Grub Street Diet: Matt Sweeney

"Reheated a potato taco from Yellow Rose..."

"...and drank a “Berry Maxx” smoothie — strawberry, blueberry, banana, peanut butter, hemp protein — and large watermelon juice from Juice Vitality after my move."

"Dinner from Superiority Burger: polentils (a spicy red lentil stew over seared Anson Mills cob grits with griddled ramps — fuuuucking sick), smoky farro salad with kale rapini, Bodhitree herbs, and pickled fennel, sweet potato; bright-assed lettuce salad; benne-seed focaccia sandwich with kale rapini (they ran out of collards), and roasted strawberry poppy-seed vegan gelato."

"I definitely have a soft spot for the East Village, and I love all the old Japanese places, particularly Takahachi. I feel like that opened a couple years after I came to this neighborhood, if it wasn’t already open. I got to go to Takahachi the other day, it’s so fucking good, but I’ve barely ate sushi during this whole pandemic."

"The original ramen spot, Rai Rai Ken, which I haven’t, again, during the pandemic I haven’t been to any of these places."

"Also drank a seltzer with Zeigler’s apple cider, and bites of different treats from Confectionery: oat bar, salted turtle, chocolate chip walnut cookie. It’s vegan candy treats, it doesn’t sound like it’d be particularly exciting. Brooks put me on to it. It’s become a go-to spot, everything there for me is great."

"About four years ago, my friend Fergie in Nashville gave me one of those nice hot-water pots that all the coffee shops have. I got a Chemex, and Jaime from Abraco walked me through. He gave me a scale and grinder, he told me how to do it. Obviously a child can figure it out, so I can figure it out."

"Met my friends Jack and Chris for a walk in East River Park, which they’re trying to destroy. I want to telegraph that I’m not some guy who is bitching that things are changing, but I love this place and we have to hold on to it. It is really one of the best things about New York, and people don’t know about it."

"There are some other places I’ve been going to for years, like Gaia Italian Café on Houston. That woman is incredible. Hot young guys working for this cool woman. The pricing is so reasonable to the point that I don’t know how they afforded to stay open."

"Ran, got Ninth Street Espresso for Superiority Burger staff and an iced coffee for me. I really do walk by there every day. Everybody likes the guy who brings the doughnuts. I make myself useful."

"Snacked on a Gainsborough sandwich with mustard from Le Petit Parisien. If you’ve ever been to Paris or France and had a baguette sandwich, you’re like, God, why is that so good? They nail that. It’s a baguette with ham and cheese."

"Dinner was the La Morena burrito from Downtown Bakery. What a great spot. I put vibe over fancy food almost any fucking day, for sure. Certainly the vibe of Downtown Bakery is just fantastic."