Osteria Morini

218 Lafayette Street
New York, NY 10012
Phone: 212-965- 8777
Fax: 212-965-8733

Food: If you want some awesome Italian food, this is the place to go. We started with a "choose your own" platter that allows you to choose 3 different types of meats to enjoy. I am normally not a fan of prosciutto but this was thin, salty, large slices that melted in your mouth. The bolognese was delicious as well and the in-house made, fresh from the oven biscuits and crackers served with it are amazing. We ordered the macaroni dish with sausage and a special of the day that was farfalle with mushrooms and a thing sliced meat. (sorry, can't remember which one it was).

Unlike many Italian style restaurants, the food was not drowned in sauce. In fact, the items we ordered were lightly tossed which allowed the true flavor of everything to come through but did not over power the flavors of everything else in the dish. The portions are perfect for ordering an appetizer and a meal to yourself. It's often hard to decide which dish you want so the best way to order when with a group of people is have each person get something different and then share it family style. You will ALWAYS want to try everyone else's food.

Price is about what you would expect from a delicious Italian restaurant in SoHo with prices for an entree averaging between $17 and $24. Worth every penny!! Hands down the best pasta I have had in NYC to date and now one of my new favorite places to eat.


Service:We went at about 9pm on a Wednesday night and the place was packed. We had to wait about 30 minutes for a table to become available and during that time were observed 4 young girls playing hostess and one gentleman. I don't know why 5 people would be needed to do that job in this location. They seemed to be overstaffed in that area and didn't have enough work. The first thing you see when walking in is 5 people just kind of standing around. A gentleman who knew the host walked in with no reservation and got seated right away while we continued to wait, needless to say that soured things a little bit for us.

When we were finally seated, the service was prompt, friendly and helpful. The waitress knew her menu and was able to make good suggestions. The wait staff was prompt with refilling drinks and clearing away plates and did not leave us wanting for anything. Overall the wait staff made up for the experience of the poor hostessing.


Atmosphere:There is a narrow area at the front with a few tables that are paralleled by a bar. As you walk back the space opens up into a large square that has family style seating in the middle with individual tables lining the walls. Expect to seat with more people than are actually in your party. Due to the shape of the room and the open cafeteria style seating it is quite loud when the restaurant is full. It got a little hard to hear the person sitting across from me every once in awhile and they waitress either had to shout or repeat herself while practically laying on the table in order for me to hear her. I am told that during lunch it is not as noisy, but it was still a bit of a downside.

The food was worth the loud eating area and elitist and bountiful host's. Overall rating: 7

Been a long time...

Well, I finally moved to NYC. At this point it has been a few months shy of a year and I don't have a very good excuse for not making more posts other than life is busy and face paced here and I have been to so many places for food that I have no idea where I should even begin. I suppose I will start a list again and keep working from there. So, here goes nothing...

Osteria Morini
Cookshop
Cafe Grumpy
Flatbush Farms
Tulcingo
Wildwood BBQ
Balade
Defara's
Barcade

I think that's a good enough start for now. I know there aren't any loyal readers here yet to dissapoint, but hopefully a few people will be looking forward to these updates. :)

Mini Bar

131 E 7th St
(between 1st Ave & Avenue A)
Manhattan, NY 10009
Neighborhoods: East Village, Alphabet City
(212) 358-7582



Atmosphere:
Living up to it's name, this place is indeead small. There are two tables pushed against a wall, about 5 seats at a tiny bar and then one long glass table with several seats on either side. If it wasn't for the open store front it would be a heck of a time trying to get to those seats. But just because it's small doesn't me that Mini Bar doesn't have something to offer.

The walls are done in what looks like a sanded down and polished reclaimed wood for about half of the place and the rest is in muted greys, blues and silver tiles. The bathroom is awesome and sports what I believe to be a tasteful and interesting nude picture of Madonna. Oh and speaking of, this place is all about Madonna. Most menu items on the menu were named after Madonna songs and other than the odd 80's new wave classic the music consisted of Madonna songs mainly from her earlier days. Sound like it's too much? Suprisingly it's not. The fact that the owner loved Madonna so much that they named half their menu after her songs is not thrown in your face. You will be in the resturaunt for a good 10 minutes without even noticing.

Service:
On a Sunday after noon there were only 2 people working. All of the table were full, but any more than 2 staff would have been too much. The people were friendly and fairly efficient. Smiles on their faces and open to a conversation. There seemed to be some regulars of the place already and I could see coming by for an afternoon slice of pie and enjoying the company. (free wi-fi encourages the laptop kids too).

Food:
I admit I was a little surprised by the menu. For a place that is known for it's pie, I found a rather limited selection of pies available to me. There were salads, sandwiches and breakfast served at any hour (always a plus for me). Average price for main menu items ranged between $7 and $12. Was it worth that much for a sandwich? I would have to say no. It's not that it was bad food, it just didn't have a wow factor. There was fresh mozzerella and basil on a lot of the sandwiches, a tastey vineagrette on the salads, but it wasn't anything different. I found my bread and my croissant to be a little stale (due to the open air style of the food storage/prep area) and I prefer my bread to be softer. If I were to offer one thing off of the menu it would have to be, surprise surprise, the sour cream apple pie a la mode. It has the homemade taste and it isn't loaded up with too sweet toppings.

Overall rating:4 out of 10

Yogurt Station

18 Saint Marks Place
New York, NY 10003-8059
212) 677-5017


Food
Well, there's only one thing that this place does, and that's yogurt; and damn they do it well. At any time there are at least 10 different flavors to choose from. Some staples like vanilla and banana and then some seasonal ones like pumpkin pie and red velvet cake. You grab a cup (only one size) and then choose whatever flavors you want. Then you move down to the open toppings bar which ranges from super fresh fruits like strawberries, kiwi and pineapple to old reliables like sprinkles, peanut butter cups and gummy bears. And how much is it? only .39 an ounce!!!! The cups are 16 oz so beware there. Every time I go I get about half a cup of yogurt and a few toppings and have never paid more than 4.50. WAY cheaper than places like pinkberry or neighborhood bubble tea/yogurt places.

Service
There is usually only one person working that is noticeable. Often it seems like a young woman who either has another day job or goes to school. Never the same girl, but always the same attitude. They usually look super bored and like they have a bad cold (dazed look, bleary eyes, dismal tone of voice) but when you walk in they look slightly annoyed. Barely more than the total of your yogurt passes through their lips the whole time you are there. If you laugh a little too loud you kind of get the "rolled eyes omg can you just get your yogurt and leave already" type of look. No one has ever been openly rude, just no glimpse of sunshine from these ladies.

Atmosphere
This is not some posh yogurt place with a cute name, bright colored walls and over-priced yogurt/toppings. It is a small hallway with limited decorations with one size cup, light blue tile and a little bit of outdoor seating. You may not want to set up with your laptop and hang out for awhile, but quite frankly I'm tired of that atmosphere. It's awesome when you want light desert or just a nice treat and not have to pay typical NYC prices. It suits the east village and it has become my go to place for desert late at night. (usually open until at least 12 on weekdays)

overall rating:
this is the first time I have been really torn on a rating to give. I want to give it a 9 in the category of on the go simple desserts, but the service deserves a 2. So, meet in the middle? It would be a 5.5. But I go there so often and enjoy it for the yogurt so much that I HIGHLY recommend going to this place for ALL of your Yogurt needs.

Pomme Frites

Pomme Frites
123 2nd Ave. New York, NY 10003
Tel. 212-674-1234



Food

There is one thing that this place specializes in, and that's authentic Belgian Fries. Served to you fresh and hot, made to order in a paper cone. What makes these fries different than everywhere else? The dipping sauces. There are some regular staples and then some that change with the seasons. The honey mustard is packed with a strong amount of horse radish it will bring a grown man to tears. The sweet chili is the perfect balance between sweet and spicy. The wild mushroom tastes similar to a savory gravy one would have with roasted chicken. The Irish curry has the regular curry flavor that is sweetened with fresh apple flavor. All delicious, all recommended.


Atmosphere

A tiny hole in the wall place in the middle of a busy street, Pomme Frites always has a line and doesn't have more than 3 tables. The tables however are cleverly designed with holes in them for you to put your paper cone of tasty fries. Good for a late night snack or to grab some food on the go.

Service
It's quick and fast paced so they can get their always endless line moving, but they are helpful with suggesting dips and even let you try some.

Overall Rating: 5 of 10

Veselka

Veselka
9th and 2nd, East Village
212-228-9682

A 24 hour Ukrainian Cafe that's been in the East Village for 55 years.

Food
Ukrainian is not a food that one often says they crave, but after tasting Veselka's vittles you will begin to crave it.

The menu is fairly large and offers full blown meals as well as lighter fare. The portions are generous and the dishes are fairly priced. My favorites are the handmade perogis. There are several options for fillings and each one is as delicious as the next. The Blintzes (Ukrainian crepes) are filled with a lightly sweetened cheese and served with any number of toppings (I recommend the fruit toppings). The mixture of fruit and cheese blends perfectly.

The chili is delicious but fair warning: if your bowels don't like things on the spicier side you will love eating it at night and your body may dislike you in the morning. All the best foods turn out that way.

Atmosphere
When Veselka first opened as a candy store and newspaper stand it was a family run business. Now, 55 years later it is still a family run place; just a few times larger than before.


While growing in the East Village, Veselka has offered it's space to the artists, writers, students and all of the strange and unique people who frequent the East Village. The decoration in the dinning room often changes with large canvas art work. I haven't done enough research yet so I am not entirely sure if the art is done by local artists and is for sale, but it has never been the same when I visit.

The glass walls give the dinning area a very spacious feeling, but the tables are all closer together so it still feels like a small neighborhood cafe and to add to that feeling, there is a counter where you can just walk in and order sandwiches to go or some tasty dessert.

Service
My friends and I often go to Veselka after 10 pm either when I have just arrived in the city or when we have been out late enough to need a second dinner. Usually the staff seems pretty busy with running from table to table but they are friendly, quick and helpful with explaining what the fancy words on the menu mean.

Overall Rating

Veselka is a great place to go to when you want a meal and you want something delicious and also familiar (once you have eaten there at least once).

An overall 6 of 10.

Yaffa Cafe

I will start with a well known place that has been talked about many times and then move on to the newer places.

The Yaffa Cafe
97 St. Marks NYC, NY (212) 674-9302

When you first walk in Yaffa there is the slight impression that you have entered a time warp into the 1920's and 1960's and it takes place in a long corridor. The walls are covered in all different types of textiles from zebra print to glitter wrapping paper. There are tables on the left and the counter and a dessert case on the right.

Immediately someone greets you and usually guides you to an area in the back of the place that when you first walk in you can't see. You usually see a good mix of younger groups of people with laptops and people who are ending their night with some food after going out. Since Yaffa is a 24 hour place you get all kinds. :)

The menu features hot loose leaf teas, a range of sandwiches and a few options of breakfast dishes. While I find the menu somewhat limited, when you are ending a long night it can sometimes be nice to come to a spot you like and get the food that is comforting. While the desserts are definitely a feature, my favorite is the small portion of banana cheesecake!

At first the service seems slow, but then you realize this is a place where you are expected to take your time, sip on that beverage for a while and shoot the breeze with your friends. It is definitely dining and socializing at your own pace. Although there are always people there and people take their time we have never had to wait for a table. In nicer weather the outdoor dining area makes that even better.

There are 2 bathroom facilities that are across from each other and harbor only a toilet. The sink is outside and in between the two restrooms. Although usually fairly clean there is always a slight smell of an outhouse when you are inside. I blame the plumbing.

Over all while the menu is limited and the bathroom has a bit of a funk, the staff is friendly, the food is tasty and not too terribly expensive, the atmosphere is unique and fun and it's open 24hrs (a HUGE plus for me and my night-wandering friends).

On a scale of 1-10 I give a 6.