In true Food & Drink fashion, my short-lived stint at Time Out New York came to an end with a plate of Dominique Ansel pastries. It was a whirlwind eight months full of eating, drinking and writing that — while stressful at times — truly helped me grow as a reporter and editor.
A look back at some of my favorite pieces:
It took two weeks to fact-check the entire Chinatown issue, but it gave me a chance to put all those years of Chinese classes to good use. I also discovered some phenomenal cheap eats along the way, like the roasted duck at Pho Hoang and soul-warming beef noodle soup at Lao Bei Fang.
One of my favorite desserts — the dreamy black sesame crème brûlée at — made it on the cover of TONY's annual 100 Best feature. And I got to try a Cronut without waiting in line.
My very first assignment was a huge Japan package, which meant eating at some of the city's top sushi temples seven days straight. Later this summer, I did the same for BBQ and burgers and for Thanksgiving, organized a massive pie-tasting at TONY headquarters.
And finally, thanks to a lot of persistence and late nights, my fellow assistant editor Christina and I pulled together a Fall Preview that featured a whopping 123 restaurants, including big names like Toro, Golden Cadillac and one day, the full Ivan Ramen in the Lower East Side.