It’s corn! (cake) 🌽
The Fancy Dessert and Balenciaga Asians edition.
Hello and welcome back to Five Things I Ate! This week, we sample only the Fanciest of Treats. Read past posts here, and please follow my Instagram, @fivethingsiate.
Signature menu at Lysée
44 E 21st St, New York, NY 10010
Look, I’m going to tell you right off the bat, the idea of a four course dessert meal will either be a total hit for you, or a miss. Just like Lysée. You’re either the target market, or you’re not. For starters, you need a reservation to sit in the little cafe at the bottom, and the signature dessert menu costs $58.90 (Oddly Specific But OK) for two people. Now, I actually felt like this was a great experience for about $30 (plus more for beverages) each, as you get four sizable courses of dessert. However, eating four courses of dessert is also a concept that’s either really exciting to you, or kind of pointless. To give you an idea, when my girl friend and I went, it was Father’s Day weekend, and aside from an adorable father-daughter duo in the corner, I did not see a single man in there for the whole two hours we sat there enjoying our afternoon. Now, I’m not saying you can’t bring a man to Lysée, it’s just that I wouldn’t bring a man to Lysée, unless he was a guy who really loved Asian desserts (which totally exists, now that I think about it, there may have been an Asian dude dragged there by his Asian gf). What you will see though, are a lot of well-dressed Korean aunties and some Balenciaga Asians. Anyways, what I am saying is I had the time of my life.
Corn cake at Lysée
44 E 21st St, New York, NY 10010
It’s corn (cake)! The review you’ve all been waiting for. If you’re online at all, you’ve probably seen Instagram posts of this cake. But does its flavor live up to its adorable-ness factor? Now, I’m a longtime fan of sweet corn in desserts (it makes a spectacular ice cream and gelato flavor), and so was my friend. (There is nothing better than a friend who delights in the concept of corn-shaped corn-cake as much as you do!) When the cake arrived at the table, her eyes lit up like the starry eyes emoji. To the surprise of both of us, this cake was not a sweet corn and cream flavored concoction, but much more toasty and subtle. In fact, it reminded me of toasted corn flakes. The shape of the cake, like a perfectly plump palm-sized kernel of corn, wasn’t all form and no function. The puffy little kernels of corn provided an interesting mouthfeel. Without the cuteness factor, would this cake have been a star? I like to think so, albeit like an all too serious method actor that goes the extra mile to imitate reality.
Signature latte at Lysée
44 E 21st St, New York, NY 10010
I don’t really like to write negative reviews of places I am fond of, but my criticism of the signature latte at Lysée is really a compliment. The dessert shop does everything so well, with great precision, that this is the only thing I can think of that was a miss. The recommended beverage pairings for the Signature Menu was the milky oolong tea or this signature latte, which has some toasty grains in it. Now, as we all know, I am a total coffee obsessive, and Lysée is not a coffee shop, so I’d let this beverage slide. I am a fan of misugaru lattes and I was hoping this would be similar, but it was surprisingly weak in flavor and just a bit grainy. The cold brewed iced teas, however, were fantastic. I very much recommend ordering iced tea to go with your set menu.
Matcha lava at Spot Dessert Bar
13 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10003
I feel like I haven’t been to Spot Dessert Bar at night in like a decade(!!) but I was having a shitty day, a shitty week (apologies for the lack of newsletter last week, I had a health scare), and perhaps a shitty year, so my friend, who is a true friend, suggested we go. I remember when I was 19 years old I thought Spot was the epitome of a romantic date, and judging by the crowd, that still might be true. At 10:30pm on a weeknight, the place was totally packed with NYU students and there was Very Loud Club Music bouncing off the walls. It’s so loud I can barely hear the person across from me speak, even though the table is tiny. I usually hate loud places, but I like Spot. I guess it makes me feel sort of nostalgic. I ordered the most popular matcha lava, a fondant center dense chocolate cake served with a scoop of green tea ice cream, because I’m a basic bitch. On ordinary days, I feel like lava cake is passé, but on days when I want to feel like I’m 19 again and I’m living in the big city for the first time, it’s perfect.
Braised pork belly with quail egg in chef special sauce at Che Li (浙里)
19 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10003
Che Li is not an upscale place, by any means. It’s smack dab in the middle of Saint Mark’s place, right next to a vintage punk store called SEARCH & DESTROY in gothic font, and behind a mountain of trash on the street. But no matter what time of day you end up snagging a table there (which turned out to be 9pm on a Wednesday for us), you’re bound to see some Balenciaga Asians there, girls with designer bags and unnaturally pale skin, and the occasional well-dressed white family celebrating a birthday in the corner. Despite all these things, I like Che Li a lot. Che Li is good. In fact, Che Li might be my favorite Chinese restaurant in Manhattan that you can invite your family or friends from out of town, that is, if you manage to get a reservation (good luck with that). The menu is expansive, but if you eat pork, you can’t go wrong with the classic hong shao rou or red braised pork belly. It’s flavorful, and fatty, with a sweet, deeply caramelized sauce. My favorite part are the tiny little marinated quail eggs that are as adorable to eat as they are tasty. Don’t forget to order a side of white rice.
Have a good long weekend!
Soph
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