Lunch Break - The World Is Your Oyster

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Sampling dishes and diners in and around Miami County 

The word is out. In a very “George Bailey” series of events, I have packed my suitcase and moved to the Big Apple. I’ve greatly appreciated the kind words and encouragement from all of my Chaffee’s regulars and friends. I’ve also spent the last few weeks biting my nails, packing my clothes, and trying to figure out how I’m going to make three months work in Manhattan. All that aside, a weekend with my mom cured almost all of my worries. 

We began our weekend with the daunting ten-hour trip from Tipp City to New Jersey. We then made friends with the bartender and hopped on a bus to explore the big city. New York is intimidating. In Ohio, everybody talks about how much they want to be the main character, or who is the main character, or how to be the main character. In New York, everyone is just effortlessly that. The city is running thousands of different stories at once, and everyone is busy living their own life to be distracted by being the main character of someone else's. There’s a sense of calm in knowing nobody and having nothing to prove to anybody. 

I will miss dipping myself into everyone else's lives in Tipp City. The feeling of starting something new is bittersweet. Nothing beats chatting with the mayor over a Guinness and keeping up with the young couples and their small businesses. Monday nights will feel a little empty without Steve and Patty, and I’ll always long for advice during Americano hour from Heather and Stephen. Nobody in New York is wishing me good luck or asking about my upcoming articles, but that’s okay, because I had the Tipp City regulars to do it for me. 

My mom and I noticed and discussed the entertaining melody of upbeat New Yorkers over brunch at Cookshop in Chelsea. We toasted new beginnings with deliciously dry mimosas and ordered two coffees and water as well. When you’re just two girls, nobody complains about the variety of drinks you have sprawled across the table. We were blissfully high maintenance. 

We started with two sugar-coated, soft, and warm doughnuts, dipped into a rich mocha sauce. Nothing beats a sweet breakfast with a harsh black coffee. Next, we split the Merguez Sausage, which was a blend of tomato, curry, sausage, and egg flavors, and toasted pita bread. We enjoyed it, but it was definitely trying something new. The eggs and tomato sauce were perfect, but the sausage had a little bit too much of a creative flavor for us. 

Later on, my mom and I explored Chelsea Pier and stumbled upon an adorable waterside park. We then found our way to the Staten Island ferry, which reversed all the way into Staten Island. 

We moved to the other side of the boat, hoping to get a view of Lady Liberty, and then were told that the boat needed to be serviced. We then got off at Staten Island, waited, and eventually found our way onto another ferry, and got to see the view we had waited for. When we got off, we made our way to South Seaport, took in the oceanic views and sailboats, and worked up an appetite for an early dinner. 

At Dorlan’s Tavern, I had planned to order a dirty Martini. When our family friend Chady was eighteen and in New York City for the first time, she had her first-ever dirty martini. So, I’ve been holding out to try one and follow in our now 82-year-old friend's footsteps. However, there was no martini on the menu, and the blueberry sangria looked too good to pass up. So, I decided to try something new to me for the first time in New York. Oysters. 

My parents love oysters; however, I’d never tried them. Lucky for me, April is prime oyster season, and my mom and I ordered half a dozen on the half shell. One thing about me is that I love salt. I absolutely adored escargot when I tried it, and I had a feeling I would like these too. I just had to get past the slimy visual. 

We drained the shells of their water and coated them in horseradish, cocktail sauce, and a squeeze of fresh lime. These might be my new favorite appetizer. There is no way to describe the experience of eating an oyster other than perfectly savory, delicious, and one of a kind. 

We finished off our dinner by splitting the fish and chips. I think that beer-battered is the only way to go when it comes to fried fish. The spicy, crunchy exterior was perfectly matched with an almost creamy (but not soggy) fish center. We demolished these fish with shoestring fries, and finished our night with a small walk through Central Park. 

Oysters with my mom were the highlight of my weekend, and even if everything goes wrong in the next three months, it won't matter. New York will forever have a soft spot in my heart because I’ll always have the perfect memory of a girls' day to look back on in NYC.