Food Update #8

To kick off the new year, I thought it would be good to tell you about some of the great restaurants we've dined at over the past month.  Enjoy!

Vesta Trattoria (21-02 30th Ave):  Delicious neighborhood Italian restaurant.  The quaint and simple setting make for a very inviting atmosphere and the food can't be beat.  The restaurant focuses on local green market ingredients and very inventive dishes.  We came for brunch, but will most definitely be dining there again for dinner! Brunch recommendations: Hangover pizza (potato, pancetta, sausage, fried eggs and spicy tomato sauce) and the fried eggs with polenta, asparagus, mushrooms, and truffle oil).  Mmm so tasty!

Mama's Empanadas (32-41 Steinway): So many empanada fillings to choose from!  The fillings range from all of the traditional items that you would expect (chicken, chorizo, beef, beans, etc.) and the less traditional (mac & cheese, seafood, etc.).  Additionally they have some sweet empanadas, which were delicious as well!  Not only were all of the empanadas tasty, but the price can't be beat!  Good for snack or meal time.

Basil  Brick Oven Pizza (28-17 Astoria Blvd): Wow, so lucky to have such a great brick oven pizza place near our apartment!  Not only is the pizza delicious (very thin crust, slightly burned edges from the oven), but also comes with so many unique options.  We opted for splitting two amazing pizzas: one topped with asparagus, peas, tomato, arugula, and mozzarella and the other with an herbed pumpkin walnut sauce (instead of tomato sauce), mozzarella, pancetta and basil.  It was a tough decision with the huge menu of unique toppings/combinations, but we will definitely be eating here again and trying many other unique pizzas!

That's it for this food update, but stay tuned for future eats and adventures!