PULPO, ESPUMA DE PATATA & MOJO PICON

It's not a secret that the pandemic has been tough on so many businesses in New York City. This is why throughout this time, I advocated and still have been advocating to eat out whenever possible. One of the most impressive traits of New Yorkers though is resilience and with that, I have seen many businesses and restaurants that opened during this difficult time. Haizea NYC in the SoHo neighbourhood is one of them and they have the best Spanish cuisine that I have gotten the privilege of eating in this city.

Headed by affable Chef Mikel de Luis, this restaurant serves specifically Basque and Catalan cuisine, mostly contemporary tapas but also offer some plates good enough for two. In one word, I'd describe the dishes as delectable--dish after dish has a distinct flavour synergy. Chef Mikel will arrange the order that the dishes will come out in a way that makes the dishes complement the subsequent plate.

HAIZEA NYC IS LOCATED IN SOHO

To start with, the restaurant gives everyone a complimentary to whet the appetite. It's simple and fresh and bite-sized. If given the chance, I can snack on many pieces of this and I'll be a happy woman. The menu changes, so the items written in this chalkboard might not be the same as what you see when you get there. At the time of the visit, they still didn't have a liquor license but the chef told us that by mid-March 2021, that should change. Of course that will be an even better experience for everyone who likes their food with paired with good wine.

Not in photo: Black squid ink croquettes. This tapa was so delicious that we finished it before getting the chance to take a photo. Growing up in a beach town, I was never a fan of any black squid ink dishes, but this particular recipe made me appreciate squid ink. It was velvety and complemented well with the crispy croquette batter.  

Next came the pulpo (octopus) as seen on the header image of this blog post. The octopus was charred to perfection and very tender. But what really made this dish a stand-out was the deep, savoury taste of the grilled octopus that played well with the bed of sweet and salty potato foam. This dish is absolutely heavenly and you should not make the mistake of not ordering it. I'm so excited about this dish, I'm willing to use double negatives. This dish is also first thing you will see on the Haizea website and Chef Mikel rightly should be proud of it.

TXULETILLAS DE CORDERO CON TXIMITXURRI DE ESPELETTE, GNOCCHIS DE RONCAL

After seafood, we moved on to lamb and chips for the main dish. This is also supposedly a tapa but I'm calling it a main because of how filling it was. I don't even know where to start in describing this beautiful dish. It's mouthwatering and cooked to perfection. All of the elements on this plate... just works. The peppers are not spicy at all and adds another a layer of depth. The chips are homemade and swimming in aromatic oil. The lamb is succulent and perfectly seasoned. When eaten with a little bit of everything, including the salt, this just burst into a party in my mouth. On my next visit to the restaurant, I will make sure to order this again.

PASTEL DE IDIAZABAL CON MIEL DE AVELLANA & TIERRA DE ALMENDRA

For dessert, we went for the creamy cheesecake with chestnut honey and marcona almond crumble. The fruits were a pleasant surprise as it's not mentioned in the menu. This was the perfect ending to this palatable journey that made me feel like I was back in Spain. And really, during a time when travel is so limited, this is a great opportunity to get a small taste of the culture while being stuck in the city. 

There are plenty of great restaurants in New York City, but you're looking for something special, give Haizea a visit. 

You can find Haizea at:

142 Sullivan Street
NY 10012
+1 6464762261
INFO@HAIZEANYC.COM
RESERVATIONS

Prelude 

I first learned to use Photoshop and Pagemaker, both Adobe products, 18 years ago. It seems like a memory not far away but when I type it out like that, it really makes the sentiments of writing this post bite even harder.

The Conundrum

Speaking of customers, in the case of Adobe you would have:

All Apps license on Creative Cloud is $52.99/month

No Month-to-Month

Month-to-Month Available

As if that title is not a clear giveaway--Yes, I use TransferWise!

Supermarkets, taxis, and other indoor public places in NYC require a mask to enter as mandated by the City and State

Back in April, I ordered a 6-pack of washable masks by Martin Greenfield, a local men's bespoke suit tailor from Brooklyn, New York.

My decision to invest in proper cloth masks was due to almost running out of my disposable masks, which I had been alternately reusing until they were close to disgusting state. Another big pull was how the masks looked so sleek and fashionable, even on the female models of the masks. As I've briefly mentioned, this company only made clothing for men and I was thrilled to see their well-tailored masks that were unisex.

Most importantly, Greenfield Clothiers was one of the local businesses that stepped up to the plate at the time when there was a massive shortage of masks for both New York healthcare staff and essential workers. Since they had to stop production of the usual suits, the company pivoted into washable cloth masks that they sell in packs of six. And for every pack sold, they would also donate 6 masks to essential workers who needed them the most.

Instead of me adding up to the number of people ordering surgical and N95 masks, I quickly ordered this. Since I received the masks in the mail, I have not looked back. These masks are now my staple whenever I go out.

Aside from the comfort level and wearability, these masks do a great job at not suffocating me. I wear this even when I cycle for hours with ease. I wore them in the WE ARE: Peaceful Music Protest and didn't have any issues chanting while marching-dancing. I also got compliments because they are not the usual consumer cloth masks one can get directly from essential stores/street vendors and online.



These masks can be bought on their website at $108 for 6 masks. The price seems hefty but for a piece of a necessary clothing item--a ticket to go inside most places right now, if you will--it's an easily justifiable one.

At that price, one mask works out to be priced at $9 each. (Read: $108 paid for 12 masks, because 6 goes to the buyer and the other 6 gets donated to essential workers) Right now, mass-produced disposable masks are at an average price of $0.50 per piece.

For the sake of date relativity: Today is June 22, 2020. This is important to establish the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of both cloth masks vs disposable masks.

Supporting local businesses by patronising their goods: Pack of 6 masks from Greenfield Clothiers

It's not the first time I'm sharing about commending customer service professionals, especially when they deserve it. But this goes beyond just one experience. I'm actually smiling now while typing this because I'm easy like that and my interactions were some of the most pleasant ones I have had in any customer service setting. I also want people reading this to take 5 minutes of your day to leave a note--whether in surveys or thru the company's contact form--for the people who made your life easier. Do it!

Good job, American Express! I have just not had a bad experience with their customer service. They are consistently beaming with professionalism and always, always manage to resolve my needs--all in the first contact. Seems to me that they hire the best of the best in this field.

*cue winding down tune*


Since I got transferred to the US office this year, I had to trade my Singaporean Amex into an... American American Express. In the corporate card envelope, I received a note saying I can also apply for a Personal credit card. I disregarded it because I bank with Chase and wanted to get a Chase credit card so it's easier to pay bills.


That's Why It's Called Chase 

I was told that I qualified for a credit card on the same day I applied for my Chase bank account. The only reason why my banker couldn't proceed was because I hadn't received my Social Security Card yet at that time. (Read: It takes 2-3 weeks to process and send the SSN to the applicant's mailbox) My banker told me to just come back to proceed with the credit card application once I have the card. But then, Covid-19 happened and even banks had to shut down.

For the sake of time relativity, it's early June now as of writing.

Since March, the Chase online credit card application website was down for maintenance. I stalked it almost every day because I wanted to get my credit score started so I can rent my own place. Alas, I never saw this website up and running, no matter which device I use.

I also set an appointment with an available banker so I can open an account. I made a mistake of going to the bank, because the appointment details had the address of my bank branch. I got there earlier than my appointment, only to see it closed. Then I checked my phone and it said there the banker will call me on the time of the appointment. My phone was in my hand while I stared at the screen, waiting for it to trill. The call never came.

I didn't set another appointment but I would routinely go online to check if I can apply for the credit card, but the online application website was still down.

Note: As of today, Chase Bank's new online credit card application portal is now up! Whichever IT Systems Implementer they hired should do reparations, because they probably lost Chase a good amount of business.


Don't Live Life Without It

Then I suddenly remembered the note from my corporate card saying I can apply for a personal credit card with American Express. I went to the website, picked the best cashback card, and without really researching about it, I filled out the short application form.

I clicked on Submit and right away I got an email saying I should call the hotline so they can verify some information, and if I don't call, they will call me. I thought an information verification was normal because I have no credit history in the United States. I dilly-dallied for a bit before calling. I got a customer service professional named Amit who right away cut through the chase (heh) and connected our call to Chase so Amex can verify my bank details and address. After that group call, Amit told me my credit card application is approved and I should be getting the details over email so I can set up my online account. I could also, if I want to, start using the card right away through digital banking while I wait for the physical card to arrive in the mail.

Time Elapsed from Online Application to Approval: 16 minutes

I don't know guys, but I was very impressed. Even compared to Singapore standards, that level of efficiency was higher.

I have done a fair amount of research about credit history because that idea is still foreign to me. But I never really bothered to look into various credit card companies outside of Chase. Mostly because majority of my American friends are using Chase credit cards so I subconsciously thought that it was an overall great company to bank with.


Now onto the reason why I'm smiling and laughing while writing this. Long-winding intro, but bear with me!


The Courtesy Call

Since now I don't have to use my Chase debit card for my daily spend, in a few days I managed to accumulate small purchases across different merchants. I don't get to go out and most of those shops are considered non-essential so they're only available online.

I got a call from a gentleman with a number that said it's from Phoenix, Arizona. I picked up and this guy tells me he is from American Express and wants to verify my information. I quickly said "Why are you calling me?" He thought I didn't hear his introduction so he repeated himself. Then I rephrased myself saying, "I didn't report anything, why should I tell you my information? You're not calling from an American Express number." He picked up what I was implicitly trying to say so he said I can give the American Express hotline a callback.

I quickly ran through my purchases to see if there's anything suspicious. Then I picked up my phone to call the hotline.

The customer service rep named Anne kept apologising and saying they're doing this as a part of security measures to ensure that my newly requested card was not being used by someone else. She did this thing where she put me on hold while she called my phone number on file, which I answered too. To which she responded with "I'm glad to hear it's the same voice!" Then we went on to do a check on my recent purchases as a final check. And this is where I was already laughing.

One thing I actively tried to do over May was hold off on buying the things I needed and wanted to buy until I get a credit card... for the sake of... *wait for it*

...credit card points or for cashback.

These were non-essential items that was on my list for a long time and I saved them up until I can buy them. You can't see me now, but oh I'm laughing. I'm sure I'm not the only one who does this. Right? Right?

Just some of my early purchases :(

Anyway, this was probably a you had to be there moment because it was pretty hilarious to me, especially when she asked me about two purchases from the same merchant--Rayban. Okay, I know exactly why that must have looked like someone was skimming off my card.

I...I cancelled my first order on the Rayban website because after the discount, it didn't reach the minimum required to get a $30 cashback reward. After cancelling, I ordered the same glasses but with polarised lenses... and that pushed the total up the minimum $150 spend.

I am laughing my ass off right now. It's even sillier when I type it out. Also, if you must know... I actually did the Math on this! Even with the more expensive item, with cashback it ends up being cheaper than getting the lower priced item with no cashback. 

I didn't have the heart to tell this to Anne, but I said yes I cancelled the first order and that should just disappear from my statement eventually. She said not to worry, Rayban will just cancel the charge hold eventually too.

She gave me the final spiel and instead of the usual response to "Is there anything else I can help you with?," I told her that a gentleman called me from a number that's not registered to American Express. Flustered, she said "Ah that man. Actually, he... he holds a higher position than me. He was giving you a courtesy call personally. To assure you and give you peace of mind, he is indeed from American Express. We really appreciate that you actively don't give out information to anyone, and what you did of calling us directly was right."

The overall tone of our call was very relaxed and we would chuckle with each other a lot. I am so glad I didn't really have any embarrassing purchases because that would have been way more awkward.

To anyone reading this far, I get that I'm looking very silly right now. That assumption is fine. I agree.

However it would be remiss of me not to point out again how great the customer experience was, even in such uncomfortable situation. If there's one takeaway here, it should be to highlight the consistency of customer professional experiences with American Express, then and now. And finally, it doesn't take much time to commend people when they did a good job in helping you out. Feedback is great not just for complaints, but also as a way to say you appreciate them.

To apply for an American Express Blue Cash Preferred credit card (same as mine), consider using this link so I'd get referral $$ 😊.


Disclaimer: This post was not sponsored by American Express. Great customer service often inspires me to write about the experience. To Amit, Anne, and the many other Amex professionals I have spoken to over the phone, you guys are (literally) the best!

Since I moved to New York, I have observed a massive update in the localised apps on my iPhone. I'm sure this is the case whenever one relocates to a completely different continent. But it is crazy how many new applications I have installed on my phone, and how many I needed to purge because I no longer have a use for them.

It's a back and forth on whether I actually like this or not. My sentiments easily shift from "Another app??? Who tf needs another app??"--into--"Did I really just schedule my clinic appointment without talking to a human??" and these swings can happen within a span of minutes. Most times, any annoyance is easily curbed by an efficiency-increasing piece of software. And it is in times like this that makes me reflect at how amazing it is to be living at the cusp of it all.

Note: The following is in no way a sponsored post. I'm a happy customer and would like them to have more word-of-mouth reviews.

Allow me to highlight one of these local apps that I like: the NYC-headquartered Tia, a one-stop shop for women's healthcare needs.

Tia's clinic waiting room at E 23rd St

Tia is a membership-based Healthcare service. It's being operated by a network of doctors and nurse practitioners, who also have their own practices. They specialise in women's wellness, so their offerings are mostly in the area of gynecology, primary care, preventive care. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, they have also branched out into mental wellness and COVID-19 antibody testing.

[ Inserting promotional blurb--If you are signing up, consider entering my referral code for 10% off the annual membership fee: jennever-3744 ]

I came along this company while I was trying to book routine STI tests and had a difficult time finding a clinic that has a slot on the dates/times I was available. Every clinic receptionist I spoke to didn't have any immediate openings for the consultation and check-up and I was getting frustrated. Booking shouldn't be so difficult. It didn't help that at the time, the coronavirus cases were starting to stack up. I wanted to get my tests done before a lockdown happened. (Note: As you well know by now, NYC did eventually lock down) Then I saw this company on my Google search results and based on the map, it was only a 5-min walk from my apartment. Sweet!

Tia's homepage, with the bot options on the right-hand side of the screen

Initially, I was deterred by the fact that I couldn't speak to a human. In normal customer service circumstances, I usually don't enjoy dealing with a bot as it hardly ever addresses my needs.

At Tia, to get the ball rolling, one would need to chat with a bot for guidance throughout the registration and appointment booking process. As it turns out, dealing with a bot is a lot easier than talking to humans in this specific situation. The bot finds the open timeslots and allows the Member to pick which one suits best. It also lets the Member add insurance details and a credit/debit card on file right there and then.

To make things a lot transparent, the bot will also send a full list of services, alongside the insurance coverage and how much it will cost if paying out-of-pocket. After booking a service, a Tia rep will again check-in to confirm the total cost and if it's going to be covered by the insurance card on file. This is something that's truly applaudable because, especially, when dealing with health, the worst possible thing to happen is finding out there are hidden fees. Tia's level of transparency assures Members that there will be no price shock.



COVID-19 Antibody Testing
I already had plans to write a review about Tia but just have been putting it off. As of writing today (Monday, May 4, 2020), I have met with their nurse practitioner earlier for my virtual screening interview for COVID-19 antibody testing.

Screenshot of the email I received from Tia

For a rough series of events:

• I received an email on Thursday that Tia now offers antibody tests
• I booked a interview screening timeslot for Monday
• I did my interview on Monday (today, May 4)
• I will receive details on the blood testing date over email 

Update:

• Okay so I ended up not seeing the email until a week later (oops!) I got to virtually queue for an appointment date much later than I could have been accommodated for
• I got an appointment date for the blood test on May 21
• I got the results on May 22--it came back Negative. More here.

The blood test will be processed by Quest Diagnostics, and has 99% accuracy rate. However, it can only tell if one is positive, negative, or if the test is inconclusive. If the test comes back positive for antibodies, there will be no indication of just how much antibodies one has and how long it will last in protecting the body.

There are several reasons to want to know if our bodies have developed immunity to this coronavirus. Personally, I'd want to know if I have them so there's better assurance that I'm not spreading virus to the limited people I encounter in grocery runs or even just by walking on the street. Making testing easily available makes it a little bit safer for everyone, and I appreciate Tia for providing this to their members.

With insurance, this service is free. If paying out-of-pocket, it costs $65 for the test and lab fees. For more in-depth information, check out Tia's Medium article.

I have already mentioned it above but I want to doubly make it clear that this is my personal review of my experiences as a Tia member and is in no way sponsored. If you are on the fence about trying out this membership service, I can tell you that with the level of customer service and efficiency you will get, the monthly/annual membership fee is worth it.

Actually it's not just on Sundays, but every time I drink a cup of coffee using Bo's Coffee beans. This is not a paid post. I just usually think, "I should post about this, because it's good" and have never gotten 'round to it because I either have to hurry to work, and/or life starts as soon as the coffee kicks in. 

It's been four months now since I started bringing back Bo's Coffee beans from Manila to Singapore. I wouldn't gush on how this is the best coffee I have ever tried, because it isn't and I'm sure there are a lot of better beans out there. One thing I'm very happy about these beans though is how accessible it is to get your hands on them, without having to go all the way to, well, Benguet, Davao (Mt. Apo), Bukidnon (Kitanglad) and South Cotabato (Mt. Matutum). These beans can be bought at PHP375 each at Bo's Coffee shops all over the Philippines. Personally, I just grab a bag or two at Ninoy Aquino International Airport, before my flight back to Singapore.

For this post, I would also like to briefly talk about the three bag of beans I have left. If you're gonna make me rank the three, it's a close fight between Benguet and Kitanglad for the top spot.

1. Benguet

Flavor Profile: Well-balanced, with herbal notes and a winey taste

It's not too strong but also not too light. This is Goldilock's Baby Bear equivalent of coffee for me. It gives me just the enough kick I need to start the day. The flavor profile says it has a winey taste, but I can't really taste it. Either way, it's still a good coffee. (And you can always just have wine separately!) This bag in the photo is the second bag of Benguet I have tried.

2. Kitanglad

Flavor Profile: Light and nutty, with floral undertones

I may be mixing the names up. I'm quite sure Kitanglad is the one that tastes like chocolate, almost. This is why it's the second best for me. I feel like I need to get another bag of this to be sure it's really good. I once tried pouring it in ice and mixed in with some milk and it was delicious!

3. Mt. Apo

Flavor Profile: Sweet and earthy, with low acidity and medium body

For me, this tasted quite weak compared to the other bags. Perhaps I just don't like coffee that's naturally sweet and maybe I have been used to having more kick. Although it is true, you can feel the lower acidity and it's quite good for the stomach.

Mt. Matutum [Not in photo] 

Flavor Profile: Berrylike and spicy, with notes of cardamom and camphor

This one did tasted berrylike, but I didn't quite get the spicy-ness it speaks of. Still a very good coffee and this bag was finished quite fast.


As for the text on the photo, Thanks, Steve!... Because of this post, I went on and Googled who owns Bo's Coffee. Apparently, it is not a guy named Bo. (Lol, the text was originally Thanks, Bo!) This now successful Filipino coffee shop chain was founded by a Steve Benitez and has grown exponentially--from just a coffee cart in Ayala Center Cebu to an astounding 91 coffee shops all over the Philippines.

So yes, thank you, Steve, for making these Philippine-sourced coffee beans widely available. We, coffee home brewers, rushing through NAIA cannot thank you enough.

PS Please stock up on Sagada beans because that one is always unavailable! :)