Worth a Trip to Philly Alone

I have had many cupcakes in my time, but nothing beats Brown Betty in Philadelphia. I don't know what they put in them but the result is heavy, addictive, and just yummy goodness. I am not a fan of Magnolia Bakery (too sweet), Cupcake Cafe (too pretty), or Crumbs (just average.) Somehow, Brown Betty combines some amazing icings with the right texture, amount of sweetness and density to provide a satisfying cupcake experience. The velvet cupcake from New York's Two Little Red Hens is the only close contender. More about THAT particular cupcake later.

Chicago's Yolk: All Day Breakfast Heaven

Skip the boring hotel buffet and head to this amazingly cheerful breakfast outpost with a spectacular comfort food menu. Despite the large portions my girl friend and I powered through half the menu while our server looked on in amazement. The corned beef hash was fantastic and fried to perfection. For our final course we ordered the French Toast three ways, a nice sampler of their innovative takes on this breakfast staple. The peanut butter and banana was the most interesting and quite enjoyable.

Yolk - River North, 747 N. Wells St., Chicago, IL 312-787-2277

New York: Momofuku Bo Ssam

This is the mighty Bo Ssam, a whole pork butt (shoulder), available by online reservation, at the wonderful Momofuku Bo Ssam in New York City's Lower East Side. It claims to feed up to 10 people but really we could have probably fed about 5 more. Extremely tender and flavorful. The raw oysters added a nice touch, wrapped with the lettuce leaves and the various sauces. The appetizers and sides were both creative and terrific- an apple kimchi. My favorite - the fried brussel sprouts with fish sauce.

Many of the recipes are included in David Chang's new cookbook, as well as those of the Noodle Bar, Ko and Milk Bar.

New York: Momofuku Fried Chicken

If you want to eat at Momofuku Noodle Bar this is the way to go- scoring a fried chicken reservation online is the only way to get a reservation. Supposedly feeds up to 8, but we could have brought a few more people easily. The downside is the place gets packed with people willing to wait an hour or more and end up staring at our huge mound of chicken hungrily. The best was the triple fried Korean-style chicken (on the left). The huge Southern style white meat pieces liberally coated in Old Bay seasoning were frankly just OK.