Veritasty: Truthfully Delicious

My heart flutters a little bit when I see the sea of red and white striped walls going up in Union Square around Thanksgiving.  They make a labyrinth that turns into the Union Square Holiday Market.  When you wander, thousands of other people are also converging on the same few booths so sometimes you get a little crowded, but I love exploring, shopping, and eating at this market and many others around the city in the winter. Union Square has the most popular market and vendors vie for a booth.  On one trip, I discovered a tiny treasure at the market: La Sonrisa empanadas.  We were just strolling and I decided I wanted to grab one of these to snack on.  $3.50 and a few minutes later, I had in my hand a scorching fried empanada shaped like the namesake "smile" (sonrisa).  They fried it up to order on the spot, which I found remarkable for a stall that's probably 3 feet by 3 feet in dimension.  I settled on a type of empanada only af...

There's a restaurant on Union Square called Max Brenner: Chocolate by the Bald Man.  If that's not intriguing enough, I don't know what is. Max Brenner serves a lot of incredible food that relates to - what else - chocolate!  You don't really go to Max Brenner to eat savory food...you go there for Belgian waffles, chocolate fondue, and the dessert pizza!  Their food is really a feast for all your senses, from the beautiful plating to the bold flavors to the heat radiating from the marshmallow-roasting mini-stove (seriously).  The sauces that accompany a dish (chocolate, caramel, syrup, etc.) come in Erlenmeyer flasks (seriously).  Many times, I've wanted to lick my plate clean, and the plate of my dining companion (seriously).   I am unlike most people, though: I go to Max Brenner for their savory food and then share a dessert.  Their savory dishes are American comfort food and diner food, but elevated to an elegant and modern level. ...