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2013-11-24
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nydc's motto begins with "Celebrate Life". There are certainly many ways to celebrate life, but for someone with a sweet tooth like me, one way to celebrate it is with desserts. So I jumped at the chance to vote for nydc for lunch when we were in the area. Although it wasn't my first time eating at nydc, it was my first time dining at the Wheelock branch. The first thing that struck me was their distinctive New York style decor with funky pop arts and fixtures like bright red subway beams, givin
nydc's motto begins with "Celebrate Life". There are certainly many ways to celebrate life, but for someone with a sweet tooth like me, one way to celebrate it is with desserts.
So I jumped at the chance to vote for nydc for lunch when we were in the area. Although it wasn't my first time eating at nydc, it was my first time dining at the Wheelock branch. The first thing that struck me was their distinctive New York style decor with funky pop arts and fixtures like bright red subway beams, giving the entire place an air of vibrancy. One surely can't miss nydc even from a distance away! There were not many people there on a weekday afternoon, which suited me just fine.
They had also began to put up Christmas decorations. Unfortunately, despite the decorations, we did not see any Christmas menu nor did they made any mention of it. I was too engrossed obsessing over their desserts selection and promptly forgot to ask about it. The oversight was regrettable, but never mind, we were fortunate enough to be on time for their value-for-money Lunch Special instead.The Lunch Special set consisted of a main dish, which was Ham & M'S when we went, and came with soup and a drink. For $9.80, it was really a steal for money especially since the Ham & M'S dish alone costs $12.80!
Lunch Special: Ham & M'S + Soup + Spite ($9.80)We opted to have this with rice, so it was basically ham and mushroom baked rice. The portion was bigger than expected and there was a generous amount of mushroom and ham inside. It was topped with an equally generous amount of cheese on top! I love this dish especially the melted cheese topping which was cheesy and chewy. The dish had a slight hint of garlic and the smoked ham wasn't too salty for me; however, I found a few mushrooms slightly dry and overcooked. Nevertheless, this was a pretty decent dish in my book. The soup was quite decent too. It was rich and creamy although we agreed that the portion was a tad meager.
Cajun Chirpy Chips ($5.80)We also got a side of the Cajun Chirpy Chips which came with Aioli dip. The fries were thick and I love that many were still quite soft and "fluffy" on the inside. Contrary to expectations, this wasn't spicy at all although the seasoning added a dash of extra flavour to the fries. The dip though, tasted more like mayonnaise; I didn't really detect garlic in it, or maybe it was just overshadowed by the spices on the fries.
Of course, one doesn't simply go to NYDC and not order dessert! Like its name suggests, the main highlights of nydc are their desserts: chocolate cakes, mudpies, cheesecakes... Just the wide array alone is enough to make them one of my favorite restaurants around. Even their desserts are listed first before the sides and mains in their menu! For myself, it was a fierce competition between the New York Cheesecake ($6.80), Jedi Mudster ($11.80) and Bring Me To The Dark Side ($11.80). It took me a lot of hemming and hawing, but since I have tried Bring Me To The Dark Side in another branch before and had also ate a Cheesecake elsewhere not too long ago, I eventually decided to go with the Mudpie Extravaganza ($11.80). Afterall, it's a combination of three other mudpies on their menu: Jedi Mudster ($11.80), Cookie Monster ($11.80) and Grandma Goes Nuts, Seriously! ($11.80) and I didn't think I'd go wrong with it!
Mudpie Extravaganza ($11.80)To be honest, I don't even know how to begin describing this! It's both chocolatey and nutty and the nougat/marshmallows in the middle was quite chewy. The crust at the base was made of whole cookie chunks which was a tad hard to break apart with a fork (ended up eating the cookies whole), so I'd have preferred it to be made of cookie crumbs instead. The size of the mudpie was bigger than a standard cake and it took me quite a while to lick the entire plate clean. I was super bloated by the end of it, but hey, there's always space for dessert. Personally though, I prefer Bring Me To The Dark Side just for the less complicated, but richer chocolate taste. It's probably better to opt for either one of the mudpies to fully enjoy each taste, but if you can't make up your mind and don't mind a taste bud overload, then go for the Mudpie Extravaganza!
Overall, service was quite decent and the food were served decently fast enough and still piping hot. The waiter was also patient with me when I took my time deliberating over my dessert choice. Their lunch special was definitely value for money, although I thought that the prices for a few items, like the mudpies, was a little on the high side. However, the upbeat ambience and the big portion of the food took away the sting a little. Even so, having a decadent dessert is already sinful enough but having it in a bigger than usual portion is going to be very bad news for those on diets. But it's okay. Once in a while, it's fine to appreciate and celebrate the sweeter side of life.
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