BLOCHO'S TACOS

Shabbat Shalom.  TGIF.  Weekend kick-off. Today is Friday. Feeling in need of a mental detox post-work and pre-weekend, I decided to walk along The High Line.  In college as a Project Wildcat counselor, I led groups of incoming freshman on multi-day backpacking trips through Minnesota.  We encouraged our campers to go on a solo hike or a pair hike.  This was one of the only times on the trip when they had the chance to really decompress, reflect, get to know themselves or another person, and just be. On my solo hike in this urban jungle of New York City I did just that. Lots of thoughts crossed my mind.  I decided I wanted to become a famous Instagram personality.  And take a photography class.  And buy an apartment.  And move to Australia.  And become a regular at some hip NYC restaurant.  Those are a few of the many ideas that sprouted on my walk.  I relished this time to just let go and let be.  The thought that...

I really love tacos.  The soft corn tortilla, the warm and flavorful meat, the endless options of "toppings" -- cilantro, onion, guacamole, salsa, pomegranate seeds, mustard (yes, try the Short-Rib Pastrami taco at Empellon Cocina ),  Sometimes, when I want to spice things up, I order Tostadas.  It's a completely different experience.  Crispy. Slightly messy.  Usually with beans, guac, and/or sour cream. Well, today I discovered (via Instagram and The Infatuation), Taqueria Diana .  When you first open their website and the menu page, it looks like they only serve chicken and tostadas.  I got really really excited.  A place with only  tostadas?! That's like a Taqueria revolution. Quickly came to realize that their menu contains more than that, but I'm excited to go and try their tostadas!

Supreme meaning #5.  But I'll take it. The NPD Group puts out an "Eating Patterns in America" report each year and guess who made it to the #5 spot?  Yes! You're right! MEXICAN. Tacos for days. via Univision

Being gluten-free made college really hard.  Every party had beer, everyone drank beer, and beer is full of gluten. Then, I discovered CIDER.  AAJ, Alcoholic Apple Juice, as I call it.  Some ciders taste just like that -- apple juice.  Others have a ferment-y funky taste that I kinda hate and love all at once.  Whatever cider you enjoy, there has been a tremendous boom in new ciders, flavored ciders, and craft and mainstream ciders over the past two years. Today, Tasting Table bring us Cider 101.  Enjoy. Cider 101: Your Ultimate Cider Cheat Sheet Cider found in The Ferry Building in San Francisco Left Beer. Right Cider. @Torst in Greenpoint. My tips for enjoying a cider. Drink it cold. Very cold.  Maybe even pour it over a glass of ice. Be sure to ask for the ice on the side when ordering a draft cider, otherwise you'll only get about half of what you paid for! Don't let people shame you. Cider is delicious. Cider is alcoho...

I've been slacking.  On blog posting and taco eating.  I'm embarrassed to even boast that I have a blog about taco-ish things. Today I received an email. 3 Taco Shops to know.  I know 1.  Empellon al Pastor opened recently and comes from the amazing line of Empellon Taqueria and Empellon Cocina.  I know it, but I've never been.  And the others?  Maybe I have heard them mentioned once before, but really they all sounded pretty new.   And I call myself a taco blogger.  Sheesh. Well, clearly this needs to be remedied in the upcoming months and what better way to spend my November and December than eating tacos? But check out this guide, because everything looks way delicious.  http://www.insidehook.com/table-stakes-october-2014

Command + ~ = LIFE CHANGER I usually have multiple tabs in multiple windows open on Chrome.  I find it really frustrating to click back and forth between the windows.  Today I reach for Alt + Tab to switch from Chrome to Microsoft Word and given that my fingers were a bit lazy, I discovered Command and ~.  I switched between Chrome windows! Cheers to productivity! (This all occurred on a Mac.  Cannot speak for PCs at this time.)

I love a good infographic.  My dad often forwards me his Daily Infographic email when the topic is something he knows I'll love...How to Moonwalk, 50 Things Every Traveler Should Know, Beer and Your Body (I'm gluten free), and my all time favorite: A Visual Guide to Reading His Texts (Thanks, Dad.) Today I found an infographic about Tacos.  It's pretty awesome. Thanks to  fitsme  for enlightening me with this Taco Food Pyramid.