The Chocolate Babka at Breads Bakery

If you're unaware of what a babka is, let me break it down for you. It's essentially chocolate, hazelnut and bread BAKED INTO PERFECTION. 

They are sold by the loaf at bakeries around the city, but the best I've had so far is the one they have at Breads Bakery. And they're aware they have the best one.

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Harmeet, in agreeance with the sign

They bake about a million a day since they're so popular - you HAVE to try one. And I don't care what anyone says, the chocolate is eons better than the cinnamon.

Twelve Gifts For The Seinfeld Fan

Okay, I know this gift list is not relevant to 2013. But let's choose to ignore that fact because there are definitely people who still re-watch/love this show and would really be into some of these gifts. Like what, you ask?

1. A chocolate (or cinnamon) babka. Available online through Greens Bakery or by making it yourself by Googling the recipe. 

2. The black and white cookie. Available in any New York bakery and the recipe can be found here.

3. The Real Kramer Reality Tour (three hours). Tickets available online for $37.50.

4. Actual muffin tops. Not hard to get, either make or buy them and then pop the tops.

5. The Original Soupman's retail soup. Available in grocery stores and online. 

6. Astonishing Tales Of The Sea book. Available online.

7. A book (or a book on tape) about Risk Management. Available online. 

8. Tropic of Capricorn or Tropic of Cancer books

9. A book of French impressionist art to put in your bathroom.

10. A book of War & Peace but with a self-made cover of “War, What Is It Good For?”. There's a tutorial on how to make your own book cover here. 

11. This photo in a frame. 

12. Festivus In A Box. Available online. 

BONUS PRINTOUT

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Of course there are tons of more ideas, but let's not go overboard here. The show did end fifteen years ago.

The Seinfeld Restaurant & More Gems

If you were ever a fan of the show (and really, if you weren't...? Well, you should talk to someone about that.) then seeing the Seinfeld diner is one of the New York sights that you should probably go see. I finally went there in the ripe summer of '09 with my best friend Harmeet and we had a ball of a time. You really only need to go see the sign out front, but we went inside and ate some food anyway since we trekked all the way up to 112th street. (And by trekked, I mean we took the train for, like, 25 minutes in an un-airconditioned subway car.) How was the food? Basic diner stuff, nothing fantastic. They have a booth that you can sit in that's near the window if you want a photo taken of yourself from the outside of the place, but that costed extra so we opted for a regular peasant's table. Booth money is a luxury that neither of us had at the time (infact, I'm pretty sure I still don't have booth money). Anyway, it's worth the trip uptown to see the place. 

Here we are above, and yes, maybe we're lame - but photographically speaking, you can see how much fun this was for us. None of those are good photos (Harmeet's weird lone expression in the distance and my squinting at the direct sunlight) and yet I have the fondest memories of that day. That one photo of Harmeet alone is so far from the restaurant because we were desperately trying not to let anyone see us taking any photos. It was 2009, things were different then. It was a judgier time. 

Looking for some less obvious, yet notable Seinfeld attractions (that only true fans may or may not be excited to see/do)? I feel you. Here are a few:

• Get robbed at the Hotel Edison (Season 3, "The Subway")
• Try a hot dog from Papaya King (Season 4, "The Movie") 
• Drink a beer and don't smoke a cigarette simultaneously at Pete's Tavern (Season 5, "The Sniffing Accountant")
• Buy a babka or a black and white cookie at Royale Pastry Shop (Season 5, "The Dinner Party") 
• Look for a pigman at Roosevelt Hospital (Season 5, "The Bris") 
• Witness absolutely no gyros of any kind at Queensboro Plaza (Season 5, "The Cigar Store Indian") 
• Get the swordfish (or the soup) at Mendy's (Season 6, "The Soup") 
• Check out the skinny mirrors at Barney's (Season 6, "The Secretary") 
• Get turned away at the Friars Club (Season 7, "The Friars Club") 
• Taste the knee-buckling soup at the Soup Nazi (Season 7, "The Soup Nazi")
• Break up at Pomodoro's (Season 8, "The Susie") 
• Venture to the Nexus of the Universe, at 1st street and 1st avenue (Season 9, "The Maid")
• Try to find Original Ray's Pizza (Season 9, "The Maid") 
• Try a bagel at H&H Bagels (Season 9, "The Strike") 
• Eat some flan at La Caridad (Season 9, "The Serenity Now") 
• Fear The Lopper at Riverside Park (Season 9, "The Frogger") 
• Eat at (the bizarro Monk's) Reggie's (Season 9, "The Sponge") 
• See the Costanza house (which is so close to my house in Astoria!)

The Costanza House in Astoria (Queens)

There are so many other places, so maybe I'll do a part two to this list at some point. Anyhow, great show. Great places to check out, ya know, if you're hardcore.