an eternity, I've returned to the bustling streets of New York City, indulging in a culinary adventure that's nothing short of epic. In a city that never sleeps, my taste buds embarked on a journey of revenge eating and drinking, rediscovering the vibrant gastronomic scene that makes NYC truly exceptional. Here, I present to you 5 recently opened restaurants and bars that are redefining the city's culinary landscape.

Discover a taste of the bayou amidst the vibrant energy of Midtown Manhattan at Alligator Pear, where the rich flavors of New Orleans cuisine come alive since July 2023. Chef Dominick Lee skillfully prepares alligator, the famed "chicken of the swamp," transforming it into tantalizing bite-sized poppers served with a zesty Thousand Island sauce. Sourced fresh from a Louisiana alligator farm, each bite offers a delicious glimpse into the heart of the South. For familiar NOLA classics, you can indulge in the blue crab beignet, a delightful fusion of sweetness and savory flavors, and savor the charbroiled oysters, crowned with garlic butter and melted cheese. The vegetarian jambalaya, crowned with artichoke, is a masterpiece in itself. Alligator Pear seamlessly combines tradition with innovation, inviting guests on a culinary journey that captures the essence of New Orleans cuisine.

Jelas in Union Square is a stand-up bar that redefines cocktail artistry as one of the rare clarified cocktail bars in the country. Translating to "clear" in Malay, Jelas, conceptualized by Beverage Director Colin Stevens, debuted in January 2023, offering a hyper-focused menu featuring five rotating clarified milk cocktails. Each creation undergoes meticulous milk wash clarification, a process that purifies ingredients overnight through a large coffee filter, resulting in exquisite, crystal-clear concoctions. You won’t even know that there’s milk in your drink. Embracing the vibrant flavors of Southeast Asia, Jelas collaborates with award-winning distilleries like Singapore’s Tanglin Gin, crafting imaginative drinks that tantalize the palate.

The bar's cozy, laidback ambiance accommodates 12 patrons, creating an intimate setting to savor the imaginative lineup of beverages without haste. From the nostalgic Chope, Thai tea infused with clarified condensed milk, reminiscent of a comforting milk tea, to off-menu delights like the Girl from Ipoh from sister restaurant Kebaya, featuring pandan, rum-based clarified milk, and a delightful mix of arrack, vermouth, and pineapple, Jelas offers a symphony of flavors. Sip the aptly called Die Die Must Try with a side of lychee balls that pop in your mouth for a burst of sweetness or the intriguing Whiskey Cloud, featuring a pink pinot noir foam, bourbon, and lemon, creating a robust and memorable experience. Jelas stands as a testament to inventive mixology, inviting guests on a captivating journey through Southeast Asia’s diverse and aromatic palette.

From inventive cocktails to tantalizing bites, these places are a testament to New York City's unwavering spirit and unmatched creativity. Discover the essence of NYC's culinary scene in these new hotspots, where innovation and tradition harmoniously collide, offering a dining experience that lingers in your memory long after the last sip and bite.

My quick trip to Asia re-introduced me to the myriad of milk/boba tea options that are usually not available in San Francisco. I'm counting the reformulation of Sharetea, as my readers know is my favorite milk tea, particularly the Asian version. Speaking of which, I was greatly delighted when I discovered Sharetea's milk tea on my first Air Asia flight from Jakarta to Singapore (just short of a week before the Air Asia flight went missing from Surabaya to Singapore. As always, I do thank God each day I am still alive because I've had my share of close calls during my travels over the years. Flying in the middle of a storm ain't my cup of tea, literally. I pray for those passengers aboard the missing plane).

Super cute customized Sharetea packaging for Air Asia. Kudos to this airline for knowing what passengers want.

Gong Cha green tea latte in Singapore. They have a healthier red bean as an add-on instead of the glutinous boba.

Serenitea's winterfrost: Not as good as Sharetea's wintermelon salty crema though.

Philippines' Cobo is frustratingly a rip off :(

Onward we go to the Year of the Sheep/Green Sheep/Wooden Ram/Goat. My horoscope tells me that I'll have more *ferocious* adventures to come. 

2015 on the horizon

It has taken me more than 10 years to try making my own Chicken Rice ever since I was introduced to this popular dish while living in Singapore. Now I realize it is actually not as complicated as I thought it would be. Here's my simple and easy recipe for Hainanese Chicken Rice with three different sauces.

Ingredients:

Tip: 
If you are only cooking for yourself and don't want to have a lot of leftover, buy your favorite part of chicken, preferably with some bones. Marinate it in a Ziploc bag with green onions and ginger overnight.

Albeit not free ($2.40 for one), these sourdough breads are cheesy and packed with flavor. Brought to you by Acme Bread of Berkeley, California, they come in rolls or pinwheels. The sourdough cheese rolls are for those who want a softer bread, and the tougher pinwheel are for those who don't have sensitive teeth. The 5-inch pinwheel is my favorite. Since it is very filling, it reminds me of my collegiate days in Singapore where all I would eat for lunch are the breads at Breadtalk, Takashimaya. And yes, they had a lot of cheese in their breads too.

(Top) Sourdough Cheese Roll, (Bottom) Sourdough Cheese Wheel

I got countless of quizzical looks when I told my friends that my next adventure will take me to Bhutan. I was asked over and over again, "Where is Bhutan?"

Gawking at the Punakha Dzong.

Buddhist monks living in one of the fortresses.

With only a population of 700,000, it is no surprise that some Westerners and even Asians don't even know that there is such a country that measures with Gross National Happiness instead of the regular Gross Domestic Product.

After a visit to the Chimi Lhakhang fertility temple, we soaked in this view of the rice paddies.

How to get there?
Bhutan is a land-locked country sandwiched between the two world's giants, China and India. There are only 4 entry/exit points: Paro International Airport, and the land border with India at Phuentsholing, Gelephu, and Samdrup Jongkhar. Bhutan closed all borders with Tibet when the later became part of China.

For most, the easiest way is via a flight from Druk Airlines or Bhutan Airlines departing from Bangkok or Singapore. In order to get in the country as a tourist, you must have a local travel agent to accompany you for your entire stay. In order to confirm and process your visa, you would need to wire transfer the lump sum via Standard Chartered, if you're in the US. This process is legit so rest assured that your monies are in good hands.

Tip: On your way to Paro International Airport, sit on the left-hand side window to clearly see the magical Himalayan ranges.

Majestic airplane view to Paro.

My group of 3 travelers was escorted by Thinley Dorji and our driver also named Dorji of Bhutan Travel Routers. Both of them are the most gracious and, not to mention, funniest hosts and even went to a karaoke and a club with us on our last night, ensuring that we all got home safe. Yes, there is nightlife in Bhutan!

Our guide, Thinley, is highly knowledgeable and answered all our questions thoroughly. He was also flexible in adding activities that were not in our itinerary, such as archery and visiting a local market to buy persimmons and Bhutanese alcohol, including rum, whiskey and wine.

What to expect?
After contacting more than a dozen travel agencies, I realized that a 5-day itinerary is similar among travel agencies with prices ranging between $900 to $1200, depending on the hotel and season. We had perfect sunny weather (50s to 70s Farenheit) all throughout our stay. The only differences that my travel buddies and I noticed are a tour to the Takin, Bhutan's national animal, Conservatory and an optional day to wear Bhutan's national costume. There are also longer trekking tours, such as the snowman trek, which is apparently the most difficult hike in the world. For this blog purposes, I will focus on the 5-day tour, which combined sightseeing, light hiking, food tripping and lots of photo ops, covering three towns, namely Paro, Thimphu and Punakha.

Get the bokeh ready because there are tons of portraiture opportunities in Bhutan. And the locals don't ask a penny for taking their picture.

A must do! Wearing the traditional Bhutanese dress, kira and tego. At Dochula Pass.

Bhutan is the only country that has embraced Tantric Buddhism as its national religion and the first and only country that is officially carbon negative. Therefore, expect a lot of crystal clear lakes, large phallus paintings on houses, and fortresses with multiple temples, including the most iconic Tiger's Nest, which you've probably seen on postcards or magazines, located on the cliffside of the upper Paro valley. In order to get to this sacred site, we hiked 6 hours roundtrip with a lunch pitstop at their cafe that serves a vegetarian buffet. It is an intermediate level hike with some steep rocky staircases so be prepared with good hiking shoes. Fret not, your guide will carry items that you don't want to carry. #lazyhiker

If ever you are wondering what a phallus is :)

How're the hotels?
Having lived in a hotel in Nepal for 3 months, I can say that hotels in Bhutan are a notch better. Their sheets and bed are always comfortable. The only time I got the surprise of my life is when I saw a small roach inside my luggage after checking in, but the terrace view in the morning compensated for that. Another boo boo I made is that I fell into the canal gap at our last and nicest hotel, Khangkhu Resort in Paro, while walking back to my room at night. The electricity also went out for a few hours, but it is incomparable to 8 hours of blackout in Kathmandu.

How's the food?
I am a bad food blogger if I tell you that Bhutanese cooking is very similar to Filipino-Chinese cuisine because I know most of you can't relate. #foodbloggerproblems

The country serves many types of Asian vegetables and meats that are stir-fried or roasted. It tends to be on the oilier and saltier side, but it does remind me of home-made food back in the Philippines, sometimes with hints of oyster sauce and a dash of sugar. Their staple red rice makes a meal healthier plus milk tea, which is not as sweet as authentic Indian chai, for palette cleansing is always a happy meal ender.

Bottom to top (L-R): fish fry, rice noodles, fried chicken, squash and mixed veggies.

Puffed rice snack.

Cheese that is very hard for me to eat!

The Bhutanese love cheese! The must-try dishes are chilies with home-made cheese and chili salad, which pairs well with fried meats. These chili dishes don't score very high on spiciness since the Bhutanese use medium-sized chilies dried on top of their rooftops. Just be sure to have a bottle of water to chug or ara, the Bhutanese version of soju. Another option is a bottle of local white peach wine and the red Takin wine, both of which are sweeter wines. Don't forget to slurp creamylicious Bhutanese ice cream.

Bhutan's national dish: red chilies with cheese.

Bhutanese vegetarian momos with cheese.

Adding a unique twist to fried chicken with cornflakes. So crunchy and tasty with chili salad.

What's the highlight of my trip?
If you ask my compatriots, they will say that the hike to the Tiger's Nest is the best experience in Bhutan. We definitely ticked that hike off of our bucket list.

For me though, the highlight of my 5-day trip is a traditional farm-to-table dining, sitting on a bed of foam cross-legged without a table at a Bhutanese home. We were fed with authentic Bhutanese dishes and bottomless (!!!) ara aka rice wine after an hourlong hot stone bath. Together with genuine conversations and laughter with our hosts and tour guide, this made my trip to the Kingdom of Bhutan most memorable. Sometimes all the goodness in life comes in a simple, no-frills package.

This is as simple as it can get. Cheers to ara wine!

Is Bhutan safe?
Yes! Never in my traveling escapades have I felt that no one was trying to rip me off as a tourist.

Lastly, how's the internet connection?
Plan to unwind while in Bhutan. Although I was able to check some emails, it came with some heartache to reply or post on social channels. Hence, this country is not for digital nomads.

To contact Thinley Dorji of Bhutan Travel Routers, simply email btravelrouters@gmail.com or call/Whatsapp at +975 17814514. Don't forget to tell him that I sent you :)

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New IG vlog! Welcome to the Kingdom of Bhutan. Learn more on 👉 bit.ly/bhutantravel. In collaboration with @bhutan_travelrouters and special participation @sheikhateta and @stevenverbelen. Trying to adhere to the 1 minute video limit on IG instead of long-winded videos like on Youtube. #visitBhutan

A post shared by Gastronomic MisAdventures (@c3lsius) on Dec 5, 2017 at 11:33pm PST

Disclaimer: As part of my collaboration with Bhutan Travel Routers, I was provided a media rate for my 5-day tour in Bhutan.

Thai-style chicken rice and a plump sous-vide egg.

Like the chalkboard design

Made my own Hainanese chicken rice during Thanksgiving complete with three sauces, soup and aromatic rice.

I received an email from one of the advertising programs this blog is signed up for reminding me to write about organic terms, such as hearts, chocolates, pink and valentines. So there ya go! Kidding aside, I rarely celebrate valentines because I'm a strong believer that love should be given everyday to those who count the most.

Chocolate heart ring, anyone?

Instead of writing a typical 'which restaurant to take your date' post (people do ask me this question from time to time), just read about my favorite restaurants here and the top 3 things I super love to do:

1. Travel to places not many people get to go in their lifetime.

Chasing the Northern Lights outside Reykjavik, Iceland

2. If you want to break bad news to me, bring me to a boba tea shop please.

Making faces with Purple Cow

3.  My favorite city for gastronomic (mis)adventures is Barcelona with Singapore as a close second. Besides from being biased since I am part Spanish, I can stuff myself everyday with seafood tapas, patatas bravas, paella and the list goes on..

Chipirones ala plancha from Tapas 24