Cheeseboy is my Homie

Behold – the most beautiful sight for sore eyes after a long road trip. What is this, you ask? WELL – let me break it down for you.

We were driving back from a beautiful, scenic, alcohol-fueled weekend in Rhode Island and needed gas along the way. We stopped at a rest stop in Connecticut (Darien to be exact) and went on the hunt for something amazingly unhealthy to eat. And boy did we find it! Anyone who knows me will tell you that I have an unhealthy obsession with everything CHEESE related. I would rather have a plate of cheese than a piece of cake or dessert. So imagine my sheer delight when I stumbled upon Cheeseboy at the rest stop. We don’t have any in NJ, so I was eager to indulge. What you are looking at is Cheeseboy’s MAC N Melt, which is described on their menu as the following:

Mac ‘N Melt All-natural mac and cheese (made with local aged cheddar, Monterey Jack, cream, and spices), hickory bacon, and local aged cheddar on artisan white

Now – if this doesn’t sound good to you, I don’t think we will be close friends in the future. For those still interested and sane, let me tell you something. This sandwich wasn’t just good. It was REALLY freakin good. We aren’t talking passable rest stop food – it could easily have been served at a restaurant for lunch and I still would have ordered it. The gourmet type mac and cheese was delicious. The bread was toasted to perfection and I don’t need to explain how bacon makes everything better, do I?

I am so very sad that Cheeseboy doesn’t have locations in the Jersey area, however I guess I should count my lucky stars because I would be tempted to get this sandwich OFTEN. Cheeseboy has many other options as well – salads, buffalo chicken wraps, veggie melts and so forth. Count me a big fan.

Obica Mozzarella Bar - A Little Piece of Heaven in New York, NY

Hi friends! I just went to Obica Mozzarella Bar with a friend from work, and wanted to share my experience. Obica is a chain, they have various locations all over the globe. I have a passionate love for all things cheese, and was delighted when my coworker suggested that we go to Obica during lunch. There are two locations in NYC – we went to the one on Madison avenue and 56th street.

Atmosphere: Obica is inside a big atrium building – very high ceilings and the whole building is glass. It’s really beautiful! The restaurant is set up for two different dining experiences – there is a long, modern looking bar along the window (perfect for people watching) and a restaurant side with tables and chairs. Although the restaurant is inside, the restaurant mimics an outdoor dining experience – trees, tables with big umbrellas, and patio floors. Think chic café.

THE CHEESE: The most important part, right? Obica does this awesome thing called Mozzarella Box. It just sounds glorious, doesn’t it? Basically you choose your cheese and your accompaniments as an appetizer:

Choose one mozzarella:
Mozzarella Selection: Bufala Classica Mozzarella - Delicate Taste
Bufala Affumicata Mozzarella - Naturally Smoked
Burrata Mozzarella - Deliciously Creamy

And accompaniments:
Cherry Tomatoes & Basil Pesto
Marinated Artichokes
Prosciutto Crudo Di Parma Dop
Bresaola Della Valtellina cured beef
Smoked Wild Alaskan Salmon
Selezione Di Salumi felino, crudo, mortadella and speck.

We chose the Burrata Mozzarella. It was so delicious and creamy. It was basically falling apart with yummy creaminess. The waitress brought over bread and olive oil to start, so my friend and I were spreading the mozzarella on the bread and making mini sandwiches. So good. For our accompaniments, we went with the Cherry Tomatoes and Basil Pesto and it did not disappoint! The tomatoes and pesto came arranged beautifully on another plate. I’m not a big tomato fan, but the basil pesto was probably one of the best pesto sauces I have ever tasted. It was so unexpectedly good – I put it on my cheese AND bread. It really complimented the cheese well.

The main course: My friend and I shared the Schiaffoni pasta with tomato and basil. It came with a little dollop of mozzarella on top. The flavor of the pasta was great, but it was cooked a little too al dente for my taste. I like my pasta soft, even though that’s not the proper way to prepare it. I was glad we shared the pasta dish – after the bread and olive oil and the burrata mozzarella with pesto, we were both in a carb coma!

In closing: I would definitely go back here. My friend and I went for lunch, but I could definitely see my husband and I going to have a glass of wine and sharing a mozzarella sampler before heading to a show or dinner. The presentation of everything is beautiful, and the cheese was fantastic! They also offer their food to go if you don’t have time to sit down. Thanks for reading!