Matchbook Fail/J.G. Melon

After our last team outing to the 3 Sheets Saloon, we decided to give another bar a try for our last Happy Hour. We went to The Four-Faced Liar. After a few rounds, fellow Matchbook League lady GR and I decided to split and grab some food before calling it a night. I've always wanted to check out J.G. Melon, and I saw their matchbooks on Instagram, so we decided to check it out.

The restaurant was crowded with business people, tourists, and a couple in the corner who was just eating lettuce salad (?!). We each ordered their bacon cheeseburger, and split a side of cottage fried potatoes (fries in the shape of chunky hash browns). Our food came, and it was a straight-up old school cheeseburger - very simple, no crazy garnishes or condiments, and on an extremely small plate. I don't usually notice the size of plates at a restaurant, but these look like plates from the 1950s. Kind of sad that it stands out to me, it just goes to show how American portions have gotten so out of control. But I digree.

The cheeseburger was DELICIOUS. Sometimes simple is best!

After our meal, we tried to figure out where the matchbooks were. They are typically at the hostess stand or bar, but these were nowhere to be found. We decided to ask someone on our way out. They said that only the uptown location has matchbooks. Fail!

Considering I am almost never uptown, and if I am, I most likely wouldn't grab a burger, I think I will have to kiss this matchbook goodbye. I LOVE it though. It's a great picture of an opened melon, and I like the J.G. brand on the bottom corner of it. Cute that the matchbook tips match the melon color as well!

-GK

From Matchbook Diaries

Matchbook Dining/Radegast Hall & Biergarten & Café de la Esquina (part 2 of 2)

I had wanted to check out Fette Sau after our day drink, as I love any and all Stephen Starr restaurants and some of my best meals have been in his restaurants: Buddakan for my 25th birthday, Jones and The Dandelion for brunch during a Philadelphia weekend with my bff LB, Morimoto for two team outings, Upland for dinner out with an old friend. I still need to check out Le Diplomate when I go to Washington D.C. in June, and Talula's Garden during my next trip to Philadelphia with LK.

Anyway, the group that I was with did not care about my Stephen Starr obsession, so I was overruled and we wound up at Café de la Esquina. I was a little sour at first, but then I remembered how good the tacos are (we were here before for a double date with friends), and was happy to be there again. Unfortunately, the entire restaurant smelled like vomit. I think someone took Saint Patrick's Day a little too far. Even more unfortunate than that was the fact that our noses got used to the smell within a few minutes.

However, the food was awesome. To start, we got the queso fundido and guacamole. LK and I split a bunch of tacos:
Pescado with grilled mahi
Pork Carnitas
Camarones BLT with shrimp and bacon


They were all AWESOME and went really well with the Haribo gummies and brownie brittle we ingested once we got home.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Radegast Hall & Biergarten & Café de la Esquina (part 1 of 2)

As I've mentioned, my crew and I celebrate all major holidays together. For Saint Patrick's Day, we decided to do a day drink. We wanted to avoid the crowds of Manhattan, and decided to meet up in Williamsburg. I suggested going to the Radegast Hall & Biergarten after seeing that they have live music on the weekend! We all met up in the afternoon and circled the bar a few times. It was completely mobbed with people looking to get their drink on in honor of Saint Patrick's Day, March Madness, and bachelor parties! I found a table of guys who were paying and I told them "shotty your table!" They left and we had half the communal table to ourselves. The other half was a couple who was on a date, seemingly annoyed that a bunch of us took over their table and were loudly talking. Their food was everywhere and it got to be kind of awkward. A beer hall with communal seating is the last place to go on a date.

After a few rounds, we decided we had enough of the crowds, and went across the street to The Levee, a dive bar with really cheap drinks, and free Twizzlers and cheese balls. The guys in our group look to go to dive bars whenever possible, and they were really in their element here. I was happy just to get a cheap drink and eat about 10 Twizzlers, and handfuls of cheese balls. After a few drinks there, we were starving and headed out for some food.

I will continue with a part 2 post since part 1 is long enough!

Matchbook verdict: Embodies the look and feel of the biergarten perfectly. I love a matchbook with a crest, as seen with Peter Luger's matchbooks. The font is perfectly old-world German. I also love the matte paper that the matchbook is printed on!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/The Happiest Hour & Bar Sardine (part 2 of 2)

Bar Sardine is a restaurant that I have had on my restaurant bucket list for a while now, so it is perfect that they have a great menu, and adorable matchbooks. It is part of Happy Cooking Hospitality, which also owns Joseph Leonard, Jeffrey's Grocery, Fedora, and Perla Cafe, which are all restaurants I want to checkout.

The restaurant was packed despite it being pretty early for a Thursday night (I love early dinners). The happy host showed us to our table which was extremely cozy. GR got the booth while I got the shrunken stool.

-Deviled eggs with soy and black garlic
-Crispy pork belly with fried egg, pepper relish, chicharron
-Fedora burger with smoked cheddar, crispy potatoes, cucumbers, BBQ mayo 

Everything was crazy good. I absolutely love soy sauce eggs because they are super salty, and these were a bit spicy as well. The pork belly had this amazing pepper relish under it which was sweet and smoky. Pork belly can sometimes be too fatty, but this was crispy as well. And the burger. OMG. It was definitely one of the most interesting burgers I've ever had. It was crunchy, and had a really good bun, and a delicious sauce. People in tables around us kept asking what we ordered, and they proceeded to order many of the same things.

Matchbook verdict: I love the faded black font, and the all caps font on the back. It's classic and simple.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/The Happiest Hour & Bar Sardine (part 1 of 2)

Fellow Matchbook League lady GR and myself decided to check out The Happiest Hour and Bar Sardine for our latest Matchbook League Dinner. These two places are very close to each other, and pretty close to work. They are both on West 10th Street, and this is becoming one of my favorite areas.

There was a work happy hour at The Happiest Hour a few months back, and neither of us was able to go. We saw that they had matchbooks, and decided to check it out, then grab dinner after.

The Happiest Hour is definitely a tiki-inspired bar, but less Polynesian (such as Mother of Pearl)  and more Beverly Hills Hotel-inspired, with the palm tree wallpaper. I have been to a bunch of tiki bars, and have never walked away feeling like I spent my money on a really good cocktail. That is not the case here. Thought we just got one cocktail each, it was enough to make me change my mind. I ordered the Loose Lemon - lemon syrup, soda and lemon zest + your choice of gin, rum or pisco, and I chose pisco! I LOVE brandy in drinks. It was delicious, fresh and sweet. 

The bar definitely had an interesting crowd. Despite it being only 5:20 when we arrived, it was full of suit guys. I assumed that that the shackles don't come off until 6:30 or 7, but I was wrong! There was also a baby crawling around on the floor, and seeing a baby at a bar was very out of context for me. 

We vowed to come back soon, and made our way to Bar Sardine for dinner. 

Matchbook verdict: perfection all around. It looks a lot better in person than it does in this photo taken with my iPhone. I love the matte dark green paper used, and the gold stamped font. I absolutely adore the address on the back. Anytime I see an address written out like that, with No for number with a small o, I immediately think about all of the beautiful Instagrams I see with people taking photos of quaint West Village doors. Finally, the boy and girl flamingo drinking from a straws out of a glass that's in the shape of an hour glass. How fitting to the name of the bar!

 

-GK  

 

Matchbook Drinking/3 Sheets Saloon

3 Sheets Saloon is my team's go-to bar for Happy Hour. As I've mentioned, I work in digital advertising with a really great team. We are all around the same age, and have a lot of fun both at work and outside of work. Our old office used to be the traditional setup, with cubicles and different rows of desks. We moved offices a year ago further downtown and our new office has a startup layout, with everyone's desk in an open room. With this new setup, our team has gotten a lot closer, and we do team Happy Hours all the time now!

Despite us all being working professionals, we still enjoy cheap drinks like we are in college, and the 3 Sheets Saloon is always our answer to Happy Hour. I swore that when I moved from the Upper West Side where I practically lived at sister bar Jake's Dilemma, I would no longer frequent these college bars, but 3 Sheets Saloon keeps bringing us back. It helps that they keep giving free Happy Hours to different people at work that we all cash in on!

The last time we were there, it was for my fellow Matchbook League lady JN who moved to Australia for 6 months! Nothing like saying goodbye to America with a night out as one of the basic most American college bars in the city!

Matchbook verdict: Nothing special at all. There is no thoughtful design here, it's just a matchbook to advertise all of the different sister bars. I will say that the bar logos are pretty good. My favorite is Hair of the Dog, which I was last at after my Fonda boozy brunch!

-GK 

Matchbook Fail/12 Chairs Cafe

A fun tradition we have at work is to go out for a team lunch when we have a new person. Our last team lunch meal was at Quality Eats. This time, we went to 12 Chairs Cafe to welcome the newest member of the team (same person whose birthday we celebrated recently with baked goods from Mah-Ze-Dahr!) I chose 12 Chairs Cafe because it is close to the office, Mediterranean food usually goes over with a crowd, and I was really craving it! Plus, I saw on an Instagram account that they have matchbooks!

It was a large group of us (11 or so) so I was looking forward to trying 11 different dishes! For the table, we got:
-grape leaves
-roasted beets with goat cheese croutons
-hummus
-babaganoush

For my main meal, I ordered the lamb burger, topped with Bulgarian cheese and spicy mayo, and served with sweet potato fries.

When a restaurant does hummus and babaganoush well, it is my favorite thing, and brings me back to my wonderful trips to Israel. The lamb burger was great, but huge. My friend ordered an egg dish which she wound up not liking, so I gave her half of my burger and went to town on the tahini that came with her eggs!

The people working at the restaurant were the sweetest, and I became friendly with my waitress who is from Israel and new to NYC! We wound up becoming Facebook friends! When I asked if the restaurant had any matches, she wound up bringing me a huge box of Diamond brand matches! Matchbook fail!

Below is what it looks like only. I look the use of the symbols instead of words, and the hand-drawn symbols are pretty neat.

-GK

From matchgirl100

Matchbook Dining/Sweets by Chloe

By Chloe is the hottest vegan restaurant in NYC that has also expanded to Boston and Los Angeles. When I think of vegan, I think of uber healthy food that tastes like cardboard. That is not the case here. The food that I have eaten By Chloe tastes like straight up vegan McDonals. That is a good thing. It is not a vegan restaurant for healthy people, it is a vegan restaurant for people who want to eat tasty food that just happens to be vegan. If I took LK here (who is a huge meat eater), I would probably not tell him that it is vegan and he would be none the wiser.

The West Village location also has an adorable vegan bakery next store. During lunch one day at work, one of my fellow Matchbook League ladies and I decided to pop over there to try something. We knew they had matchbooks and we were hoping that the baked goods were as tasty (albeit unhealthy) as the food.

Since my friend doesn't like chocolate desserts (HUH?!), and we wanted to split something, we asked what was the most popular non-chocolate cupcake. The lady there said lemon raspberry, and started raving abut it.

We left the store and walked backed to work to sample our dessert. I took one bite and was disgusted. It was the most crumbly and dry thing ever! I don't know how ingredients work together chemically, but I can tell you that butter is a NECESSITY in order to make a cupcake moist and soft inside.

Sorry By Chloe, I think you are better off sticking to your vegan McDonalds!

Matchbook verdict: Adorable! Love the combination of fonts. The pink and white reminds me of a candy striper from the 1940s.

-GK

 

Matchbook Dining/Fonda

Fonda is a great mini-chain of restaurants in Manhattan and Brooklyn. I first found out about them through Gilt City, which I my preferred deal-of-the-day website. Compared to other sites, they feature restaurants that I would actually go to on my own. They had a good deal for brunch - 1 guacamole to share, 1 entrée each, and 2 margaritas each. LK and I decided to go one lazy Sunday to their Park Slope location, which is pretty close to us.

 

I ordered the Huevos Divorciados - Two sunny side up eggs separated by two sauces, salsa verde and ranchera sauce, served with black beans, crispy bacon, queso fresco and crema. We both had the Rosalita - their hibiscus margarita. It is bright pink!

 

The second time I went, I went to their Lower East Side location with a group for a boozy brunch. The plan here was to get brunch, come home, nap it off, and then bounce back for dinner with LK. It did not go down that way.

 

We started our boozy brunch with food to line our stomachs. I ordered the Torta de Pollo - Ancho marinated grilled chicken served in a toasted roll with Chihuahua cheese, black beans, avocado, pickled jalapeno and a mixed green salad. I then proceeded to drink everything at the boozy brunch.

 

This place is really fun, but gets super crowded, so it almost forces you to drink quicker so you can get another drink when the waiter catches you. After a few rounds of drinks, our time was up, and we made our way to Hair of the Dog. I decided to try and feel young and keep going. After a few drinks there, I decided to call it a wrap. I hopped in an Uber and made my way back to Brooklyn for a nap.

 

When I woke up from the nap, let's just say the effects of the afternoon had not worn off yet. Lee was home, and it was apparent that I was not going anywhere for the night. We cancelled our dinner plans out and brought in Artichoke Pizza, which is our go-to drunk pizza, it has been since our 3rd date! It was pretty perfect. I fell victim to a boozy brunch yet again!

 

Matchbook verdict: This is adorable. I love the font on the front, and the matchbook colors reflect the bright décor of the restaurant perfectly. I did not even notice the inside of the matchbook until recently on Instagram! There is a blank space for you to put your telephone number, and says "Cuz' I think you're hotter than chipotle..." Hysterical!

 

-GK 

 

 

Matchbook Fail/Chisai Poké Bar

Chisai Poké Bar is a sushi restaurant in my area that opened last year. As opposed to many other sushi restaurants, Chisai uses local fish, sourcing from Greenpoint Fish & Lobster and Sea to Table. This is a pretty cool concept because it ensures that its customers only eat the freshest local fish available, and helps to reduce the food's carbon footprint, which is something that more and more people are becoming concerned about.

When I was checking it out on Google, I noticed that it had matchbooks! So off I went in search of good sushi and matchbooks. I ordered the Chisai bowl, with broiled scallop, crab, truffle, cucumber and eel sauce. It was tasty but I think it had a little too much going on at once. I actually didn't realize it had truffle in it until I tasted it, and picked it up immediately. Truffle tends to overwhelm dishes, especially fish, which I prefer to shine on its own.

As the guy was preparing my food, I asked if they still had any matchbooks. He said they were out. That is a total bummer! Still, I would definitely try Chisai again. Next time, I would try the spicy tuna bowl with albacore, dash marinade, cucumber, scallion and almond. The photos of it are beautiful.

It's always great to try new foods and support small restaurants around me. My neighborhood has some of the most creative and delicious food I have had in New York City!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Mah-Ze-Dahr

At work, one of the most fun things we do is celebrate each others birthdays. It always involves attempting to pass a birthday card around in secrecy (our office has an open layout so this is difficult), and treats from a bakery! I read about Mah-Ze-Dahr online, and then went on its Instagram to peep at its offerings, and noticed in one of the photos that it had branded matchbooks! It's gotten a ton of great reviews, is pretty close to my office, so I decided that I would buy a bunch of things for the birthday girl!

I got:
-chocolate explosion cookies (like a flourless chocolate cookie)
-cheesecake
-Nutella brioch braid
-brioche donuts
-brownies
-Mah-Ze-Dahr bars (like a dream bar)

Everything was amazing! The crowd favorites were the explosion cookies, cheesecake, and brioche donuts. I absolutely love anything and everything brioche because it is extremely eggy and rich. The word mazedar means "yummy" and Urdu, and this described our treats perfectly!

While I was there with my friend, one of the gals from the Matchbook League, we were delighted to see that they actually had matchbooks there! I told the girl who worked there about this blog, and another customer heard and we all started talking about blogs we want to write and our creative aspirations. I gave the nice girls the link to my blog, so if they are reading this, hi!

After doing some more research on the wonderful bakery, I learned that it is a collaboration between amateur baker Umber Ahmad, and chef/restaurateur Tom Colicchio through Colicchio's Discovery Platform, where he invests in small food businesses. It's great to see female business owners in the food industry!

Matchbook verdict: Slim, sleek and classic. I love the navy box that matches the navy match tips. The font is beautiful. There is a small detail in the matchbook that I didn't see upon first glance but see it now: a small circular stamp with the words "A Colicchio Discovery," a nod to their collaboration. Very cool!

-GK

Matchbook Drinking/TAO & Bathub Gin (part 2/2)

After our fail at TAO, we decided to give Bathtub Gin a shot since it was nearby. We lucked out and got a table in the back, right by the famous bathtub. We ordered a few rounds of drinks. I had the Cantaro: del maguey vida mezcal, pressed cucumber, fresh lime juice, organic egg white, agave-sage solution, fresh sage, shaken & served up. This was good but I decided to change it up for my second drink, and got the Gin Gin Mule: botanist islay dry gin, fresh ginger extract, pressed lime, cane syrup, fresh mint, served on the rocks, topped with chilled Perrier. I feel like half the time I order a cocktail, I wind up ordering something way too pungent and hate it, but this time I enjoyed both!

After those drinks, I was exhausted, and headed back to Brooklyn for a very deep slumber.

As a random side note, is it sad that I learned out about Bathtub Gin by watching Sandra Lee's old show on the Cooking Channel called Sandra Lee's Taverns, Lounges & Clubs? Sandra Lee is a 50 year old woman who cooks using all store-bought ingredients full of junk and preservatives. The Bathtub Gin episode was from 2012; I was in my early 20s and surely should have known about this bar well before Sandra did. Lame!

Matchbook verdict: I adore this one. I love the graphic - the bubbles are so playful, and the girl's hairstyle is reminiscent of a Barbie to me! This bar is a speakeasy, and the font is spot on - very Gatsby. Love it!

-GK

Matchbook Drinking/TAO & Bathtub Gin (part 1/2)

Although the matchbooks came from TAO and Bathtub Gin, the main portion of the night took place at La Sirena. 

La Sirena is the latest Batali & Bastianich restaurant, located in the Maritime Hotel. I have a lot of fond memories in this neck of the woods, as my job's old office was located right around there! I was very excited to come here. I love anything Batali & Bastianich. I have fond memories of going to Lupa as a kid with my Uncle & Aunt, Felidia in High School with friends, OTTO Enoteca e Pizzeria with my Mom in High School, Eataly multiple times with friends and family, Tarry Market with my Mom to get fresh pasta to cook with the family, and Del Posto with LK for our 1 and 5 year anniversary. My relationship with these chefs/restaurateurs goes back almost 20 years!

We went to La Sirena with the same group as Dirty French. This is a great group of people to go out to eat with because we all enjoy food, good drinks, and we laugh a lot! We did a tasting menu, and there was a ton of food! I ate:
-fluke crudo with artichoke puree
-cavatelli with pork spare rib sauce
-ravioli al'amatriciana with spring onion butter
-beef braciole with escarole ragu
-spicy brussel sprouts
-cauliflower carbonara
-crispy salt roasted potatoes
-semifreddo with grape sabayon, walnut cake, lemon sage gelato 

The fluke and the pastas were my favorite. I absolutely love raw fish in any form, and can never turn down an artichoke! The cavatelli came with this smooth pork spare rib sauce, but had a few chunky pieces of pork as well, and I was the lucky recipient of one of them. Lastly, the ravioli was stuffed with traditional al'amatriciana flavors (tomato, pecorino cheese, pancetta), but was topped with this spicy onion butter sauce.

After we were stuffed, we were looking to continue the night. This area has no shortage of great bars, but they are always packed. We attempted to go to TAO, which was packed despite it being early in the week. We decided to cut our losses at TAO, and headed out (where I grabbed a matchbook).

I will continue with a part 2 post since part 1 is long enough!

Matchbook verdict: I am so torn about this matchbook. I absolutely detest the front - it is so incredibly dated looking to me. The back however is beautiful. It is so delicate and looks like a painting. Style-wise, it reminds me of the matchbook at Macao Trading Co..

-GK

Matchbooking Dining/Flex Mussels

Have you ever heard the quote, "Friends are the family you choose?" My relationship with my Aunt RRK embodies this quote, except that I am lucky that she is my blood as well. She and I have never had a typical Aunt/Niece relationship. She has lived in Manhattan all of my life, and I spent my childhood hanging out at her apartment with my family. In high school, she would let me and my friends crash at her apartment on the weekends. When I decided to transfer back to college in Manhattan, I lived with her, my Uncle, and my kid Cousin. It was during these years that we got very close.

Time passed, and I grew up a little. I graduated college, met LK, got into advertising, and got my own apartment. My relationship with Aunt RRK continued to grow as well. When LK and I got engaged, I knew right away that I wanted her to be one of my bridesmaids. At the engagement party, when I asked her to be my bridesmaid, she laughed and got teary-eyed, and said "I will be in the Guinness World Records for oldest bridesmaid." This type of sentimental but hilarious response is one that I can only expect from her. For the record, my Aunt is gorgeous and dresses better than I do.

A few weeks before my wedding, she and I caught up over dinner at Flex Mussels. We had glasses of sangria, and shared the Dijon mussels, and the trio of donuts. These mussels were amazing. They were creamy but slightly acidic from the mustard. There was also a ton of toasted baguette served for dunking. They are also famous for their donuts. These were served piping hot and did not disappoint.

Matchbook verdict: I love the navy on pale blue with the pop of white font. The faded bucket is cool, it reminds me of taking a walk with my mom along the coast in Cape Cod, and seeing this guy forage for mussels with his bare hands. I love their slogan "Enough talk. Let's eat." My sentiments exactly!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Mother of Pearl

LK and I are lucky to have  great group of friends. Our group is made up of 5 other couples, and the majority of us go back 5-7 years. Over the years, we have had countless nights out together, celebrating birthdays and other holidays. We have started taking group weekend vacations together, calling them "couples retreat." At our couples retreat last summer, we came up with the name "Sisterwives and Brotherboys." No clue why, but it stuck!

One night, the sisterwives and I went out for a Girls Night Out! I picked Mother of Pearl to be our first spot. I have been to other restaurants/bars that restaurateur Ravi DeRossi has, and they all have a really strong beverage program - Death & Co., Cienfuegos, Mayahuel, and The Bourgeois Pig (RIP).

The restaurant was beautiful - it is a tiki restaurant, but not kitchsy. When you step inside, you feel like you are in the South Pacific. We all ordered tiki drinks (a bunch of us definitely got the Shark Eye, which is served in a shark's mouth glass), and a few items to share:
-tuna poke
-spring rolls
-kahlua pork belly
-pineapple fried rice

Everything was good, not amazing, which I have found to be the case with these fancy Polynesian-themed restaurants. Case in point: The Hurricane Club, which is defunct. As a matter of fact, now that I am looking at Mother of Pearl's website, all of their food seems to be vegetarian/vegan now, so they completely changed the concept of the restaurant?!

With a few drinks in us, we took a horrendously expensive cab ride to the Lower East Side, and spent the rest of the night dancing and drinking at the "Bulgarian bar" (Mehanata). Unfortunately, no one took vodka shots in the ice room. Next time!

Matchbook verdict: Some of this works for me and some of it doesn't. I love the nautilus shell, which is what produces the beautiful mother of pearl material. I like that only the address is listed on the front of the matchbook. All of the DeRossi restaurants/bars have store fronts that are a little mysterious and not obvious looking, so this fit right in. What I don't like is the actual color of the matchbook. Given that it is a Polynesian-style place, I think that a use of a more bright or pastel green would have worked better, like King Tai Bar's matchbooks.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Jack's Wife Freda

Jack's Wife Freda is one of our go-to lunch places for a team lunch. It is super trendy and you'll see a million bloggers Instagram their avocado toast. I have never actually used the Instagram app that my coworker downloaded to my phone, but I do love a piece of avocado toast (or avosmash as I have seen bloggers call it).

Over my visits there, I've enjoyed:
-eggs benny (their words, not mine)

-Mediterranean breakfast (reminds me of every breakfast I've ever loved in Israel)

-grilled haloumi
-smoked salmon and avocado toast

All very tasty, somewhat healthy (?), and extremely trendy!

Matchbook verdict: Adorable. I love the hand-drawn picture of the woman on the front, and I love that the back is fun as well (I hate when matchbooks are blank on the back). Added bonus: the pun!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Macao Trading Co.

Macao Trading Co. was a restaurant that LK took me for my 27th birthday. It is an Asian-fusion, Portugese/Chinese restaurant in TriBeCa that I had heard about through work. I notice that when it comes to my birthday, I have learned towards Asian-fusion restaurants (Buddakan for my 25th birthday, Gyu-Kaku for my 24th birthday, Yakiniku West for my 22nd birthday, TAO for my 21st birthday, and Asia de Cuba for my 18th birthday).

Macao Trading was the first birthday that Lee and I celebrated while living together, sot it felt pretty special. To be honest I can't even remember what we ordered besides the mushroom & truffle croquettes, and we definitely got 2 orders of them.

Matchbook verdict: Reflects the feeling of the restaurant perfectly and are very unusual looking. On the outside, they kind of look like a toy, but the lovely women on the inside look like a painting and are a surprise when you open them! I love how on the back they say, "Do hold in hand after lighting."

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Café de la Esquina

LK and I came here for a Friday Happy Hour double date! Café de la Esquina is the Williamsburg counterpart to La Esquina, NoLita taqueria/teqila bar/lounge. Café De La Esquina is pretty neat because it looks like a bus from the outside, a diner from the inside, and has a huge patio in the back! 

My friend (one of my fellow Matchbook League gal) and I enjoyed a few drinks outside as we waited for our dates. We all enjoyed quite a few margaritas, and a ton of tacos. My go-to choices are always al pastor (spiced pork and pineapple) and fish (usually snapper, tilapia, halibut or any white flaky fish), and these did not disappoint!

It was a great night with friends in one of our favorite areas in Brooklyn. Check it out for some great grub in an interesting setting!  

Matchbook verdict: Fun and colorful. They look like the Mexican Lucha Libre wrestling masks! These are by far one of my favorite matchbooks, and always a great conversation piece when people see them in my apartment. 

-GK 



Matchbook Fail/Saxon + Parole

For our second monthly Matchbook League Dinner (since The Spotted Pig was a great success), we decided to go to a some bars in the Bowery neighborhood, and then grab dinner a few blocks uptown. We settled on Saxon + Parole for a drink since both of us had wanted to check it out. I had also been wanting to try it since LK and I had decided to cancel our reservation there last minute in January to go to dinner at Hecho en Dumbo, which was a matchbook fail!

We got there around 5:30 and ordered drinks. I had the Cup O' Punch: facundo eximo rum, applejack, roasted pumpkin, maple, milk, hojicha tea, nutmeg. It tasted like boozy tea-infused maple syrup. 

We decided to pay and see if the hostess stand had any matchbooks. Unfortunately, the hostess said they no longer carry them!

Since we were near the The Bowery Hotel and have seen their cool matchbooks, we decided to walk there and check it out. We went to the bar which looked like a rich person's living room, with lots of dark paneled wood, fireplaces, and velvet couches. There were a bunch of business men having drinks together and we felt very out of place. We beelined it to the exit and left.

Finally, I remembered that we were near Café Standard and that they have cool matchbooks. We decided to try there. It was so crowded there that we could not even get in. We failed, 0/3, and decided to drown our sorrows at Han Dynasty. On the way, we are pretty sure we ran into Bernie Sanders. We passed a man with white hair and glasses, and my friend whispered that he resembled Bernie. I guess I was feeling bold from my boozy bunch, and I somewhat loudly said, Bernie! He turned around! We will never know for sure.

At Han Dynasty, we ordered our usual:
-Dan Dan noodles
-spicy crispy cucumber (spicy and sweet, and go perfectly with the noodles)
-Mapo tofu with ground pork (OMG spiciest thing ever)
-cumin chicken (its nice and crispy and comes with crunchy peppers and onions)

There was so much food, because we have to get a taste of everything. I am really looking forward to my leftovers!

Below are what the matches look like online. The Standard Café one is adorable because they are all miniature, and the The Bowery Hotel matchbooks are straight up regal. I unfortunately wasn't able to find a source for Saxon + Parole matchbooks, but they look just like the restaurant's logo, with the two horses facing each other. So cute!

-GK

From Matchbook Collector

From matchgirl100

Matchbook Dining/Little Park

Little Park was a restaurant that I enjoyed with coworkers to celebrate a successful end of year! I was excited to try this restaurant out because I love Andrew Carmellini restaurants and had a great meal at The Dutch a little while prior.

We did a tasting menu, which was great way to sample everything! We enjoyed:
-kohlrabi with pomegranate, hazelnut, roasted garlic *
-beetroot tartare with horseradish, rye smoked trout roe
-salt baked carrots
-campanelle pasta with mushroom bolognese *
-carrot risotto with orange, coriander, feta
-baked oysters with smoked tomato butter
-scallops with herbed crust and celery root *
-hanger steak with tokyo turnip, sesame, crisped rice *
-goats milk cheesecake **

I gave a star to the things I enjoyed the most. The kohlrabi was spiralized into a cold salad. It was extremely refreshing and almost juicy (?). One of the members on my team while eating it, exclaimed "This is delicious! What is this string?" so we had a good laugh there. The campanelle pasta with mushroom bolognese was hearty and rich, but not heavy. Scallops are always a win in my book, and these were cooked perfectly, with a slightly crunchy herbed crust. The hanger steak with cooked on the rare side (which I love), and served with crisped rice that reminds me of the crispy rice at Momoya. Finally, the cheesecake. I love anything to do with goat milk (I was so sad when Victory Garden closed - their goat milk soft serve ice cream was amazing), and it gave a nice tang to the super creamy cheesecake!

I was feeling shy about asking if they had matches. My coworker asked for me, and I was surprised that they not only had matchbooks, but boxes of toothpicks. Double win!

Matchbook verdict: I love the lower-case font and the navy blue of the box that match the navy blue match tips. The graphics are great with the coupe cocktail glasses. I wasn't sure why the restaurant name wasn't on the box, and instead it read "evening bar," but I found out that this is for the bar within their restaurant called Evening Bar. So that's where all our wonderful cocktails were coming from! The toothpicks were an added plus and complement the matchbook perfectly. I love the narrow lower-case script, the light blue background, and the floral that is whimsical and not Grandma-like. Wins all around!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Quality Eats

I went to Quality Eats for a team lunch during NYC's Restaurant Week to celebrate a new person on my team. I work with a bunch of foodies and for several years now, we have enjoyed many great meals together during Restaurant Week! I choose Quality Eats for several reasons - their Restaurant Week menu looks great (some RW menus are terrible), they are pretty close to my office, my team is a bunch of carnivores, and they have cute matchbooks!

I ordered the following for my 3 course meal:
-the crab and avocado salad (I literally just watched the Valentine's Day episode of Mad Men when Betty Draper orders this as room service so it felt inspired)
-patty melt
-s'mores ice cream

We also ordered creamed spinach hush puppies, and baked potato monkey bread. We also knew someone who worked there, so they send us out a ton of additional food! Curly fries, and scalloped sunchokes.

As you know, I am a newbie when it comes to steakhouses. I liked Quality Eats' approach to steak; it was more approachable, and felt less like the traditional, masculine steakhouse! The sides fell a little flat (some of the textures were a little unexpected), but a great meal was had by all, and I would definitely come back, post-Restaurant Week.

Matchbook verdict: Very minimal look, similar to the restaurant aesthetic. I like how the font looks hand drawn. The bow looks like butcher's twine, but looks more whimsical.

-GK

Matchbook Drinking/Employee's Only

The other night I had a girlfriend date night with one of my great friends LK (non-husband LK). We worked together at our first advertising job out of college. We didn't know each other at all, but then both of our seats changed, and we started talking non-stop. Over five years and several jobs later, we have remained extremely close; she was even a bridesmaid in my wedding!

Despite us living across opposite sides of NY/NJ state lines, we get together and have great girlfriend dates. We usually do a movie and dinner, brunch, or pizza and cocktails (my favorite). This time was pizza and cocktails. We always go to Keste in the West Village. It is thin crust Neapolitan pizza with great topping choices. I always get the Tirolese, with fresh mozzarella, speck, porcini cream, white truffle essence, baby zucchini, extra virgin olive oil. YUM.

After we were sufficiently stuffed, we made our way to Employee's Only, a speakeasy-style bar. The bar was packed but we managed to finagle our way to a table. We enjoyed cocktails and dessert, including:
-Fraise Sauvage cocktail: Fords gin shaken with wild strawberries & Tahitian vanilla, finished with prosecco 
-Amelia cocktail: Aylesbury Duck vodka & St. Germain elderflower liqueur Shaken with pureed blackberries & fresh lemon juice
-butterscotch & marscapone cheesecake with sea salt & nut brittle
-chocolate tart with red wine poached apples & spiced creme fraiche  

Come check out Keste and Employee's Only for a date night, either with a close friend or significant other!

Matchbook verdict: Mysterious, unexpected, and subtle, just like the venue. The font is fantastic, and the way that the E and O are positioned looks like a key. This makes sense in my head because I imagine this place to be pretty hard to get into as the night goes on, and you need a metaphorical key to get in!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/The Dutch

Between my Brother JR and I, he has always been the more creative one, while I have always been the more business-minded one. While we were both forced to take 5th and 6th grade band and chorus, I quit as soon as I could. JR went on to join Jazz Band, participate in high school open mic nights and Battle of the Band contests (and won), a capella in college, and finally, The Britpop Choir in Manhattan. The Britpop Choir is an a capella group that focuses on British pop music (think Oasis and Elton Jon). My family has always supported and cheered JR on, and The Britpop Choir has been my favorite musical endeavor that JR has taken on.

JR had a concert in Greenwich Village near my job, so LK and I decided to grab dinner together beforehand. As I've mentioned before, getting dinner in Manhattan together is always a treat, and I suggested we go to The Dutch. I knew that they had matchbooks, and the menu intrigued me. It is a "new American" restaurant (that term to me means that it is fancy and expensive American), and one of Andrew Carmellini's most famous. 

I was happy to see matchbooks on display right at the hostess stand so I didn't have to ask for them and look like a scavenger like I did at The Spotted Pig. They led me to my table, and LK met me a few minutes later. This was the BIGGEST restaurant I have been to in Manhattan (I think). It took up almost a square block!

Together we shared:

-burrata with black truffle and sunflower toast

-fried chicken with honey butter biscuits and slaw

-hanger steak with kimchi fried rice and farm egg

We also received complimentary corn bread and butter to start. I love when restaurants give bread, it is a dying art. 

Not only the restaurant huge, the food was huge portions! More importantly, it was delicious. I love burrata. I will order it every time I see it. The sunflower toast was nice and crispy and a great contrast to the creamy cheese. They are known for their fried chicken, and it did not disappoint. The crust was crunchy and did not fall off when biting into it. Last, the hanger steak was nice and rare, easy to cut/chew, and the kimchi fried rice had a nice punch to it, but wasn't too pungent. 

The meal was definitely pricey for a quick Monday night bite, but everything was extremely tasty and we even had enough leftovers for dinner the next night!  

Matchbook verdict: So thoughtful. I love the meat clever on the back, and the fact that the match tip is the same color as the box! 

-GK

 

Matchbook Dining/Peter Luger

Is it weird that I hadn't been to a real steakhouse until I was in my late 20s? Growing up, we never went out for steak! I am pretty sure my Brother asked for steak at dinner (gotta love being a kid and having to ask f you can order a certain item if it seemed pricey), and my Mom shut it down so quickly that I knew to never ask myself. It's not that we never went out for dinner. My parents have extremely different tastes in food, and so we ventured to "the city" a lot. Dominican food in the Bronx, Greek food in Astoria, Indian food in Jackson Heights, and Dim Sum in Flushing were typical "going out to eat" destinations. Apparently I spent every weekend in Queens as a child. We just never did steak!

Until, Peter Luger.

I probably would still never had gone out for a proper steak if we hadn't received a gift certificate for an engagement present. That is, by the way, an amazing gift. While it is off registry (gasp!), I am a huge fan of giving someone a great meal, experience, and memory. So off we went!

There are 2 locations. The original one in South Williamsburg, which is close to our apartment, and the one in Long Island. I tried to get a reservation at the original location to know avail. We landed one at the Long Island location one Saturday night. We got there, and honestly it was the most touristy restaurant I had ever been to. I am pretty sure that the overflow of Brooklyn Peter Luger tourists drove out East to Long Island! Maybe I have been in NYC too long, or maybe my "special meals" are most people's "average meals," but a restaurant full of tourists kind of kills the mood for me. Is that snobby?  

Anyway, on to the food. We got Peter Luger's greatest hit, including:
-portherhouse steak for 2 
-sizzling bacon-steak for 2
-German fried potatoes
-creamed spinach
-"holy cow" hot fudge sundae with "schlag" (these are not my quotations, the Peter Luger website liberally uses them) 

While I am not obsessed with steak, it was a great meal. Apparently the steak is a porterhouse which is half New York strip, and half filet mignon (separated by a bone). I kind of hoped LK would forget about the filet side so I could hoard it. The sizzling bacon was extremely thick and almost like a crispy ham. The German fried potatoes were like hash browns to me (tasty), but I preferred the creamed spinach! Lastly, holy cow to their holy cow hot fudge sundae. It was covered in the thickest, most densely whipped cream (schlag). The sundae was piled o high that anytime you would try and get your spoon to the bottom, you would risk knocking the schlag off! Which leads me to quoting one of my favorite episodes of Seinfeld: "You know what? They got the fudge on the bottom - ya see? That enables you to control your fudge distribution as you're eating your ice cream." 

It was a wonderful and memorable meal. As I have mentioned, I am known to be the Food and Beverage Director at home, so it was nice to be able to share one of LK's favorite meals together! 

Matchbook verdict: Great representation of the restaurant - traditional and old school. This matchbook is not looking to play around with fun colors or fancy-looking font. This matchbook is sticking to what it knows and excels at. I love the crest on the back! And the fact that Peter Luger is 100 years older than me!  

-GK

 

Matchbook Dining/Sammy's Roumanian

Oh boy. Sammy's Roumanian was one for the books. We came here Halloween weekend for a friend's birthday/Halloween celebration. I had never been there before, but always heard the following things about it: you dance, you drink, you eat huge portions of meat. I was prepared for all of those things, but did not know just how much there would be of all of those things.

A group of 10 of us got escorted to our table in the basement of the restaurant. Kitschy does not even begin to describe this place. Photos of celebrity and regular people wallpapered the walls. Tables were shoved together with cheap wooden chairs and white table clothes. And on each table was a big pitcher of schmaltz (chicken fat). Think of schmaltz as the Ashkenazi Jewish version of butter.

In the corner of this crowded basement was a keyboard, and our MC for the night. Our MC played klezmer music, other random Jewish music that I learned growing up at the local synagogue, and we did the hora! He played American music as well, most notably "Sweet Caroline" towards the end of the night, which had everyone going crazy.

Now, for the drinking. You cannot go to Sammy's without indulging in some vodka. Sure, they have wine and other alcohol, but the vodka is the staple thing to get. It is crazy overpriced, but no one is there to save money. We ordered a few bottles of Stoli, and they come frozen in ice! They are served with tiny carafes of mixers - cranberry, and Seltzer.

As you are drinking and cheersing for anything and nothing, the kitchen is serving up some huge meat. I got a breaded veal chop and it was bigger than the plate!

Between the meat and vodka overload, and dancing (read: flailing), I was hurting the next day. So was each one of our friends. This was definitely a once in a New York lifetime experience, but that's not to say I wouldn't do it again.

Matchbook verdict: Much like the sparse decor, this matchbook leaves a lot to be desired. I do like the combination of fonts, from the all caps, to the hand written-looking font, and the font that looks like Hebrew at first glance. My favorite part is on the back where it says "Ample Parking," because I have no clue who would leave Sammy's sober enough to drive.

-GK 

 

Matchbook Dining/Republic

The matchbooks featured in this post are 2 of the dozens that I have collected from this place over the years. Republic is a noodle place in Union Square that is extremely reasonable, quick, and delicious. I came here all the time in high school on the weekends. I am trying to figure out when exactly Republic opened, but it is featured in New York Magazine's Best Cheap Eats 2006. This article mentions that it opened "over a decade ago," so I guess some time in the mid 90s? In New York City hospitality terms, Republic is prehistoric. I am also enjoying reading this article and the restaurants mentioned from over 10 years ago, it is like a culinary walk down memory lane! But I digress. 

Besides coming here numerous weekends throughout my Junior and Senior years of high school (#sosophisticated), I came here 2 winters ago with my Brother and Mom. I met up with them at the Union Square Holiday Market to buy not-so-secret holiday presents for each other and for my Dad. We are all crazy hard to shop for, so what better than a place with tons of crowds and items that you can't return?! I kid, it is a lovely place and I have bought and received tons of amazing things from there (#shoplocal). 

After several hours of shopping and begging my Mom for tasty food like when we were kids at the supermarket, we popped in to Republic. We sat at the window overlooking Union Square West and caught up over bowls of noodles. I can't even remember what we got, because this food memory blends with the dozens of others at Republic over the years, but we had a great time, and our very different taste buds were satisfied.

Matchbook verdict: The light aqua color is almost too light, but the star over the I gives it a much needed pop. I love the font and the capital letters. And on the back, I love that the website is listed because honestly, what is a better slogan than Think Noodles?

-GK

 

Matchbook Drinking/King Tai Bar

If you want to step back in time to old-school Miami, check out King Tai Bar. This bar is clean and sleek white with pops of tropical color and pastel. Growing up, we would visit my Grandparents in Southern Florida, and take drives to Miami. This bar looks like it belongs on Ocean Avenue.

King Tai Bar was an exciting addition to the neighborhood. Before it was a bar, it was a run down garage. Before that, it was a Chinese-American fish restaurant called King Tai Fish Kitchen.

King Tai Bar's drinks are absolutely amazing. At this point, we have had everything on the menu, plus the drink specials. When it came to choosing "his and her cocktails" for our wedding, we tried to find the drink that LK so loved when we came here last summer. No dice. LK sent the bar an email, and a very nice bartender got back to us right away with the ingredients in said drink. We recreated it for our wedding!

The food options here are limited, but they do serve empanadas, and we have definitely enjoyed them during our time here.

I am proud of the new restaurants and bars in my area that pay homage to the history of the neighborhood, and are patron friendly. Will definitely have to do a return visit soon.

Matchbook verdict: Goes with the feel of the bar. I am a little surprised that they used hot pink as the font color for the matchbook, as the bar signage is this awesome purple script neon sign. Still, I think the colors complement each other well, and the font is very art deco.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Anejo Tequileria

Anejo Tequileria is a small plates Mexican restaurant in Hell's Kitchen, owned by Top Chef Angelo Sosa. I found out about this place through my old friend, a fellow foodie (you can read about some of our other foodie adventures here), who lived right down the street. This restaurant became one of our go-to restaurants for Girls Night Out. We enjoyed al fresco dining pretty much every time we were there, but they have a great interior space as well. It's dark and moody in there, with exposed brick walls, wooden beams, and an awesome hand painted mural in the back!

Over our numerous visits there, we enjoyed:
-guacamole trio
-ceviche
-pork belly tostada
-short rib taco

And of course, margaritas!

My friend was such a loyal customer there that she got invited to their 1st year anniversary party. She took me and it was a blast! They had free pass around food, a magician, and Chef Angelo Sosa was there thanking patrons! He is also so dreamy...! 

Matchbook verdict: I love their matchbooks. The gold on black is classic and strong looking, and I am a sucker for a good font in all caps. 

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Dirty French

Dirty French was a great meal that I was lucky enough to have through work. I work in the advertising industry at a great company, with wonderful teammates, and sometimes I get to do cool things like eat delicious food!

Google calls Dirty French, "Classic French bistro fare with flair in a cool brasserielike space with chandeliers & banquettes." I have been to several brasseries, most notably SoHo's Balthazar, and that restaurant serves as a baseline for brasserie decor for me. In my opinion, Dirty French restaurant is barnyard chic, decorated with hot pink roosters and wooden beams. You probably think that I have a habit of going to restaurants with colorful farm animals inside, as seen from my dinner at The Spotted Pig.

We ordered so much food, but here is what stood out to me:
-grilled spiced flatbread with fromage blanc
-trout meunière
-chicken and crepes
-pommes puree and peas

The flatbread was a complimentary starter, served with a whipped goat cheese-like spread. It was sprinkled with Za'atar and made me think back to one of my favorite cheap meals in Tel Aviv in 2009. The trout was wonderful. Fish is almost never my go-to at a restaurant, so this was a treat. You can't go wrong with perfectly cooked fish in brown butter and lemon sauce.

Now onto the star of the show, the chicken and crepes. The chicken is served two ways: white meat  sliced with a creamy mustard sauce, and dark meat marinated in Southeast Asian flavors, confited in chicken fat, and grilled to order. Hot crepes are served on the side, along with sauces and crunchy vegetables. To be honest I was so focused on how good the chicken tasted that I did not even acknowledge the sauces or vegetables. Chicken would be the absolute last thing I would order at a restaurant but this chicken was crazy good.

We got a few side dishes - the pommes puree (mashed potatoes), and peas. I was definitely hoarding both of these. All I can say for them is #butter.

After dinner, we headed out to the patio area for more drinks! I hung out there until I realized that I had completely lost my voice and had to go home, which was pretty embarrassing. I then wasn't able to speak for 3 days after due to laryngitis. It got more embarrassing the next day at work when I was supposed to be participating in a training session on communication. Anytime I wanted to participate, I had to quickly write my answer down on paper and my manager read it out loud between hysterically laughing. LK likes to joke that these were the 3 most relaxing days of his life. Dirty French may have taken my voice, but I took their matches!

Matchbox verdict: Complements the restaurant's décor perfectly. I love the use of two fonts - the restaurant name in a script that I will never be able to find in Word, and the bold capital font for the location. Great minimal look.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Navy Beach

This matchbook holds so many wonderful memories for me. LK and I took our first little vacation together in August 2012. Our funds were extremely limited at the time, and we wanted to go somewhere pretty close, and with a beach. As most people know, the Hamptons and Montauk aren't exactly known to be budget destinations, so we stayed one night in a terrible motel in Riverhead, and one night in a terrible motel in Montauk. For us, this was the greatest little trip ever!

I had made a few friends through work that were randomly going to be around that area as well, so we met up with them, and then had some time to ourselves. We went to Cupsogue beach, hung out with friends whose friends were having a fish fry, and LK taught our friend MC to float on his back. We drank cocktails on the beach and tanned for a while.

We said goodbye to these friends in Westhampton, and made our way to Saganponack, where we met up with my other friend and her boyfriend at Wölffer Estate Vineyard. They were extremely new friends, and extremely fancy. They suggested we go to dinner in Sag Harbor (like one may suggest going to grab a slice at the local pizza joint). I have no clue what the restaurant was called, but it was tasty, and LK and I were secretly freaking out at how much the meal was going to cost. It wound up being fine, and it was fun living a fancy life for a day.

After a terrible night's sleep in Riverhead, we headed off to Montauk! LK had talked up this lobster roll place for a while that was on the way to Montauk, appropriately named The Lobster Roll. We made our way there for morning lobster rolls, and they were delicious. We had dinner at Duryea's Lobster Deck, where there was more secret freaking out ensured about how much we were spending on lobster. Finally, we had cocktails at Navy Beach. I will never forget that night, hanging out on the beach, watching the sun go down, and drinking this awesome watermelon and vodka cocktail. I have since tried to make something similar, but the texture was disgusting and gave me one of the worst hangovers of my life. Sometimes, vacation does not translate to real life. 

On the way home from Montauk, we decided that our wallets hadn't had enough abuse, and we went back to The Lobster Roll, where we gorged on lobster one last time for the summer. During this meal, while we each had a huge lobster roll and most likely shared a third, I will never forget the couple sitting near us that split a lobster roll and a margarita. It was random and a little hilarious. 

Four summers later, we took a day trip back to Cupsogue beach and Wölffer Estate Vineyard. This time, instead of secretly freaking out about the cost of lobster rolls, LK had secretly planned a proposal, and I was (not so) secretly freaking out that he would not propose. Our trip to the Hamptons had come full circle.

Matchbook verdict: I love the nautical feel of this matchbook, I love the flags, and the font reminds me of a sailboat name. Every time I look at this matchbook, it brings me right back to the beach!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Sant Ambroeus

I picked up this matchbook from Sant Ambroeus during a Sunday Funday afternoon with an old friend. We met up in SoHo and went shopping, and then ventured over to Chinatown to wander around Chinese grocery stores. When I first moved into my apartment in Manhattan, I thought it would be a good idea to do my grocery shopping in Chinatown, despite having to lug groceries back to the Upper West. This did not last long.

After going to SoHo and Chinatown, we decided to grab a coffee at Sant Ambroeus. I have been meaning to come back ever since for dinner. This place was beautiful and full of attractive Europeans. On our way out to grab dinner, I noticed that they had matchbooks. This restaurant was so crowded that I had to ask another person to give me one. I wanted to ask the person for another one but felt awkward, so this is my one and only!

From there, we grabbed an appetizer at the now-defunct 'inoteca, then dinner at The Meatball Shop, where I enjoyed the classic beef meatballs, with the parmesan cream sauce. This was a while ago and back then, there was only the Lower East Side location. Now, there are 5 shops!

This was a fun day and a reminder as to why I love Manhattan: it is easy to weave in and out of neighborhoods and easily do a food crawl.

Matchbook verdict: By far the prettiest matchbook I own. I usually hate the color peach, but it really works here. I've never seen font like this before - it's bold, and the script is broken. The gold in the font and tracing around the logo helps punch it up a little bit. Last, the back of the matchbook is unexpected!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/The Spotted Pig

With a gastropub menu, investor backing from celebrities such as Jay-Z, Bono, Michael Stipe, and a pig-themed décor, The Spotted Pig has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember.

Myself and two friends (JN and GR) are in what we call a "Matchbook League." This consists of a group text with the same name, bringing each other matchbooks when we dine at a restaurant giving them out, and trading our duplicates (think of it like the Pog of the 21st century). We decided to have a monthly dinner out at a restaurant that gives out matchbooks. As such, I suggested The Spotted Pig.

The Spotted Pig doesn't take reservations and is notorious for its waiting times, so we raced out of work once the clock struck 5. They were able to sit us around 5:30. They lead us to the upstairs floor that soon started filling up. The restaurant was adorable, full of multi-colored pig statues and other tchotkes. We got to ordering right away! Between the 3 of us, we got:
-deviled eggs
-ricotta gnudi in a brown butter sauce
-Caesar salad
-the crispy pig's ear salad
-Roquefort burger with shoestring fries
-banofee pie

We basically ordered all of The Spotted Pig's greatest hits. I would say overall everything was tasty. I wouldn't feel a need to order the deviled eggs, Caesar salad, or the crispy pig's ear salad again. The gnudi was heavenly, thin ravioli wrappers around a fresh clump of ricotta in a brown butter sauce. The burger was amazing. Blue cheese can either go really well (if it is great quality), and taste almost floral, or it can taste rank. This was the former! It came with a PILE of shoestring fries that were tossed with fried garlic and rosemary. And last, the banofee pie. Layers of shortbread pie, bananas, and caramel topped with fresh whipped cream.

During our dinner we mentioned our matchbook collection to the waitress who cheerfully told us to ask the hostess for matches on our way out. I guess people hoard them and so they have to keep them behind the desk! The cheerfulness stopped when we got to the front desk. We asked the host and he didn't seem too happy to give these precious matches away, because he made faces and slammed my matchbook down on the hostess stand.

All in all, this was a meal worth waiting for and I was happy to have come here with some foodie friends.

Matchbook verdict: The graphics are amazing, as is the font. I love anything neon so I love the combination of green and pink! As pictured below, there are 2 styles - green background with small pink pigs/pink background with green big pig, and the reverse of it, pink background with small green pigs/green background with pink big pig. It's necessary to get both!

-GK