Tao NYC

Oh, New York City.

You will forever be a place I regret not living for at least a year.

When I was 22 and graduating college, more than anything, I wanted a job in a city, where I could work in a glamorous high rise building, pay exorbitant rent, take a subway to work, have drinks outside in the summer with friends & coworkers and eat at every amazing restaurant around. I got 3 job offers my senior year, 2 in cities and 1 in Madison, CT. Guess which one I picked? In retrospect, I probably picked the best “job”, but I will always regret not living in a city at some point in my life. Ulysses absolutely despises cities. Part claustrophobia, part obsession with land, garages, and cars. So we will never live in a one, and to be honest, at this point in my life it wouldn’t make sense but, at 22 and single it would’ve been cool for a little bit.

Living only a little over an hour away by train, I try and find any excuse to get into the city and yesterday I had a good one! I met my friend Corinne, who I hadn’t seen since her wedding in November, for dinner at Tao. Corinne actually lived in Florida the same time we did. She was my only friend down there and we bonded together over our hatred for FL and desire to move back north (my, how things have changed since then, for me at least ). We both enjoy food as much as the other so our get togethers are usually centered around a good meal.

The atmosphere at Tao is pretty cool. It’s almost pitch black inside (hence the dark pics) but then there is this giant buddha statue that is literally 2 stories high with those colored lights around it. We ate upstairs and with a 6pm reservation were one of the first people in there but it was packed by the time we left.

I started with a Bamboo Gingerita.

Delicious. Kinda strong, but that just means I only need one then.  

I try to take advantage of any chance to have tempura. It’s one of the few fried things I actually really like, mainly because it’s usually so light. So we decided to split a sweet potato tempura as an appetizer.

Unfortunately, it was super greasy. Still tasty, but I’m pretty sure tempura is supposed to be a bit lighter than what we got.

We also split a spicy tuna roll that was really good.

Shoestring onions on top? Yes, please.

Ok, I have a pad thai weakness. Anytime I see it on a menu I feel like I have to get it. It’s something I would never make at home and I just absolutely love it. Funny side note though, although I’ve never had any allergic reactions to food, I’ve been tested for allergies multiple times for my shots and each time it comes back saying I’m allergic to soy and peanuts. The doctor doesn’t get it and I continue to eat both without any reactions. Every time I order pad thai though I think to myself, “what if this is the time I react?” and then check to make sure I have my inhaler with me before I stuff my face. Well, I saw pad thai tonight and came sooo close to getting it but ended up with the wasabi filet with tempura onion rings instead. Corinne actually got the pad thai though so I got to taste it. Both meals were great. My beef was cooked perfectly and the wasabi crust was just enough to taste, not incredibly overpowering as wasabi can sometimes be.

Neither of us was really feeling dessert, although the people next to us had this giant fortune cookie filled with chocolate mousse that looked pretty cool.

Corinne caught a cab to the bus station and I had enough time to walk the 16 blocks back to Grand Central day dreaming about the city and pretending I lived there.

Maybe in another life?

 

Do you live in a city? Love it? Hate it? Where was your first job?