Why Yesterday Was One of My Favorite Days

Yesterday was one of my favorite days of the year.

Better then the first day of spring. Maybe even better than the first day of summer. Almost definitely better than my 30th birthday will be in a few months.

The occasion? Daylight Saving Time began.

The sun is up year round by the time I wake up, a consequence of living on the eastern edge of the time zone as well as the late hour of my alarm -- 8 a.m.

The evening, however, is another story. Even if I leave work on time at 6 p.m., the sky is nearly always pitch black all winter long. A couple of weeks ago I left work about a quarter after 6 and saw just a glimmer of light reflecting against a skyscraper, set against a deep, deep blue sky. I was excited, but of course it had long since disappeared by the time I exited the subway in Bay Ridge nearly an hour later.

Of course, there is one downside to Daylight Saving Time: one less hour of sleep. But the many more hours of sunlight I'll now be enjoying will more than make up for one evening of heavy eyelids.

$1 "Mini Cakes" in Chinatown

As Sarah and I strolled through Chinatown, from Prosperity Dumpling to the subway, one specific food cart caused me to do a double-take.

It seems that most New York food carts offer one of three things: hot dogs, sugared nuts, or some unknown foodstuff that smells really burnt. But in Chinatown you can get 20 mini cakes for $1.

I didn't get a real good look at how they were made -- when I forked over my dollar, the lady immediately handed me a white bag pre-stuffed with mini cakes and I got out of the way. But from the photos I was able to snap, it looks as if the cake batter is put into a special molded skillet (see the photo above), heated up, and then emptied onto a tray and broken apart.

The vanilla cakes really were mini -- about the size of your biggest toe -- but warm, and at the very least, fun to eat. The only thing missing? A vat of frosting in which to dip them.

Chinatown Dumplings: Prosperity Dumpling

Why is the "open" sign flipped over? We'll never know.

When I was wracking my brain for a quick, easy, cheap place to eat with Sarah, I immediately thought of Vanessa's Dumpling House, where Paul and I ate to overflowing for $15 last month.

But then I had an even better thought: why not give its competitor down the street a try? So after Sarah and I explored Chinatown, we meandered over to Eldridge Street so I could conduct a taste test at Prosperity Dumpling.

The first thing I noticed was Prosperity Dumpling's size. It's a cubbyhole, really. I think office cubicles are generally bigger than this place is. Small counters line two walls. One counter has enough room for two short stools; the other has no stools, probably because the opening door keeps bumping into whoever is standing there. This is definitely a to-go type of place.

But it was cold, and I didn't know a good place to take our food. We took our chances and got our food to stay. By the time it was ready, we had snagged a spot in the corner, between the trash can and window.

Luckily, the space doesn't influence the food. I fell in love with the sesame pancake with vegetables at Vanessa's, so that's what I ordered. The sesame pancake at Prosperity was definitely good (and, at $1.25, certainly cheap), but not as tasty as Vanessa's.

Sesame pancake -- more like a Chinese pizza, really

Sarah opted for the Chinese vegetables and pork boiled dumplings (10 for $2). I declined her kind offer of a sample, but they looked pretty good.

Dumplings

So while I can't give a complete review and comparison, I know I'll return to Vanessa's Dumpling House before going again to Prosperity Dumpling. A better sesame pancake + more seating = Winner.