New York is awesome at p < .001 (Study 1)

So we just got back from a beyond fabulous extended weekend in NYC. The ostensible purpose of this trip was to attend the wedding of two of Matt's long-time I/O buddies. It turned into Matt & Erica's fantabulous New York-a-Palooza (with a wedding in the middle). And man, we did it up right: shows, restaurants, drinks, street vendors.... We did not waste a single New York minute.

New York. Wrote a blog about it. Wanna read it? Here it goes: (anyone get that reference? Anyone at all?)

Thursday: Plane lands approximately 11 am. By 12:30, we are checked into our Times Square hotel (see view at right) and on our way to Eataly. As I am posting this, I looked at the page to verify the URL and see that they have 50 products at 50% off- beginning last Friday.
Did I mention we were there Thursday? That hurts.
So let me tell you about Eataly. I am assuming that all ten of you reading this blog enjoy Italian food. I mean really, who doesn't enjoy Italian food? Heathens, that's who! Pure heathens who are the haters of all that is good and yummy.



I'm sorry- heathens get my blood all in a lather.  But I digress...

Eataly is a food sanctuary, a small land of culinary enjoyment bordering on sinful. There are counters of cured and fresh meats, seafood, and cheeses. The mozzarella is pulled fresh. Some is destined for even greater things- it is soaked, pulled thin, and then wrapped around a creamy mixture called panna (leftover mozzarella bits mixed with cream), then wrapped into yummy little bundles of goodness called burrata (aka my new favorite).
 

There were aisles and aisles of pasta, fresh sauces, and gorgeous fresh produce that I can only dream of from my location in central Indiana.


And then, there was the food.

We began  with what had to be the most magical focaccia in all of FocacciaLand. It was a simple slice topped with roma tomatoes, fresh  mozzarella di bufala, basil,and a splash of olive oil.
In the days that followed, it took all of our strength and reason to not get in a cab and revisit this place every day, just to get one more slice.

Why didn't we get one more slice?!?! Sigh...

Now, by a show of hands, how many of you are familiar with the savory, fatty, crispy, delicious goodness of a little something called "porchetta"? 
If your answer is "No, Erica- I'm sorry, I am not familiar with this delicious treat", then you should Google it.
Immediately.
Educate yourself.
If you don't have time to google, or are just too excited to read the rest of this post first, here are the cliff's notes:

Porchetta: /por'ket:a/, noun: Pork (skin on), wrapped around more pork, seasoned, roasted until juicy and crispy on the outside, sliced, and shoved into a chewy italian roll. Chew, moan, swallow, repeat.

Having finished our bread and main course, we searched for a suitable side dish.
It turns out Mario Batali is famous around these parts for his arancini- basically risotto combined with melty cheese, wrapped around a chunk of meaty ragu, rolled in crispy breadcrumbs, and deep fried.

There is not a single word in that sentence that should not make you happy down to your toes. If it did not make you drool, consider yourself one of the aforementioned heathens. You may want to do some serious soul-searching.

Meanwhile, back at the Batcave...err, Eataly, we managed to get the very last arancini left in the entire establishment. It took 30 minutes to prepare, but the creamy risotto with the crispy outside and the meaty/cheesy middle was totally worth the wait.

Last but not least: espresso, candied orange cannoli, limoncello baba, and some sort of fluffy, ethereal hazelnut panna cotta mixture. One word: Yum.

That is Eataly. I believe I have provided sufficient evidence above to declare that New York = awesome, p < .001.
I will provide further proof in future studies ("posts") in the form of our fantabulous adventures over the remaining portion of our trip.

Stay posted!