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13 pts!

@ Welcome to New York

"Hi there, I'm Lisa. Welcome to my gourmet paradise – New York City! Here there are people from all over the world, each country of origin providing its unique take on how to make a delicious meal. I have my own version of a lot of them! But let's do my family history first."

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10 pts!

@ Let's eat!

“Wow, this is an old one! My grandma used to eat here. She squirrelled away her savings until she could afford the fare all the way from New Jersey. She hated acorns, so she tried hooman food and went nuts about it. She got a job as a server, balancing meals on her tail. Got her some great tips!"

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11 pts!

@ Radio City Music Hall

"My grandma told me she used to party at Radio City Music Hall. So many lamp posts to leap between! So many telegraph wires to run along! They couldn't keep her out of there when she wanted to party. I'm told they even set traps - but she always made it to her favorite productions!"

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15 pts!

@ Winter in Rockefeller Center

"My mother was a native New Yorker. She had an address in Central Park, but during the holidays she would go to her vacation residence, the Christmas tree in the Rockefeller Center. She said it was nice of them to put up a new one every year just so she could celebrate in style!"

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14 pts!

@ Empire State Building

"This is where my mom met my dad. No, not the Empire State Building! They were resting on the signs at the end of East 40th. It was love at first sight! Later they honeymooned by climbing the outside of the Empire State Building and joining the 1454 foot high club!"

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14 pts!

@ Times Square

"Now for some places I like to go. Times Square is a great place to party, because the whole world is there through someone or another. My sister likes to run along the top of the neon signs and try to make people look at her. I just roll my eyes and try to pretend I'm from another species."

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14 pts!

@ Museum of Natural History

"But this is my favorite place in NYC, outside of a kitchen; the Museum of Natural History! I could bounce around here going nuts about things for days at a time!"

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12 pts!

@ Market in NYC

"Ok so we're here to talk about FOOD, and food starts with ingredients! There are any number of markets in NYC and you can get pretty much any ingredient on earth if you know where to look."

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10 pts!

@ Neighborhood Bodega

"A bodega is a small Hispanic shop selling wine and groceries. There isn't time to show you all the different cultures that have specialty food stores in NYC, so on this tour, a bodega is representing all the rest of them. The point is, if you are in the know, you can get any kind of food from anywhere in the world in NYC!"

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10 pts!

@ Hangin' with the Fishmongers

"But this is my favorite place to buy food in NYC. I love to hang with the fishmongers. Us animals can navigate a place like this just using our noses. This is my go to for fresh fish to make sushi!"

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14 pts!

@ The kitchen is open

"My favorite words! Now we have the ingredients, we can go work magic in the kitchen!"

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67 pts!

@ My Happy Place!

"This is my natural habitat. No, it isn't a tree! It's a restaurant kitchen. Whether you cook or you serve, this is the heart of all the things I hold most dear."

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15 pts!

@ Tools of the Trade

"A restaurant kitchen must be well organized. If you can't find the pots and pans, you can't cook anything!"

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10 pts!

@ Pickles in the Pantry

"And what is a kitchen without a pantry? A kitchen must be well stocked with everything needed to make great meals. One of my favorite ingredients is pickles!"

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11 pts!

@ Fig & Balsamic Reduction with Basil

"We have a kitchen, pots, pans and ingredients. It's time to make food! I am famous for my fig and balsamic reduction with basil!"

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15 pts!

@ Empire Diner

"But you also have to have somewhere to eat! I love diners. My mother spent years as a waitress at the Empire Diner, where she worked the night shift and got all the best tips. She always said being a redhead was an advantage!"

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10 pts!

@ Comfort food served here!

"I followed in my mother's pawsteps, but I found a more modern diner to work in as a server. I saved my tips to get into culinary school. I have many fond memories of this place. I still get warmly greeted whenever I scamper into the joint!"

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72 pts!

@ Atlantic Grill

"This is where I got my first job cooking, a classy grill where my seafood specials are still remembered."

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10 pts!

@ French Bistro

"NYC is home to all kinds of ethnic cuisine. A squirrel can't call herself a complete cook if she has not made herself familiar with French cuisine. M. Écureuil introduced me to Cordon Bleu cooking, which prepared me for the next step in my career."

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13 pts!

@ Luxury Buffet

"Ristorante Scoiattolo hired me as their head chef. I was very proud to be in charge of their menu. My gnocchi with garlic butter sauce was a big favorite."

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15 pts!

@ Bagel with everything

"But enough of me. What do real New Yorkers eat? You can't serve them plain, simple food. Why live in New York if you want to eat simple? Here, you can get the most elaborate version of anything. You've heard of an 'everything' bagel? This is an everything bagel with everything on it!"

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59 pts!

@ Deli at its best

"I really love a corned beef sandwich. There's a diner in Edison, New Jersey called 'Harold's New York Deli' - work that one out - which is more New York than New York. They serve the biggest sandwiches anywhere. One guy I know took three days to finish his on the train home to Florida."

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13 pts!

@ Pass the mustard!

"Mostly I value a well made sandwich over a monster sandwich, tastefully hand crafted from fresh ingredients."

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13 pts!

@ New York Pizza

"Pizza: New York versus Chicago? New York every time! I love to be able to roll up a pizza, fold it, all the things you can't do with deep dish. There's nothing more New York than New York pizza."

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11 pts!

@ New York Cheesecake

"Well, maybe there is. Happiness on a plate! New York cheesecake. With all the trimmings."

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15 pts!

@ Food Cart!

"You're asking what happened to my dad? Well, I'm sorta proud of him in some ways and a bit sad in others. When he met my mother he was working a food truck, selling whatever people wanted most as they scurried through the busy streets."

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64 pts!

@ Food truck

"When he married my mother, he went up in the world and bought a food truck, where she brought her knowledge of Mexican flavors to the menu. He became known as 'El Luchador' - but his was definitely the Dark Side of the Ring, and divorce followed quicker than you can rattle a castanet."

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11 pts!

@ I love Nathan's!

"Nowadays my father has his own hot dog stand, bought with the proceeds from the time he spent with my mother doing the cooking. He's hard to get to know, but under all that mustard is a heart of gold. it's just very hard to reach."

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@Central Park in the Fall

"We're coming towards the end of this tour, so I thought I would stop by my birthplace; momma's old home in Central Park. I was born in that red tree on the right. What a beautiful view! The best of nature and the best of human skylines!"

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@Home sweet home!

"Home at last after a hard day enjoying myself. There will always be a place in my heart for the other parts of New York, but I moved in here a while ago. My place is off the top of the picture, in the attic. It's always warm and I have the whole place to myself!"

Violetta has enjoyed visiting New York City, but it is time to go home. Please select another pet as visitor, so it can also enjoy this event!