Secret Snacks in the Village

When we were in London last year, we took a Secret Food Tour, that was in fact the best tour I'd ever been on. Between the market vendors, the delicious snacks, the historical fun facts and our awesome guide Mat, I couldn't have imagined a better way to spend a rainy day in London. After that memorable experience, we were adamant about doing another tour with the same company. 

 

Luckily for us, the company operates world wide and they just happen to run a Secret Food Tour in another of my favorite cities - Manhattan. While we could have probably chosen a better day for our tour - 97 degrees and sunny isn't exactly great schlepping around the city weather - Bridgette, our guide this time around was nothing short of fabulous. She made the entire tour fun and full of cool facts about Greenwich Village. In her previous life, she was an elementary school teacher, and I'd bet she was fantastic in front of a classroom based on how excited she was about our tour and how organized she was with her content.

We started the tour in Father Demo Square, a small shady park in the heart of the village. From there we enjoyed an Everything bagel with a schmear from a small bodega. This was the very first food stop we took, and I would have been content to stay there all day just trying every flavor of the dozens of cream cheeses that were peeking back at me from behind the glass. But alas, we had to be on our way.

That beautiful Keith Haring mural behind a fence where I couldn't get to it.... :(

Over the next few hours, we shared a Reuben Sandwich and beer battered fries at the Barrow Street Ale House (where Billions had been filming earlier that week), and a slice (of pizza) at a corner pizza joint. While I'm sure it was delicious, by that time I had been in the hot sun for a little too long so I avoided the pizza in favor of about a gallon of water.

 

Mixed in with the savories we of course had some sweet - otherwise known as my favorite part. We sampled a beet and ricotta donut at Doughnut Project which was not really my cup of tea, but was better than I expected it to be. From there, it was back to Father Demo square for my favorite part of the tour - a cupcake from Molly's Cupcakes. The teeny-tiny Red Velvet cupcake was enough to make me fall for the super adorable shop so much so that I returned later in the day and purchased 6 giant cupcakes to take home with me. (BTW - every single one was better than the last. Delish!)

 

Throughout the tour, we happened upon notable and notorious spots that Bridgette wasted no time in pointing out. We listened as she shared a ghost story in Washington Square Park, and ogled our way through some very expensive brownstones owned and rented by some very famous people. We even wandered past the Friends apartment, the Huxtable's home, and my personal favorite; a Keith Haring mural that I'm still dying to see up close. 

 

Even without the food, the tour would have been out of this world, but food of course, makes everything better! Our last stop was the secret stop. The deal with the Secret Food Tours is that each tour always has one super secret squirrel spot that tour-attendees are not to spoil for future attendees. The tour operators often choose what will work best. In this instance, the super secret item was well-loved by all, but I would have preferred to just go back for more cupcakes.

 

If you are a foodie, or someone who just loves to wander and learn about the city you're visiting, I'd highly recommend a Secret Food Tour. They are a perfect way to spend an afternoon. Just be sure to be hungry when you start the tour, because by the end you won't be anymore! 

Though, if it's 97 degrees outside, you may still want a cold snack to beat the heat. In that case, I suggest PopBar - homemade popsicles dunked in Chocolate. The best hot weather snack ever!