Big bite of the Big Apple

I've had quite the NYC dry spell...even the bellman at my usual hotel asked me where I've been. Damn economy!

I'm lucky because most of this work trip revolves around food...either meetings during meals or meetings about Cleveland meals. Half of my meetings tomorrow are with foodie reporters.

This month's issue of Gourmet features hometown restaurant faves by well-known critics, so I tried one of the NYC listings for lunch today, Lupa. The restaurant is comfy and charming, and I really enjoyed my meal. I started with beets and pistachios and then the recommended spaghetti alla carbonara. The dishes were great, and my waiter was sweet as pie. Plus, lots of cute shops along the way on Thompson, including Clio, which I had on my always-growing must-see-NYC list.

Since my last meeting today was downtown, I headed back to SoHo for shop anc check more destinations off my list. I finally got to Madewell, Eryn Brinie (a Korean chain) and TopShop (a British chain). I loved Eryn Brinie and found a cute dress at Madewell, but TopShop was horrifying (picture jumpsuits, adult onesies and sequins on steroids). I was going to try on a dress from the Kate Moss collection, but then I saw sequin parachute pants displayed on the wall and had to leave the store immediately.

I'm excited to try Momofuko Ssam Bar tomorrow. I love eating my way through a city!