5 Napkin Burger

There is a battle royale brewing on 9th. Ave between 44th. and 45th. with two restaurant giants. In one established corner is Marseilles groundbreaking a few years ago for it's french fare. Next up, is Nizza owned by the man behind Nice Matin on the Upper West Side whose Meditteranean fare is always consistently good. Now the Marseilles owner stakes his claim on the opposite corner with 5 Napkin Burger, a sort of cliche title considering the eclectic menu. I admit not to eating the juicy looking burger with ripe red tomato or the crispy, appearing fries instead opting for something more continental. Before I get to the food, this big corner space is decorated in white tile(very popular these days) and with multicolored cushioney banquettes as well comphy vintagey style chairs and a few black booths. Industrial style lighting shines down from metal bars holding light bulbs. Also, I found the service to be excellent something I read negatively about on other blogs. Now for the grub- I ordered the raclette a German/French specialty and having eaten raclete a dozen times in Deutschland, this bore no resemblence except for the goey, rich raclette cheese on top with chopped pickles or cornichons. The potatoes used were idaho completely wrong for the dish as well as a lack of quark(yogurt and cheese) or sour cream as a condiment. The cheese was raclette and is the same as the name of the dish and it cost $9.50. The main was a pasta primavera a strange choice for a burger joint, but this dish for $16.50 with marscapone cheese was one of the most perfect ever eaten. These guys are pros and the perfectly cooked al dente pasta was served with a mix of perfectly cooked veggies like asparagus, broccoli and zucchini, and peas with marscapone cheese which added a rich decadent flavor. Next time, I may opt for the juicy cheddar, bacon burger if I am feeling in the mood for beef.
GO!

SWEET MELISSA BAKERY

Adorable bakery in Central Cobble Hill, Delish passionfruit cheesecake and hand rolled chocolate croissants. Just a note, the next door creamery which Time Out alluded made their own ice-cream so does it's name does not make their own ice-cream it is Hershey's from Pennsylvania I was dissapointed to learn. Skip the ice-cream store and choose a sweet treat at the bakery instead.
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BRIGHTON BAZAAR

Say "da" to this enormus smorgasboard of Russian food and many kinds of borscht including borscht with meat, white borscht, cold and hot borscht, all housemade. My lunch here last week included cold borscht with a small selection from the buffet including veal meatballs and boiled new potatoes with dill. My lunch cost $5 with soup and buffet. Other dishes include stroganoff, Russian postato salad, blini galore. Selections of specialty cheeses, herrings, salamis etc. as well as fruit are available at this local mainstay.
Go!

ALI BABA TURKISH RESTAURANT

Ali Baba on East 34th Street is my favorite Manhattan Turkish spot. Located near the very elegant Turkish Kitchen on 3rd Ave this place has one very important food item the other doesn't- Turkish bread. Arriving warm and nicely baked in a bread basket, turkish bread is one of those perfect companions to the meal. If you come for lunch there is a $9.95 lunch special that rocks. You get a choice of appetizer and an entree and the appetizers include bread with little almonds and noodles. The appetizers include lentil soup, a wonderful shepards salad of tomato, cucumber, onions, parsley, lemon, vinegar and spices. My favorite lunchtime entree is the shish kebab which are cubes of roasted and seasoned lamb over the yummy rice. A bite of bread and lamb is a classic Turkish combo. For dinner a more extensive menu of poultry, meat, fish and vegetarian items can be found on the menu. I have eaten here at dinner and there is a salmon casserole with cream, vegetables and kastar cheese that is super duper. They bake their own baklava(the recommeded dessert) with pistachios and honey. This restaurant attracts a very international crowd and it is not unusual to hear several languages spoken in this pretty, little spot. Another outpost in East Midtown is coming soon.
MUST GO!

B BAR AND GRILL

Formerly called the Bowery Bar and Grill, I realized that I have never eaten in this 80's iconic restaurant. The restaurant is very large and located on the corner of East 4th. Street and Cooper Square. It was fairly empty at lunch and I was seated immediately at a plush booth with a garden view- bingo! The dining room is decorated with black and beige banguettes, a wood beamed ceiling and a palm tree in the center of the room with lots of light making for an uber cool space. I started with mint lemonade which even though it was not homemade, it was minty and refreshing. I ordered the quesadilla with shrimp and also asked for wild mushroom which I was not charged extra for and cost $9. The tortilla was on the thick side with a strange tasting red sauce and crema squirted on the top and served with a small side salad. There is a vast lunch menu with sandwiches and paninis all under $15 like yellowfin tuna, or bacon, avocado, lettuce and tomato for $10 which are served with a side salad. Overall, the food was fine, but the view and and chill vibe was exceptional.
Go!

THE ODEON

Oh, the Odeon, debaucherous late night 80's hotspot for the NY artworld and local celebrities. Now an art deco landmark with wood wainscotting, mirrors, maroon colored banguettes and deco lighting. The food is secondary with the deco decor being the star of the show and of course you! Myself and a Tribecca friend were there for lunch on Friday, where we were seated at a larger table with a slightly obstructed view. First comes the warm rolls with the Odeon labeled butter, lovely. My beet salad with shaved fennel, mandarin slices and aged goat cheese for $12 was tiny. The balance of the lovely red and yellow beets with the fennel was tasty though standard goat cheese would have been the preferred option. My lunch companion's eggs benedict was slightly runny with a slight smattering of hollandaise and the small bits of the end of the french fry batch as an accompaniment. The bus boy informed us that pictures are a no-no, oh well too late. Other than the dining room, the bathroom is one of my all time NY favorites, it is downstairs with a large outer area with two wooden phone booths(remember those) and an antique scale. In the jane with more deco tile and black doors on the stalls and a separate powder room with make-up mirrors and stools, and a pic of Jean-Michel Basquait no doubt an early patron.
Go!

Highline

Firstly, I love this place. Food, design, and service Highline rocks. With it's white couches instead of the useal banguettes, white cushiony chairs, black slate floors, 70's style amber hanging lights and a small waterfall this place is uber modern and cool. I have eaten here a few times and ate here for lunch on Thursday and loved my food. The lunch menu offers several options ranging from vegetarian for $8 up to seafood for $10. I choose the choose the N.E. steak for $9 which is grilled Thai marinated steak with steamed seasonal greens. For a starter(included, I choose the terriyaki grilled shrimp over a mushroom medley. The carmelized shrimp was served over different mushroom varieties like portobello and shitake and was tangy and tasty. My steak was a huge amount of slightly spiced beef in a reddish, brown sauce with perfectly steamed veggies(asparagus, broccoli and green beans) and rice. The spice of the meat was well balanced by the greens and rice. A dimly lit Feng Shui bathroom with an unusual sink on the same floor. I am sure Highline rocks at night.
Must Go!

Otto's Pizzeria and Enoteca and ice-cream

Mario Batali's Restaurant is famous for their pizza and extensive and I mean extensive wine list, but they also make a mean gelati and that is what I was there for today at the bar. Three flavors are $7 which is not bad for housemade gelati which comes in about 9 flavors. I choose salty caramel, spiced chocolate and strawberry balsamic. The accompanying warm chocolate sauce served in a shot glass for an extra $2 was decadent. The ice-cream was dense, fresh and mostly divine. The salty caramel was very true in flavor as was the strawberry balsamic(hmmmmmmm), the spiced chocolate was slightly underspiced unlike Il Laboratorio's chile spiced chocolate. The warm chocolate sauce was perfection and all together simply delish.
GO!

Happy 4th. of July

New Amsterdam Food Market

This outdoor market is ground breaking in that not only does it feature farm fresh ingredients from NYS growers, but also New York City purveyors of fine foods are featured here under one highway sort of. Well the outdoor space is behind the parking spaces and adjacent to the South St. Seaport. Sunday's market offered food in categories like the Bread Pavillion, Milk and Honey, Pastured Meats, Producers and Purveyors. At the Bread Pavillion my personal fave, there was Daniel restaurant who normally only bakes bread for it's 4 restaurants offering their incredible darkly baked peasanty loves and samples as well. Also present and baking was the Bakehouse(NJ), Balthazar, Bouchon and Pan D'Avigon from Long Island City which is reputed to offer one of the best baguettes in town and judging by samples it is at the top along with Daniel. Other standouts included homemade ice-cream offered by Marlow and Sons from Williamsburg with their chocolate cherry ice-cream(divine). Lot's of goodies to try including a ceviche like concoction from Peasant Restaurant on a razor clam and a bean soup made from organic beans from upstate New York. This market was a complete surprise and many local foodies would be ecstatic for New Amsterdam to be permanent come the fall.

Horizons Store

Cute, colorful Horizons is accross from my favorite bakery Cheeks on Metroplitan Ave.at number 377. The hot pink, peach color drew me in to this vintagey shop. For a smallish shop the clothes seem handpicked with lots of better pieces to pick from and few to sift through. I bought a long pink cotton sleeveless top, with a Euro feel for $40. Great designer shoes like Ferragamo, Bruno Magli, Joan and David and more were available and all super cute and reasonably priced. Very nice owner and enjoyable shopping experience.
Go!

Rabbithole Cafe

Like the nearby Dressler restaurant, Rabbithole is a designed to feel like old New York. When you walk into through the original wood door and peer down at the wood plank floor and then gaze up at the tin ceiling, vintage chandellier and mirrors you are transported. The long shop boasts a garden in rear with tables near the garden or in the front with a view of Bedford Ave. so all tables have a nice vantage point. The guy behind the counter was very accomodating and I am always wary of eating in a cafe though the pastries looked enticing more on those later. There are salads, paninis and bagel combos to eat. Options like a hummus plate are $7. Bagel combos with coffee and tea are $6.80 with cutie names like the Cliff which icludes bacon, red onion and swiss or the Gooey which is tuna, tomato and melted swiss. The salads are about $6-$8 and I ordered the big Bad Wolf which contained greens, bacon avocado, swiss and homemade vinegarette which was very good and a chocolate chip cookie for $1.50. The cookie looked like I like them to look darly baked and rustic and was a perfect example of a homemade classic chocolate chip cookie. Other pastry options include raspberry chocolate chip rolled scone and apricot walnut rolled scone etc. which all looked yummy. Other goodies recently include homemade banana bread and a rustic apple cake.
Must Go!