The Food Network’s, “The Best Thing I Ever Ate" is a fantastic, usually mouth-watering show (except for the spiciest edition!). It’s even better when some of the restaurants featured are here in the city, and lucky for us we usually get lucky and there is at least one here. While it is a great show, it’s also a little dangerous because it makes you very hungry and wanted instant gratification to try the places that may be a mere subway ride away too. Exhibit A.) JG Melon. This time I didn’t actually see the show, but it was all about the best burgers and one of the guys on the show said if he got to pick his last meal it would be a burger from JG Melon. How can you say no to that? Now, I always joke about being the most burger-loving girl in the country, but what you don’t know is behind the joke I am completely serious. I dare you to find another girl who loves a burger like I do! My old roommates will attest to my burger dance or burger songs I would sing while cooking.. oh yes, this did happen. 

So when I heard there was a restaurant I had to try only a mere ten block walk from my apartment I was ready to go!

And there we were! A classic burger joint on the Upper East Side that has been open since 1932! Make no mistake about the melon part in the name either.. while I didn’t see any actual melons on the menu, there was melon decor everywhere!

You can get a glimpse of the melon-age from this picture. I absolutely loved this place! Their melon was probably a 1/4 page. Short and to the point. They know what they do well, and seem to keep it classic. I’m not sure if this is something unique to New York, but I’ve ran into quite a few burger joints in the city that are sit-down, but that you order the burger and any sides separately. Maybe it’s because I’m so used to them always coming with fries? I’m not sure, but I have come across that issue probably 4 times now. You can also mark this place off as another cash only restaurant (my favorite.. not).

My burger was perfectly cooked medium with red onion, perfect pickle slices, and cheese. Classic, just the way I like them!

We also ordered some of their fries, which almost look like the shape of the pickle chips. I’ve never had any fries like them before! They were the perfect width and cut small enough for the perfect bite sizes! Fantastic, two thumbs up for this burger joint. 

After dinner we made a quick stop by Crumbs to pick up a couple cupcakes for dessert. How could we not? It was on the way home! 

Going on about my recent post about the Anchor, I explained that sometimes it is hard to judge a venue by it’s front door. Arlene’s Grocery is another place that can fall into this category. This weekend we headed down to the Lower East Side to support some of Chris’ friends in a band playing at the venue. 

It turns out Arlene’s Grocery is exactly what it sounds like, a grocery store! Well, it used to be. Now it’s home to a bar and concert stage for garage rock and punk music alike. It was different from the Anchor in that it wasn’t really a hidden gem inside, but it certainly was a fun place to check out. Another worthy trait of mentioning? $3 drafts.. possibly the only $3 drafts I’ve ever seen in the city! So if you’re looking for cheap beer, Arlene’s grocery has you covered. 

The band line-up was $10 to get in, but covered all of the bands for the night. We ended up staying for two shows, including Chris’ friends’ band, The Holiday Electric and right after them, an Irish band called, Von Shakes. I’m much more of a pop, country, and alternative kind of music girl, but I really enjoyed the bands for the evening. The sound in the venue was great and so were both bands! Definitely make sure to check out their fan pages and check out some of their tunes. It was a lively crowd too, which always makes for a fun night. (Excuse my blurry cell picture!)

After the bands played we hung out with everyone, and picked up a couple of cds. All of the guys were really great and it was nice to meet some new people. We also ended up chatting with the Irish guys from the other band too. 

One thing I have really enjoyed about the city is the diversity and the variance of cultures that come and visit. Just last weekend we were out and spent the night talking to a group of Australian guys who were in America for the first time. It’s just such a cool experience to be able to chat and learn about each other’s lives on different continents and share some tips of your own as well. Whether it’s talking to people from far away lands or just people from different parts of the country there is such a diversity of backgrounds that come to add to the melting pot that is New York City. 

The Anchor  hosted a Blogger and Media networking event this week in SoHo. Something I’ve been really interested in as I’m staying another year in the city is meeting more people in the industry. Working in social media, I’ve been able to build professional relationships with people all over the country and even some in Canada working in social media and PR. I really love being able to use social media as a tool to bounce ideas and knowledge off other professionals. 

I’ve turned my focus to the New York industry lately and was excited to check out this event with another friend in the PR world. 

The Anchor is a bar located in Soho, which if you walked by outside you would probably walk right by. 

It doesn’t have a fancy entrance or anything, but that is one of my favorite things about New York. You really don’t know about a place until you walk in the door. A lot of places will surprise you. The Anchor was a nice surprise. Nothing over-the-top, but a casual atmosphere with a great D.J.

The event was fun and sponsored by Stoli with a 2 hour open bar. I’m not much for drinking on a weeknight, but it was nice to be able to have one for my favorite price, free! Not as many people showed up as expected, but it was still a fun time. 

I didn’t know much about Anchor before going there, but it’s actually a celebrity hot spot with visitors including Kanye West, John Mayer, Big Boi, Eve, Ozzy, Sharon, Jack and Kelly Osbourne, Kid Cudi, and Kelly Pickler! Pretty cool!