Don't Feed the Shiksa: One Day till Passover.

The food diary continues as I calm myself in anticipation of two days' worth of charoset, matzoh ball soup, brisket, kugel, latkes, and matzoh brie. WATCH OUT!

Joe Doe

I love the East Village. I feel like everything in my 'hood comes in small, slightly rough packages, but reveals unimaginable treasure. Joe Doe was founded by the husband-and-wife pair, Joe and Jill, and serves what feels like haute cuisine in a very comfy EV alcove. The Bunny and I ate here three weeks in a row. On the third occasion, the Food Network was on location filming a feature about the resto. We were glad to see their great work being rewarded!

Boqueria SoHo

The Bunny and I had our first date at a tapas restaurant and try to visit a new taperia whenever we remember to celebrate. Through this tradition, we've discovered a number of great places, but our favorite of late is Boqueria SoHo, the downtown outpost of the Flatiron favorite. The energy there is great, but the crowd is fairly calm for a new and trendy-ish place in SoHo. The food is absolutely divine. Order the stuffed dates (datiles con beicon)--you will thank me.

Delicatessen.

I had a business meeting in the historic Puck Building and found myself famished afterward. NoLIta (North of Little Italy) boasts many GREAT restaurants (including some of my very favorites, like La Esquina), but I wanted to grab something relatively quickly. I decided to try Delicatessen. D is from the same owners as Cafeteria in Chelsea; sadly, Cafeteria has too much attitude and the food doesn't really deliver. But at Delicatessen, my burger and broccoli rabe (you can see it behind the pail of fries--which I did NOT eat!) were delicious, and the service could not have been more pleasant. It rejuvenated me for the remainder of the work day.

Fig & Olive Uptown.

CSW, GAS and I gabbed and grabbed a bite to eat at the Lexington Ave. location of this three-chain restaurant. The ambience was casual, the dimly-lit interior was relaxing, and the food was outstanding.


Left to Right: I started with the Mediterranean Chicken Samosas (cilantro, Greek yogurt, bell peppers, scallions, sundried tomatoes and olive oil). CSW began with the Cote d'Azur fish soup. My second course was the Tuscan Salad (proscuitto, fresh ricotta basil pine nut tapenade, olive tapenade, marinated eggplant, artichoke, arugula salad and fig basalmic vinegar).

Good food, good conversation, and the first PERFECT Spring Day (I witnessed a father teaching his son to ride a bike in Central Park); what more could you ask for?

Penelope.
My dear friend KAH has raved about Penelope for ages. Me, being the naysaying friend was always reluctant to check it out. WHAT A FOOL I'VE BEEN! Just look at how cute the website is and it will be obvious. GAS, The Bunny and I went here for dessert.

Carrot Cake and Tea (Twinings--standard fare) for me, GAS posing with a vanilla cupcake and red velvet cake. We were QUITE happy with our treats.

The check arrived in a cute miniature pail.
Penelope is famous for its brunch and GAS, The Bunny and I made a pact to come back soon to check it out!

There will be more food posts in the future, but this is a good start. If you ever want NYC restaurant recommendations, JUST ASK! I am ALWAYS happy to help.

Fondly,
Cxx.