A Food Allergy Friendly Trip to NYC

We took a fun day trip to New York City a few weeks ago to show the kids all the sights and sounds of the Christmas season. Since we live outside of Philadelphia it only takes about 2 hours to drive to NYC. Great for a day trip. So, we packed some supplies (and you know that means TONS of food allergy friendly food!) and off we went!

This is a photo of all of the food allergy friendly food I packed. I knew it was too much, but I felt better having too much than too little. This was supposed to cover the kids' second breakfast (yes, we have lots of second breakfasts in this house!), multiple snacks in the car, and a possible lunch if we didn't feel it was safe for Little Guy to eat at a restaurant.

We parked at a lot near Rockefeller Center (thanks to the Hubs for driving!), and we walked about a block to see the tree and ice skating rink.  It was PACKED with people, but everyone was in good spirits.

We surprised the kiddos by meeting my parents there (Yes, this includes the famous Grandma who wrote "Grandma's Guide to Holiday Hosting with Food Allergies").

Being together was a great treat for everyone!

Little Guy is VERY into Legos right now as a 5 year old, so despite the long line, we stopped at the Lego store right in Rockefeller Center and bought the kiddos two Lego sets.

Then we had lunch! 

I did research beforehand on AllergyEats to find safe restaurants around Rockefeller Center. I also searched on a few of my favorite allergy related Facebook groups, and I did a general Google search. I called a few different restaurants a few days before and I decided that Bill's Bar & Burger and Del Frisco's Grille would be the best choices in the Rockefeller Center area for Little Guy's food allergies.

The wait at Bill's Bar & Burger was much shorter than at Del Frisco's, so we decided to eat at Bill's!  I have to say, food allergies or not, it was a great place for kids. Here's why:

• It's a large (2 floors), festive restaurant and noisy kids are not an issue!
• The food is very kid-friendly - burgers, sandwiches and salads type meals. Pretty similar to Red Robin or a diner.
• SANTA CLAUSE was there! He was walking around the restaurant talking to all the kids. Their eyes just lit up when they saw him.
• Every kid gets WikiStix to play with while waiting. How genius is that!? They also give kids crayons and a coloring page to pass the time.

I'm always nervous when we go to a new restaurant due to Little Guy's food allergies. It was even more nerve-wracking that day since it was REALLY busy and loud in the restaurant. 

The waitress took awhile to get there, so I actually got up to find a manager first thing to discuss whether they could make safe food for Little Guy.  I gave him our chef card and he assured me they could make a plain hamburger with veggie or fruit. He said to make sure the plate has an allergy stick in it to confirm that it's the allergy-friendly meal.

I was relieved when they brought out a plain burger and side of fruit with the allergy stick in it. Then I gave Little Guy his safe bread to make a sandwich. I was relieved even further when he ate it with no problems!  Phew.

Then we were off to walk up 5th Avenue to Central Park. It was a fun day with lots of festive stores, decorations and potty stops :)

We saw many sparkling Christmas windows...

We had tons of fun in Central park. We watched the horse and carriage riders and the ice skaters glide around the outdoor rink in the park (yes, this is where they skate in the movie Serendipity!)...

We laughed at the seals doing tricks in the Central Park Zoo (which we could see from OUTSIDE the zoo!)...

And we climbed the huge rocks in Central Park for some fun views and extra adventure....

It was a perfect day trip to NYC for a 5 and 3 year old. And the most important part? We came together as a family to enjoy the anticipation of Christmas and get in the spirit!

Have you ever been to NYC at Christmas time? OR if you have food allergies, do you have any other restaurant recommendations?

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Mamacado!!

3 Reasons I Miss NYC

I traveled to New York City last week for work. It was only a day trip, but I tried to soak up as much of the city as possible in my short time there. I lived in NYC for two summers when I interned at MTV and Showtime during college and I learned a lot about the city during that time. BUT there's always so much to explore.

I thought I'd post this week about 3 reasons why NYC is so great for a day trip or even longer! And this is of course JUST scratching the surface of what NYC has to offer.

1. NYC is Walkable

NY is truly an easy city to get around. It's built in a perfect grid system and it's so easy to follow a map. Of course, walking is not only great for exercise, but also great for sightseeing. As I was walking from the train to my work meeting, I walked right past the New York Public Library (Yes, this is where Carrie Bradshaw was supposed to have her wedding for all those SITC fans). It's a beautiful building inside and out. There's SO much to see and do in NY.

2. NYC is Surprising
You never know what you'll see in NYC. I guess this could be good OR bad! On my way to my meeting, I heard tubas and trumpets up ahead (remember, it was about 8:30am in the morning), and I came upon this lively double decker bus. This was a college band playing an upbeat song in preparation for the March Madness basketball game that night. I saw lots of smiles on the street though, which is something you don't always see in NYC.

You also never know WHO you'll see. As I said before, I'm a celebrity watching junkie. NYC is a great place to see random celebrities being "normal". Hey - who ever thought I'd see Martha Stewart in a Speedo shop!? I didn't see any celebrities this trip though.

3. NYC is Delicious
Oh, the food. NYC has a TON of diverse restaurants. You just can't keep up with all the options! I knew I had to seek out an awesome lunch that day, so I ended up walking outside and following a constant flow of take out bags. Yes, I followed take out bags!  There were a number of professionals carrying eye catching bags of food who looked like they were on their lunch break. I knew I had to figure out where those bags were coming from.

I finally found the source - a restaurant called Dishes. They offer a bunch of ethnic food options. I went straight for the "noodle bowls" since it was a cold day and I love noodle bowls! I ordered a noodle bowl with shrimp, rice noodles and all the veggies they could stuff in there. It was AWESOME.

We haven't taken 3 year old Little Guy to NYC so far, so I have not tried to find a food allergy friendly restaurant...yet. But I'm guessing with a little research we can find a great restaurant who can offer a tasty and safe meal.

Just take a look at this wonderful goodness! They give you your noodles and veggies in a bowl (on the right) and broth with shrimp, mushrooms and other veggies on the left.  You just put it together and.....

You get this TASTY lunch. So fresh, warming and satisfying (too bad my phone photos in bad lighting didn't capture this dish better!)

So, those are a few of my reasons I miss NYC. What do you think of New York? Love it or not?