Sabor PGH...: ...NYC, Day 3, Part 1: Wafels & Dinges, & Moto in Brooklyn

For Day 1 of my New York City trip, click here.
For Day 2, Part 1, click here.
For Day 2, Part 2, click here.
For Day 2, Part 3, click here.

Brrrrr.

You would think that living in Pittsburgh my entire life has made me immune to the cold. No. Not true. Anyone who has lived here knows that we have seasons, and when it's cold, we want it to be hot, and when it's hot, we want it to be cold.

Will we ever be happy?

New York isn't much different from Pittsburgh in the winter, in the fact that it's COLD. WINDY. BLUSTERY. Our third day in the city was no exception.

James wanted to show me Bryant Park, and when we arrived, we saw that it was set up with pop-up stands where local artisans and food vendors could sell their products. In Pittsburgh I love attending the I Made It! Markets and Handmade Arcade, plus who doesn't love a good food festival?

James was excited when we came upon the Wafels & Dinges stand, because he had read about their food truck before. I was drawn to the Nutella in the display, personally. After looking at the menu, we decided to indulge.

Wafels & Dinges stand, Bryant Park

I ordered "de Throwdown Wafel", a Belgian liege wafel with speculoos (a caramelized gingerbread spread...*drool*) and whipped cream. Yes, definitely the right choice. Sweet, warm, and soft.

de Throwdown Wafel

James went with a traditional liege wafel. When he said that he wanted it plain, the man working the booth told him that the first dinges (topping) is free, so he should get something. James tried to get it plain again, and he lost that battle - he got dulce de leche on it. I think it was a fine choice - but mine was better.

Liege Wafel with dulce de leche

We then walked to the subway station and hopped on the "M" train to the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, which James described to me as "what Lawrenceville wants to be" - the hipster section of the boro.

As soon as we were at street level, James spotted Moto - which didn't look like much to me. An old bike hanging above, a barely-sturdy aluminum entrance that looked like a dive - but James said that he watched a documentary that featured Moto, and that it looked interesting.

Moto

Alright. Fine. We went in.

Holy cow - never judge a book by its cover, seriously. The inside was adorable!

Moto - facing the entrance

Moto - counter

We ordered coffee and looked over the menu. We didn't want to eat too much more, but dinner was a long way off, so we figured we'd get a light lunch.

Coffee, sugar, cream

James ordered a Soppressata Panini, which had mozzarella and tomato with basil pesto, served with arugula salad (reminiscent of our lunch at the Tin Front Cafe not too long ago). I tried some of the sandwich, and it was well-toasted and yummy. The arugula salad was typical, but the dressing was just enough to make it much tastier.

Soppressata Panini, arugula salad

I wanted something warm that would stick to my ribs a bit, so I ordered the Warm Lentils, served with fig and walnut crouton with queso fresco. The lentils themselves reminded me of a lentil chili that I made from a Whole Foods recipe once, and the crouton was a wonderful complement to them.

Queso fresco, fig and walnut crouton, warm lentils

We left quite satisfied with our find - first, we came upon Rayuela by accident, not knowing what to expect, and now we came upon Moto, which James had heard of, but came upon just by where we got off of the subway. Things really seem to fall into place with the two of us together.

Williamsburg is very eclectic, with funky little stores selling uncommon goods. One of them is Radish, where they serve prepared soups, sandwiches, and snacks. James purchased some items there for our train ride home.

Inside Radish

In-season produce board, Radish

Sushi candies for sale, Radish

Of course, we saw more taco trucks...but did not purchase any...

Tacos Morelos Taco Truck, Williamsburg, Brooklyn

We spent a few more hours exploring Williamsburg, and when we were finished, we decided to walk across the Williamsburg Bridge to get back into Manhattan. This turned out to be regrettable (more on that later), but the scenery was fantastic. I leave you with some of the sights we took in along the way...before returning to the hotel to rest up for our culminating meal: Babbo.