Bagelry, 1324 Lexington Ave., Manhattan

You already know how I feel about bagels: I like them, and I'm not picky. Since arriving in New York I have happily consumed many a bagel and been wowed only once. I was not wowed by my toasted sesame bagel with lox spread at Bagelry, on the Upper East Side, and you know what? That's okay. It was nice enough.

I had nothing urgent to do today so I just walked down Lexington for a spell, and in the park a little bit, and savored being back in New York after a trip away for two weeks. The weather was perfect. The people passing by were wildly varied and frequently cliches (the tough-looking kids with the thick New York accents; the teensy old lady dressed to the nines; the slutty-looking girl walking her poodle and complaining to someone on her phone). It is heaven to have free time to enjoy the people-watching. I am so lucky.

Liberatos Pizza, 17 Cedar St., Manhattan

Lest anyone out there should be worried that I haven't eaten for three weeks, or get the crazy idea that I have been cooking rather than eating out, let me set you straight: I have been traveling. Food was procured and consumed, just not in New York. Some of it quite marvelous. I had tandoori chicken from the hotel room service in New Delhi, India, that tasted like the best thing I'd had in a long time (it is unclear whether I was just super hungry and disoriented from jet lag), and I had fish and chips that totally hit the spot from a couple places in Warrington, Cheshire, England. There was also a good Thai spot, with a charming and unexpected garden, in the neighborhood where my sister lives, in southeast London.

I got back on Monday. It was an odd sensation to finally fly back to New York and get off the plane and still feel like I was kind of a visitor. I guess five months here is not enough to be really convinced it's home yet, but it doesn't bother me. This is an absorbing place to be a visitor.

Unfortunately, all the planes, trains and automobiles over 2 weeks were not good for my stomach, and I've been taking it easy, gastronomically, since I got back. I was seeking bland comfort food when I turned to SeamlessWeb (now just "Seamless," apparently) a couple nights ago for baked ziti with meat ragu from Liberatos Pizza, in the Financial District. The order was huge and slathered in gooey, delicious cheese, and cream, and tomato sauce. It was so wrong, yet just right.

Thalia, 828 8th Ave., Manhattan

We have my dear college roomie Becky and her husband Nate to thank for a great dinner last night at Thalia, in midtown. They provided a gift certificate as a wedding present. We greatly enjoyed our meals. It turns out it is actually still Restaurant Week (make that "Weeks") and Pat ordered pork tenderloin off that menu. He also got what was practically a vat of soup and dessert (chocolate/peanut profiteroles - very decadent). I got beef spareribs with asparagus, beets, and a parsnip puree. Does the puree sound kind of weird? Because it was. It was good, though. All of it was delicious and two thumbs up for the clever arrangement of the white asparagus under the meat, as if it were the bones. Cute!

I am compelled to note that New York (well, half the country, actually) has become an oven, and the subway has become that part of the oven from which the blue flames emanate to heat the whole thing. I am surprised there are not train breakdowns because of the heat, but bless those trains, they just keep humming along with nary a wait of more than a few sweaty minutes. I guess it is not strictly necessary for me to point out that Washington trains seemed to break down all the time in the heat and cause massive delays and backups, even though that system is actually air-conditioned, so let's just pretend I didn't point it out in a superior manner the way I just did.

George's, 89 Greenwich St., Manhattan

Today was actually the third time I have been to George's, in the Financial District. I think perhaps the reason I did not log it earlier was that it has been a mediocre experience every time! I have partaken of the pancakes, a mushroom omelet, and a tomato/basil/mozzarella wrap. All very ordinary. And they are always kind of slow with the bill. I have only been going there at the whim of others.

Portions are very large, diner-style; I'll give 'em that.

Caracas Arepa Bar, Beach 106th St., Queens

Pat and I have made a cool new friend, Erin. I was e-introduced to her by our mutual friend Shimon. She came to our party last weekend, and this weekend she invited us to join her and other friends for a day at Rockaway Beach in Queens. In June, the New York Times had an article on how the hipsters are all flocking to Rockaway, and I wondered whether we were cool enough, but when we got there it turned out you had to look hard for that sort of thing. Sure, a couple Manhattan hotspots have outposts on the boardwalk, and yes, a few bearded, fedora-wearing twenty-somethings were among the crowds on the sand. But other than that, we could have been at Virginia Beach or the Outer Banks, when we were down by the water. And once you are away from the water, Rockaway is downright ugly.

Being on the beach was really, really pleasant though. When I'm not at a beach, I find it hard to believe that I can really feel so relaxed as when I'm on the sand, taunting the sun with my sunscreen-slathered bright-white body, feeling the ocean breeze, hearing the waves, gazing at the dazzling blue of the sky. But it's real. Ahhhhhhh. Erin's friends were all fun and we spent a happy few hours. We also enjoyed really excellent arepas from Caracas Arepa Bar. Mine was beef. Pat's had avocado, queso, and plantains.

Last night I participated in Improv Everywhere's latest stunt. All I knew beforehand was that I had to wear a black t-shirt, bring various items that light up or glow, and be at a certain part of Battery Park City at 8:30 PM, with a downloaded recording of instructions, not to be played before precisely 8:30. I would say there were maybe a thousand participants. It turned out that the premise was that there were two tribes (black t-shirts and white t-shirts) and we were to meet and greet each other, then celebrate a festival of lights. It was a riot! For about 45 minutes, we performed silly bows and handshakes with strangers, danced with glowsticks and masks, had light-sabre battles, played freezetag, high-fived mystified onlookers, and took pictures on cue - all this and more according to the directions on our mp3 players. I loved it because of 1) the silliness, 2) the mystery, and 3) being part of a massive event. It was also a perfect summer night.

Bunrasa, 109 Washington St., Manhattan

We walked a couple blocks to Bunrasa, in the Financial District, to give it a whirl for takeout on Friday night. We were the only people there. It was sad. We were also sad to see that the pub a couple doors down, the one about which we had long said "we should check that place out," closed earlier this month. As Pat pointed out, it must be so much more of a struggle for businesses down there since the end of the twin towers, but then we also wondered how that pub survived these ten years only to close its doors now. Tough times.

Anyway, we gave Bunrasa our business on Friday. We were going to order panang curry and green curry, but the lady behind the counter was a little distressed that we didn't want her pad thai, which she informed us was "five stars." So we went with green curry and pad thai. The curry was very spicy in a "hurts so good," take-a-bite-blow-your-nose kind of way. Good flavor, juicy shrimp, healthy vegetables. It was enough for two meals for me. The pad thai was really not five stars, in our humble opinions. Its flavor was not terribly compelling and Pat thought the chicken was a little dry.

I would go back to this place and try a few more options, especially given the proximity to our apartment and the pluckiness of the woman behind the counter.

Park Avenue Summer, 100 E. 63rd St., Manhattan

Park Avenue Summer was our Restaurant Week finale. It is on the Upper East Side and apparently every season it changes decor, menu, and even name ("Park Avenue Winter," etc.).

This was the best of our three Restaurant Week experiences. The food was a delight before we even got what we'd ordered - we were treated to cheddar rolls and sweet corn rolls, plus cubes of yellow watermelon sitting sweetly atop skewers in a little container of fake grass. I had a very pretty little beet salad to start and Pat got decadent gnocchi. He then paid extra for the filet mignon which he thought was great, and I had scallops. That dish had a couple little missteps - the scallops were a little on the chewy side, and there were these unfortunate seeds that would sneak up on you with a disturbing crunch just as you were enjoying a bite. The desserts were great. Pat had a pistacchio cake thing and I had peach panna cotta that had a very potent basil foam (who knew foam could pack so much punch?) and a layer of light gelatin and a very pure-tasting creamy base. It also came with lovely lemon cake fingers, which it didn't need.

Unrelatedly, I had a New York rite of passage today when I spent an hour and forty-five minutes at the DMV, trading in my Washington license for a New York one. I'm now not only a real New Yorker in the eyes of the state, but also one step closer to leaving my maiden name behind, which is cool.

Cipriani, 55 Wall St., Manhattan

One of my favorite movies is "The Thomas Crown Affair" (the remake), and when Pat booked us at Cipriani for our second Restaurant Week outing, I flashed back to the detectives being caught by surprise when Pierce Brosnan took Renee Russo to Cipriani after their first date at the Met, "and with no reservation." I am pretty sure they were not in the Financial District location that we went to, but still. We're living like we're in a movie. I should take this opportunity to point out that I was wearing very fabulous new shoes, like a movie star.

We sat on the balcony, and even got a little damp when there was a quick hard rain, but it was refreshing. The service was a little slow, but the food was very good. Pat's entree was a veal loaf wrapped in cabbage, and mine (not on the restaurant week menu) was grilled chilean sea bass, which was just wonderful. I also ordered a side of grilled veggies that was surprisingly delicious (I had only ordered them to be healthy!). Pat's dessert was a mocha cake that was, as he noted, reminiscent of tiramisu, only with more coffee flavor (coffee-er?).

Mr. Chow, 121 Hudson St., Manhattan

It is Restaurant Week in New York! When we learned this, Pat dropped everything and immediately made three reservations. The first was Monday, at Mr. Chow, in Tribeca. The decor is cool (although WHAT is with the odd series of huge close-ups of what appears to be Tarzan on one wall?), but it was a little loud - really the opposite of intimate. Also I felt a little too waited on. Lots of different guys coming around all the time, then scurrying ever so fleetly away.

Our 2 appetizers (we had a choice among four) were okay - a chicken satay with an unexpectedly rich sauce, and Mr. Chow's noodles, which were a little bland. Then we got one entree of Beijing chicken and one of green shrimp (again out of a choice of four), both of which were delicious, and accompanied by great fried rice. Both the entrees were slightly spicy. We did not get a choice on vegetables, but were happy with the green beans that showed up. Dessert was kind of a bust though - we had assumed we'd get a choice among ice cream and sorbet, but instead one (one!!) plate with a scoop of each and two spoons was deposited like lightning on our table by a waiter who then zoomed away, literally before I had even gotten my mouth open to question him. That was not cool. The flavors were nothing interesting, either.

Nam, 110 Reade St., Manhattan

Last night was the 6th rendition of my annual birthday party for Kevin Bacon. This year's theme, reflecting our recent move, was "Bacon in the Big Apple." Bacon parties in previous years have been attended by as many as 60 people but we just have not amassed legions of friends yet in New York, so we had about 15 people, who compensated in quality for what they lacked in quantity. Pat made his debut as a mixer of traditional cocktails and became an instant victim of his own success, spending the first half of the party in the kitchen with shakers and bitters and the like, until Matt P. took pity and relieved him as bartender. I had made bacon-chocolate cupcakes that were truly magnificent, but so rich that even I had trouble finishing one, plus the frosting contained enough butter and bacon fat (yes, you read that right) to kill a weak-hearted person at a single lick. Is that so wrong? Yet another highlight was the dance party that erupted late in the evening. The bacon-fueled joy could not be contained.

The day following a Bacon party is inevitably marked by sloth and half-hearted clean-up, so Pat and I didn't get out of the apartment until dinnertime. It was a lovely summer day (we have had so very many lovely summer days, incidentally; it has been a blissful couple of months) so we took a leisurely walk to Tribeca and had dinner at Nam. Pat had seafood dumplings in soup and shrimp rolls, and found them good. I was very happy with my lemongrass beef vermicelli with onions, carrot shavings, and lettuce. Well, I wasn't happy about the lettuce, but I picked it out. There were only 2 other pairs of people in the place while we were there, leading me to hope they do better business outside of Sundays. The decor is pleasing.

Just a little note to myself: the choice of Nam was the outcome of some research into walking-distance, highly-rated places, and other such options that we may explore in the future are Gigino Trattoria (323 Greenwich St) and Taj Tribeca (18 Murray St).

More restaurant & bar suggestions from Daily Candy

Daily Candy has offered some more potentially appealing suggestions.

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Although we like to party all the time, a proper workweek sendoff is best accomplished without a cab or subway ride. Since it’s Friday, we asked five more of our editors to divulge the neighborhood haunts they hold near and dear.

Bowery
Jillian K., editorial assistant
Warm Up: Beer. Option one, Swift (unpretentious, literary-themed bar with long benches in back) and two, McSorley’s (the only place guys get bumped from their chairs for girls).
Main Course: Ippudo doesn’t have a sign. Simply look for the ramen-crazed crowd, put your name in, and hop around the corner to Black & White to drink while you wait (86 East 10th Street, between Third and Fourth Avenues; 212-253-0246).
Next Level: Madam Geneva’s secret, Clue-like entrance and gin with homemade preserves make you feel cool. The late-night DJ at teensy, subterranean Kings Cross is always on point — and Hecho en Dumbo is right above when you need a dance break/snack.

Greenpoint
Holley S., editor, DailyCandy Deals
Warm Up: Berry Park on the Williamsburg border. Make a beeline for the rooftop on sunny days. If it’s raining (or when a game is on), there’s a massive TV inside.
Main Course: Five Leaves. You can order off the menu with your eyes closed, and it’ll be exactly what you’re in the mood for. Bonus: The cocktails-only lounge recently opened across the street.
Next Level: Join an impromptu pickup card game and perhaps do a magic trick or two (watch this craft beer disappear) at Spritzenhaus’s outdoor picnic tables (33 Nassau Avenue, between Dobbin and Guernsey Streets; 347-987-4632).

Lincoln SquareDeAnna J., copy editor
Warm Up: Eat Jalapeño’s addictive avocado fries. Debate movie options over a fully loaded DBGB dog at Epicerie Boulud, then fill pockets with from-scratch salty caramels before moving on.
Main Course: Head underground to indie Lincoln Plaza Cinema for a bucket of popcorn and the best muffin case in town (yes, muffin case).
Next Level: Nightcap with a gingery El Diablo and a festival short film at XVI’s baroque living room in the sky, complete with fancy big screen.

LES/Alphabet City
Danielle B., market director
Warm Up: Never wait in line for a crummy cocktail. Skip the crowds of faux-speakeasy posers and head to Elsa’s for a Sazerac or old-fashioned.
Main Course: Share plates of high-spice Northern Thai at Zabb Elee. Informed diners know to order the larb kai, som tum kortmuar, and kana moo korb.
Next Level: Make a pit stop at Edi & the Wolf’s outdoor patio, and resist rubbing the moose head at Bedlam.


Williamsburg (East)Janelle J., photo editor
Warm up: Pretend to be rich (without being poor afterward) at Le Barricou, where you’ll feel fancy with great French wine and garlicky escargot.
Main Course: Order cavatelli with broccoli rabe and sausage at the large yet charming Fiore, or anything — really, anything — from the grill at Qoo Robata.
Next Level: Hit The Commodore (366 Metropolitan Avenue, at Havemeyer Street; 718-218-7632) for frozen mojitos, crunchy fried chicken, and hours of dancing to music piped from an old re-rigged jukebox.

Adrienne's Pizzabar, 54 Stone St., Manhattan

It is important to me to see fireworks on the 4th of July, but apparently not THAT important, since I have not gone 2 years in a row (and 3 years ago we tried but failed, because NPR gave us the wrong start time, about which I am still bitter, it seems). This year we were daunted by hints that finding a good spot along the Hudson would be a hassle, plus my breadwinning husband had to get up extra early the next morning.

Rather than battling crowds, we went out for dinner at Adrienne's Pizzabar in the Financial District, sitting outside on Stone Street, which was very pleasant. Pat had manicotti which he found to be a great bargain, and I had a quattro formaggi pizza that was delicious, and I only made it through half of it, providing my beloved leftovers. This place is very close to us; it is well worth returning.

Then we moseyed home and watched the fireworks on TV, which plain sucked. The station had this large "lit fireworks" graphic on the top right of the screen that drew your eye away from anything they were showing, plus the fireworks looked so lackluster on the screen, plus some of the music was nauseating. I rather loathe myself for settling for this and pledge to see them in person next year, although odds are good I pledged the same thing last year (I think we thought it would rain last year, which is why we stayed home). But this year it is in writing. Someone hold me to it, please!

Il Corallo Trattoria, 172-176 Prince St., Manhattan

Pat said to me this morning, "remember when we used to do nothing all day?" He was referring to the first six or so months of our relationship. We really did live suspended in time for a while, luxuriating in languor, accomplishing nothing productive (at least on weekends!). Ah, it was good.

So today I placed aside any ambitions I had harbored (my resume, my name-change paperwork, the thank-you notes) and relived it. We did motivate ourselves to leave the house around 4:00 - we did some shopping in NoHo and SoHo, fully in line with self-indulgence. I wanted to check out a shoe store I had walked past in a hurry a few days prior, called United Nude. The shoes are mesmerizing. I covet them. Then while Pat was in the Apple store, I cruelly led on the salespeople in the Glory Chen shoe store, trying on $525 pairs of shoes and acting as if I might seriously purchase them. I am sure I do not need to explain that they were strictly fabulous, but it may come as a surprise (it surprised me) that they were also very comfortable.

We wandered at random in search of dinner, and landed on Il Corallo Trattoria, in SoHo. It has an enormous menu of pastas and some pizzas too. Scarcely had we placed our pasta orders (black seafood ravioli for me, with a tomato cream sauce) when they appeared before us all steaming and hearty. And it was plenty good for the very cheap prices.

Dessert was a bust, however. We spied delicious-looking cookies in the window of a bakery called Birdbath (160 Prince St.). I got a coconut one which turned out to be way too fibrous, and Pat's chocolate chip cookie had a weird taste. How could such great-looking cookies be so disappointing when consumed? Ugh.

Izzy & Nat's, 311 S. End Ave., Manhattan

I wrote about this Battery Park City place before, but then it was called Dizzy Izzy's. The name change combined with the fact that I had a splendid bagel today prompted me to give it a new entry.

I have noted before that I am no bagel connoisseur. Today, however, my toasted sesame bagel with cheddar-jalapeno cream cheese seemed way above and beyond your standard bagel. The divine textures, the flavors (not spicy, BTW)....could it be that New York is making a bagelophile out of me?

And afterward I went back to another scene of previous culinary enjoyment, the Shake Shack, for a chocolate shake. The caramel shake of a previous visit was better, in my judgment. But I LOVED being the only person, at lunchtime, to take the C-Line (cold foods only) option, thereby bypassing a line around the block, and absconding with my shake in a mere few minutes. Well, in truth, I felt guilty about it. Probably there were people in the long line who would have assaulted me if I'd lingered long enough to catch their eye. But that is why the C-Line was set up. I was merely following the game plan. I need to get over the guilt.

I learned some very sad news today. The wife of a former co-worker of mine died, at age 39. I did not know her well but spent time with her while watching company softball games and at other social events, and I am weighed down by the consciousness that the world lost someone who truly improved it. It is a smothering sadness.

Pescatore, 955 2nd Ave., Manhattan

Benefiting from yet another FoodieRegistry.com gift certificate, this one from my college roomie Michelle and her family, Pat and I went to Pescatore in East Midtown last night. The place was hoppin'!

I had the Sicilian seafood couscous, with a wide variety of seafoods, and the flavor was great. I liked that it was ringed with clams and mussels in their shells. The shrimps were overdone, but the other elements were perfectly cooked. Pat had the salmon ala plancha, which was good and came with some interesting gnocchi. And we topped it all off with a satisfying order of tiramisu. We also each enjoyed a glass of wine, and in fiddling recklessly with the dessert menus, I spilled Pat's wine on his pants. He was very forbearing about this incident, which I appreciated. I tried to look on the bright side, noting that I believed this to be the first time I had spilled something on him, despite spilling things on myself constantly.

The diners seated next to us were amusing. On my left was a man who went on and on to his companion about the negative impact of austerity measures in some country whose name we did not catch; it reminded me of the type of conversation you would typically be subjected to in Washington. On my right was a couple with a baby and the baby's grandfather. The baby was extremely well-behaved but after they fed him they wanted him to go to sleep in his stroller, and he was clearly awake and eager to continue to be part of the conversation. It was funny.

I have had some work to do this week (yes, yes, I still occasionally draw a meager paycheck) and I didn't leave the house at all on Tuesday, so yesterday I dropped everything at 2:00 and went to Central Park. I took the subway allll the way to the top (110th St.) and explored some of the parts above 90th St., including the conservatory garden, which is nice, but not exceptionally nice. I saw a woodpecker and a small waterfall, and lay down on the grass for a while, marveling at the beautiful weather. It was bliss.

Cienfuegos, 95 Avenue A, Manhattan

I knew I had to go to Cienfuegos after Pat and I had been to one of the two bars downstairs, Amor Y Amargo, with which it shares a kitchen. For one thing, there was the delicious flan we had tasted earlier; for another thing, the Yelp reviews spoke of rum punchbowls that would knock your socks off. I was like a moth to a flame.

And so it was that we found ourselves ensconced in dramatic chairs at Cienfuegos, in the East Village, admiring the brilliant turquoise walls and chandeliers, a re-creation of Cuba at, presumably, its best.

The waitstaff was funny and helpful and personable. The food was very good - we really liked the croque cangrejo appetizers (fried balls of crabmeat), and we got to sample all the sandwiches, all of which were appealing. We obviously ordered the flan but this time the syrup on top was slightly burned and that was a disappointment.

The punch was great! There were many many options, but we settled on the North Mississippi variety, in a bowl to serve two. It was delicious - not too sweet - and plenty alcoholic, leaving us tipsy but still highly functional. Perfection.

The next destination for our tipsy selves that night was the Lakeside Lounge, where the Ks were playing. The Ks are my new friend Dan's band. I loved that the Lakeside Lounge is a dive, and we enjoyed the band. As a facsimile of a musician myself, I like seeing other reasonably ordinary - even geeky! - people exercising their right to be rock stars. The Ks take it to a higher level than my own band, of course, in the sense that they actually sound good and someone has condoned them playing in a bar, but our kinship is nonetheless there.

Tomato & Basil, 226 4th Ave., Brooklyn

When Pat was out of town last week and I was lonely and bored, I made many plans for us for this week when he would be back. He accused me of "overscheduling" us, but we are New Yorkers, damn it, and we must go out and have some fun.

Last night's fun was a comedy show called "Mr. Coconuts," at Union Hall in Park Slope. This was recommended by my friend Ann, who is a fan of Mr. Coconuts' blog. There were five comedians including the host, and for the most part they were genuinely funny. We arrived a little later than planned so we had to sit in the second row, and Pat was nervous about being the butt of any jokes, but the hipster sitting next to him pointed out that we were safe because the first row featured three old ladies who were clearly comedic material. They started giving each other uneasy and disapproving glances as soon as the second comedian began joking about being gay, and after his set they left, saying to the host, "bedtime for us!" After that the jokes about them were merciless, obviously, and just lucky for them that they were not there to hear them.

We were late because Pat had come from a work function and we still needed a bite before the show, so we went to Tomato & Basil pizzeria, right above the Union St. subway stop. We each had 2 slices; mine were the Grandma Slice and a tomato and mozzarella slice. The first was quite good and the latter was excellent, with a lovely crisp crust.

Bon Chon Chicken, 104 John St., Manhattan

Having resolved to never again eat out alone, I turned last night to my trusty sidekick SeamlessWeb for some fried chicken and french fries from Bon Chon on John, in the Financial District.

The chicken was crispy and had a delicious sauce on it. The fries were plentiful and good. I was happy. Delivery was under 45 minutes, from half a mile away.

Today I made my first-ever trip to Queens. My friends Adriana and Todd, whom I know from Washington, were passing through New York with their kids on their way from their home in North Carolina to vacation in Italy. They have several New York friends so a gathering was designed at the Sunnyside home of their friend Dan, an artist and musician with a broken ankle and a heart of gold. Well, a broken ankle, anyway. I just met him so I can't vouch for his heart, but it sounded poetic, didn't it?

Queens apparently has great restaurants but I was not there to taste the local fare; I was there to see old friends and insist that my old friends' friends (Dan, Sophie and Jack) become my friends too. Before I even met them, I invited them to the party Pat and I are throwing on July 9.

The reunion/friend-conscription was fun. Bagels and sausages were consumed. A walk was made to a park and children were drenched under sprinklers. Songs were sung and pictures were taken.

Delmonico's, 56 Beaver St., Manhattan

I hate going to a restaurant by myself. I feel very self-conscious and lonely even when it is a good experience. I am going to stop torturing myself thusly in the future.

Meanwhile I gave it a whirl tonight. A month or so I got a free $25 gift certificate from restaurants.com when I bought some contact lenses (I know, random) and I thought, as if I had never been down this road before, "this would be perfect for some night when Pat is out of town but I still need to eat." So I chose Delmonico's, in the Financial District.

It was good. The staff was very nice to the self-conscious, lonely woman dining alone, and the filet mignon and creamed spinach were up to par. It turns out $25 does not go very far at Delmonico's, but at least it was really good and I have leftovers. I got so into the New Yorker story I was reading that I largely forgot how pathetic I felt.

But in the end, I miss my husband, and what am I trying to prove, dining out alone as if it doesn't bother me? It bothers me! So that's enough of that.

A Spice Route, 88 Fulton St., Manhattan

Pat proposed Indian last night so we ordered from A Spice Route, in the Financial District, via SeamlessWeb. It was decent. The chicken vindaloo, despite being ordered "medium spicy," was a little too fiery, and its pieces of chicken were on the dry side, but the sauce had a nice taste. The chicken tikka masala tasted perhaps a little too chickeny and not really Indian-y enough, but it was pleasant. And we got a lot of nice jasmine rice; we only finished half the rice and will be enjoying the leftovers today, which I always appreciate. The restaurant is a half mile from our home and the delvery was wonderfully quick - 25 minutes.

The Standard Grill, 848 Washington St., Manhattan

Making the most of every last sweet drop of Matt's unemployment before it dries up later this month, we met this morning to walk the new part of the High Line. It is just great. As with the last time I was there, I knew the experience would be likeable in the way that a visit to a pleasant place is likeable, but I was again surpised to realize that it does go above and beyond that. It is a legitimate destination just to admire the design. It also turns out that Matt is something of a botany expert. Who knew?

Our aim was for lunch and a beer afterward at the Standard Hotel's beer garden, in Chelsea, but we were informed it does not open until 4:00. So we enjoyed lunch at the grill instead. I had an "almost Cubano sandwich" that was very good, if a little bland, and an unhealthy quantity of the fries that came with Matt's lobster roll (reportely very good as well).

But what I will most remember are the humorous minor, yet plentiful, waitstaff mishaps. From the moment we sat down, our amiable waiter was returning to the kitchen a salmon dish he had served to a customer next to us, and we then were witness to salads being brought to us in error, a waiter on the verge of removing my not-yet-finished Standard 69 cocktail (which was, by the way, luscious), water droplets spattering everywhere when a bottle was placed on our table, and finally a coffee being brought to us in error (by a different waiter than the wayward salad man). I may even be forgetting some other foibles. We were good-spirited about it all and had a good laugh or five, but it was remarkable.

I was not intellectually equal to the challenge of determining which side of the restroom, curtained down the middle, was men and which was women. I stood at the curtain and looked wildly around for some clue and saw none, and a man washing his hands took pity and pointed me to the left. Thinking I must have overlooked some signage, on the way out I paused and searched again, and again came up empty. Matt informed me on my return to the table that the designations are actually on the floor. Sneaky. Very sneaky, Standard.

Locanda Verde, 377 Greenwich St., Manhattan

It is with a heavy heart that I report the good news that my daytime partner in crime, Matt, shared with Pat and me last night: he has found a job. Our midday, weekday jaunts around New York's splendid restaurants and watering holes will come to an end on June 27. Not that we did it so many times, but still, the OPTION was always there.

Now I guess I'm just going to have to drink alone at 11:00 AM on a Tuesday. Just kidding. Actually Matt's news coincides nicely with my determination that I really should find a job of my own, darn it. I have started to reach a point where I would get to the end of the day and not only feel totally unproductive (expected) but also feel kind of disappointed, like I wished I had made better use of the time, somehow. If I am no longer going to revel in my laziness, then it is time to stop being so lazy.

We learned Matt's bittersweet news at Smith & Mills, a very small cocktail joint at 71 N. Moore St. in Tribeca. I had a Dark & Stormy and it made me plenty happy.

We went across the street to Locanda Verde for dinner, and despite their polite warning that we would have to wait a while for a table, the wait was not bad at all. We sat outside. The mixed fried seafood appetizer was outstanding, and the burrata was also delectable. Each of us had pasta entrees and each of us was very pleased with ours. Mine was "Grandmother's Ravioli" stuffed with a mix of pork and beef. The portions were modest but the appetizers helped to fill us up.

Luke's Lobster, 26 S. William St., Manhattan

You already know that Pat and I are obsessed with Luke's Lobster, but I'm making a new entry for it because they opened a new location, in the Financial District, just a couple blocks from our apartment only two days ago, and obviously we went, and obviously we will go over and over and over again. Our lobster roll worship knows no bounds.

We weren't quite sure where it was so we were hesitating on a street corner, and a passerby helpfully asked where we were going. My first reaction was chagrin because I thought "do I look like a tourist?" but then just as I got over that, I adopted skepticism because there was no way this samaritan would know where the brand-new Luke's Lobster was, but I asked him anyway. And lo and behold, he and his companion had JUST COME FROM LUKE'S, and they pointed us down the block, and as a bonus I got to pet their puppy too. Let that be a lesson to me about cynicism.

Being brand new, Luke's was practically empty! Pat and I are priding ourselves on being one of the first on the scene lately (see the post on Shake Shack). Trendsetters, we are. Now how do we prevent the word from leaking out? (You might argue that blogging about it is counterproductive, but then you would be vastly overestimating this blog's readership.)

Some restaurant & bar suggestions from Daily Candy

Daily Candy posted the following today and it seems like it has some good options:

http://www.dailycandy.com/new-york/article/104760/Editors-Neighborhood-Guides-Eat-and-Drink-Local
Our Editors Break Down Their Neighborhoods:
Friday Night Highlights

It’s Friday. We asked five of our editors to spill their ideal plans for tonight, without leaving their respective neighborhoods.

Crown Heights
Emily W., assistant editor
Warm Up: The gigantic rotating selection of craft beers on tap at Washington Commons never disappoints.
Main Course: Chicken enchiladas with mole from Chavella’s makes a strong case for Mexican.
Next Level: The best way to interrupt skee ball games at Franklin Park? A BLT from Dutch Boy Burger next door.

Fort Greene
Lauren L., editor
Warm Up: Order a raspberry pepper tequila or two at No. 7. Maybe a broccoli taco if things get crazy.
Main Course: Locanda Vini & Olii’s never-faltering Italian is worth the short walk to the edge of the neighborhood.
Next Level: Slink into Kif for the romantic outdoor tables and cushy couches in back. It’s Moroccan (no, not as in Mariah Carey’s child).

Hell’s Kitchen
Lauren B., editor
Warm Up: Sake and pork belly sliders spiked with Kochujang chili paste and scallions at Danji.
Main Course: Tehuitzingo Deli Grocery’s back window for pineapple-flecked roast pork al pastor and classic arroz con pollo. Wine down at cheese temples Casellula or Ardesia.
Next Level: Flights of house-infused rums and frothy cocktails at subterranean surf den Réunion (chased by late-night toasted marshmallows on Nutella toast).


Soho
Jay B., managing editor
Warm Up: The elevated garden at David Burke Kitchen gets you closer to the late-afternoon sun. The wine gets you closer to an awesome night.
Main Course: Smoked ricotta ravioli and monster peel-and-eat shrimp at The Dutch. You’ll need an extra napkin. Should you need a late-night dinner, try Blue Ribbon Brasserie.
Next Level: Imperial No. Nine’s garden for the caramel popcorn ice cream and the No. 7. Pegu Club to fight the crowds for a Penicillin (favorite cocktail in NYC, but not always on the menu).

West Village
Jordan B., New York editor
Warm Up: Highlands. Egg white-spiked whiskey sour or bubbly at the bar. Fat, mellow, buttery oysters if there’s an open table.
Main Course: Joseph Leonard (skate and cauliflower) or, with foresight, L’Artusi (garganelli with mushrooms).
Next Level: Pause at Empellón for a Por Que No, get weird at The Jane Hotel, or shoot the s*it and play shuffleboard at Fat Cat.

Shake Shack, 215 Murray St., Manhattan

Everyone will tell you the Shake Shack is a New York institution. "You'll wait in line for two hours," they'll say, "but it's worth it." As a barely employed New Yorker, during these glorious spring days of late, there was no reason for me not to brave the line. I do love a good milkshake.

Still, I couldn't bring myself to do it. There are a lot of other ways to occupy two free hours in New York. Also, we heard they opened a Shake Shack in Washington, which was just kind of an insult. What's the point of living here if you don't have exclusive access to the best of everything? Why should staid old Washington get in on the action just months after we left? Maybe Shake Shack is just not as cool as everyone insists. (We also heard that a Luke's Lobster opened in Washington, but I haven't been able to bring myself to google it to verify this potential outrage.)

But mere days ago, they opened a Shake Shack in Battery Park City, and Pat and I stumbled upon it in its infancy. Which is to say, the line is quite short. We plunged in. Each of us had a Shack Burger and a caramel milkshake, and Pat also got an order of fries. It was all very high quality. The fries were crispy and delicious. The shakes were the perfect consistency - thick yet slurpable - and the flavor was impeccable. The hamburgers and their buns and toppings were juicy and fresh. Both of us thought the Shack Sauce did not improve the burger; I found it excessively salty. It is interesting that they standardly cook their burgers to medium doneness, whereas Five Guys cooks them well-done, presumably to avoid any possibility of giving their customers food poisoning. The fact is, since I was a kid, I have liked a well-done or even an over-done burger. That is just the way I like them to taste. But I respect that Pat and others are pleased that Shake Shack presents a pinker alternative. That is just the way he likes his burgers to taste.

Now that I have experienced for myself what all the hoopla is about, I can still say I would not stand in a long line at Shake Shack, but I'd say it's worth a short wait. It is also encouraging that they have a separate line if you just want cold items.

Artisanal Fromagerie and Bistro, 2 Park Ave., Manhattan

Our friend Marti is a regular at Artisanal, in Murray Hill. She chose it for dinner on Saturday and secured us the single coveted table in the glorious "cheese cave," lined with refrigerated shelves of all the cheeses. In addition to chance for cheese-gazing, and the feeling of being superior to the other diners, the cheese cave also offers a quieter atmosphere than the main dining room. What did Marti have to do to get us this table? She told us, but I'll never repeat it.

The food was top notch. Pat had a gnocchi appetizer and Marti had a dazzlingly attractive salad. I had the tender and juicy "chicken under a brick" entree. I am not a lamb fan, but the looks of Pat's lamb dish made even me want to sink my teeth into it. Marti had a steak that I can vouch was good because she put her leftovers in with mine and I enjoyed them the next day. Her fries were very seductive, too.

Dessert was where we really got down to the task at hand: cheese. We consulted the restaurant's cheese expert (I forget the exact title - fromagier, perhaps?). He came off as a little recalcitrant at first but did open up a bit and we ended up with a selection of five cheeses. First was Nettle Meadow Kunik, a creamy goat and cow blend from New York, with a little tang and a lot of butteriness. Then there was the stronger Truffle Tremor, from California. The Ossau-Iraty, from France was perhaps most conducive to picking up off the plate and popping directly into one's eager mouth. The gooey Epoisses, from France, was very pleasing, and we finished with the no-holds-barred Roaring Forties Blue, from Australia. The fromagier (or whatever he is) paired these with bread, apple, and pear. It was a great finish to a great meal.

Pera Mediterranean Brasserie, 303 Madison Ave., Manhattan

When Pat and I got hitched, one of the places we registered was www.foodieregistry.com. It was practically tailor-made for two people who a) already got rid of vast quantities of stuff when we moved to New York, and STILL have more things than places to put them, and b) eat out constantly in the Big Apple.

My lovely friends Kirsten and Matt gave us a certificate to Pera Mediterranean Brasserie, in Midtown. Our meze sampler had lots of intriguing options, like a spicy beef tartar, fresh-tasting stuffed grape leaves, and a flavorful fish spread. My hanger steak entree was just what this carnivore had been hungering for (and the leftovers were just as satisfying the next day in a wrap with spinach and cheese). Pat found some elements of his mixed grilled meats (heavy on lamb, for which he is a fiend) to be better than others.

I must protest a little about the drinks. Pat's cocktail should have been a hell of a lot more memorable for $14, and my little bottle of tonic water should not have cost $5.

E.A.T., 1064 Madison Ave., Manhattan

I have been an Alexander McQueen fan for many years, so Pat and I went to see the exhibit of his runway stuff at the Met on Monday. We waited about 45 minutes in line, a liability of coming on Memorial Day when the place was crawling with tourists.

I feel confident that the vast majority of people in line had no idea what to expect; probably many of them were in line just because they assumed there must be something cool at the end of such a long line. I feel particularly confident that the family behind us did not have well-hidden fashionista leanings. Sample conversations:

Father: "You're back so soon?"
Son: "Yeah I saw it [another exhibit] and I'm back."
Father: "What, you saw it already? How could you see it so quickly? What's wrong with you?"
Son: "I was there for like 30 minutes!"
Father: "That was no 30 minutes. You barely saw it. You can't have seen a thing."
Son: "I saw it!"

Son (on cell phone): "Mom, tell me EXACTLY WHERE YOU ARE...we are in the room past the paintings...Tell me EXACTLY WHERE YOU ARE, Mom....If you follow the line you'll see us. Dad will have his hand up....Mom, tell me EXACTLY WHERE YOU ARE."

Father (to mother, who has sat down): "Are you tired? You look tired. Are you bored? Are you hungry? Do your feet hurt?"

We endured 45 minutes of that sort of thing before we were rewarded with entry to the exhibit. I think the family behind us and all the other unsuspecting tourists were probably taken aback but not necessarily disappointed, because the Met did a great job of infusing drama into the exhibit - it was kind of like a runway show in itself.

There were dozens of outfits and they were unbelievably splendid. It's kind of like there is style, and then there is another dimension that represents something more ideal and fantastic, and that's where you find yourself in front of a McQueen ensemble. And then "style" just seems dismissably earthly, even though in real life no one goes around wearing antlers and dresses that look like a cross between a butterfly and a football uniform. But you WANT to.

We ambled around the Park for a while afterward and then went to E.A.T. on the Upper East Side for dinner. Pat had seen this place a couple days before and made the connection between it and Eli Zabar's grocery chain, and then it turned out E.A.T. was in the NFT bible as well. It is a cafe connected with a gourmet food store where the food did look very scrumptious.

I had the grilled stuffed salmon; Pat had the pot roast. Both were good, but overpriced. Not worth the respective $28 and $24 pricetags. Plus my salmon really had too much dill, and I'm not much of a dill fan. The breads were great.

Txikito, 240 9th Ave., Manhattan

Pat and I ventured last to Txikito, just two doors down from Company in Chelsea, where we dined the night before. We were totally and completely unaccompanied. You just have to believe me on this.

For two people by themselves, we ordered a hell of a lot of tapas, and it was all quite marvelous. We enjoyed foie gras, mushroom carpaccios, croquettes of cod, fried cippolini onions, some sort of crab stuff, and more. None of it was disappointing. My favorite was the veal jowl terrine. Cow cheeks! So decadently excellent!

Afterward, totally by ourselves, we hankered for some cocktails, and we took a cab to the East Village. We were gently turned away at Death & Co., but Amor Y Amargo, a couple doors down (443 E 6th St.) caught our eye and we squeezed in to the little space and were treated to some great cocktails. This place bills itself as a bitters tasting room. You wouldn't think two people could drink so much, but we sampled the house gin & tonic, a couple different versions of Negronis, a Manhattan with house-made vermouth, an a'l'ancienne, vermouth on draft, and other alcoholic treats. Before we departed, apparently because it was our two-week wedding anniversary, the friendly bartenders treated us to the most awesome flan, with a very brown-sugary quality. It was seriously wonderful.

Company, 230 9th Ave., Manhattan

Pat and I went to the High Line on a delightful summery afternoon yesterday. I had given it a quick inspection back in the wintery months, but it was a joy to see it all green, and recognize the genius of how the cement was laid into the greenery. It was clogged with people but I couldn't begrudge them the pleasure we experienced. When we got to the end, at 20th St., we learned that it will actually be extended to be twice as long in June.

We had dinner afterward at Company (Co.), in Chelsea, an NFT recommendation. We started with a mouthwatering veal meatball appetizer with many beefy slices of bread; this could have sufficed as an entree. The pizzas were darned good as well. I had the Boscaiola, with pepper flakes, caramelized onions, aged mozzarella and sausage. Pat was not 100% happy with his "ham & cheese" pizza, with slices of prosciutto laid across the top; he thought the slices should have been cut up more but I'd have been unfazed.

My ginger lime soda was spicy and tasty; Pat's Six Point draft was delicious but pricey: $8!

The Breslin, 16 W. 29th St., Manhattan

Today I enjoyed another long lunch with my fellow Real Housewife of New York City, Matt. What could be more perfect than an entertaining friend who is free for weekday outings? Yayyyy! Er, what I mean is, I hope you get a job soon, Matt!

We went to the Breslin, at the Ace Hotel in the Flatiron district. I noted that as with our last lunch date, Matt had suggested a location very heavy on the cow decor. But it is a very appealing space. I had a great refreshing cocktail called "Lust for Life," and Matt drank his 2011 summer staple, Campari with soda.

The food was really great. We started with a bowl of mussels and chorizo in a delicious broth with bread to soak it up. It had sounded good, but was even better than I anticipated. Matt got a softshell crab sandwich with decadent fries, and I had a veal sandwich with roasted potatoes. Really satisfyingly tasty.

Portions weren't huge, but that just set us up for dessert. We went to Matt's go-to cupcake place, Buttercup Bake Shop, 973 2nd Ave. We are not really into doing things halfway so we ordered four of them and shared: hummingbird, lemon, red velvet, and German chocolate. The best was hummingbird. It was just lovely. German chocolate was also a winner, and lemon had a great tangy flavor, although it and red velvet were a little too dry (cakey, as Matt characterized it).

Hudson Square Exchange, 333 Hudson St., Manhattan

I have a dearth of New York friends; it's quite sad. So I did a web search for various groups or clubs I might join to meet some people. I was elated when I found a group called Silly Drunken Board Games!

I was really, really excited about this so I dolled myself up and walked all the way to Hudson Square Exchange in the West Village. It was such a gorgeous day! And I felt as green to New York as the first day I got here 3 months ago, marveling at where I was. Ahhhh.

The silly drunken board game players were, on the whole, a good bunch. I talked for a while with a kid Ben who is a reformed vegetarian ("I was vegetarian my whole life until about four years ago when a waiter said that adding chicken to your salad was a half-price special"....awesome!) and a dancer (contra, tango). There was a woman named Victoria who seemed very laid back but then turned out to be a smoker - who wants smoker friends? A freelance copy editor named Sadie was amusing but not my type, and I didn't get to have a conversation with Rachel, the host, who seemed really nice. A securities and exchange lawyer, Doug, was kind of excessively intense, and Linda didn't seem to have much of a sense of humor. Jennifer partnered with me for Scrabble and was way better at it than me, but I didn't get much of a sense of her personality. Manuel, from Spain, was nice, as was Roshan.

I would go again. Might bring my own board game because I feel like we had too many large-group games underway, and smaller groups would have offered a better opportunity for me to befriend people, which is obviously in everyone's best interests.

Oh I almost forgot to describe the restaurant. It was surprisingly quiet for happy hour; perhaps there are not a lot of offices around there? I ordered a burger and did not like it. It was a little too uniformly textured, and the taste was kind of odd. Also, I was supposed to get truffle fries, and I am pretty sure they were just regular fries, although they were perfectly good.

Inatteso Pizzabar Casano, 28-30 West St., Manhattan

I don't know how I lived so long without SeamlessWeb, back in the dark ages before our move to NYC. I can't believe I used to have a file folder - yes, an actual manila folder - labeled "Delivery" and I would put actual paper delivery menus in it and then leaf through them when I needed food in Washington. Which, by the way, was such a rarity, because not a lot of places delivered to my 'hood anyway, and back then I used to....cook. I know. I know. Take a minute to let it sink in.

To be honest, last week I started to rediscover cooking, though it makes me feel like less of a New Yorker to admit it. On our way back from our mini-moon, we stopped at a Shop Rite in Perth Amboy, and we bought ingredients. Then I baked bread and cooked some pork in the slow cooker, and made my ghetto fake-crabmeat-mayo-and-french-dressing pasta dish. We have feasted on sandwiches and wraps and ghetto pasta. It has been healthy and economical and even pleasurable, and it fills me with urban shame.

But it's not like I have kicked my restaurant habit, or my SeamlessWeb habit. Last night we ordered from Inatteso Pizzabar in Battery Park City. In under 40 minutes we were treated to a large margherita pizza with added mushrooms, and we thought it was terrific. Four thumbs up.

There is a new little hurdle for our delivery people: our building is being staked out by the media. While future generations will no doubt view this as the least interesting non-story ever, and in fact I find it that way myself right now, apparently plenty of people out there can't get enough news about the French head of the IMF who resigned after being accused of sexually assaulting a hotel housekeeper. The guy posted bail and is now staying temporarily in our apartment building. 24 hours a day, bored-looking reporters and photographers linger outside the front and back entries, shining bright lights on the doors and yearning for this non-celebrity to emerge. Let's just say he doesn't go out a lot. Anyway there are extra security guards and police officers posted so it must be a bit intimidating for a delivery person, although maybe they see this all the time in New York. Imagine if a genuine celebrity were staying here!

Dizzy Izzy's New York Bagels, 185 Varick St., Manhattan

Somehow Pat, who loves a New York bagel, had been here for almost 3 months without sinking his teeth into one. So we moseyed down to Dizzy Izzy's in Battery Park City on Sunday and each of us enjoyed a toasted sesame seed bagel, mine with salmon spread and Pat's with regular cream cheese. We were very pleased. Pat was overwhelmed by the quantity of cream cheese, but I say bring it on, bagel babies.

Nu Sushi, 76 Pearl St., Manhattan

Another rainy New York day, another SeamlessWeb order. Pat asked if I had ordered before from Nu Sushi, in the Financial District, and I confessed that as with recipes, even when I find restaurants I like, I am nonetheless compelled to try new ones anyway. What if there's a better one out there?

But I chose very well this time, and will need to return! My New Roll (tuna, avocado, eel) was outstanding, with great quality fish and avocado. My mouth waters just at the memory of eating it last night. Likewise, my piece of yellowtail sushi was out of this world - a perfect, delicious, huge slab of fish with just a hint of wasabi over the rice. Mmmmmm. Pat's California Roll was nothing special, although it was quite sizeable. And the best part - it arrived in less than 20 minutes! We're about half a mile from the restaurant.

I wonder if the size of the yellowtail was related to how late it was (almost 9:00 PM) - perhaps they had sushi to unload at the end of the day. This seems like it could be a tasty formula to remember, if I can wait that long to get dinner.

Popover Cafe, 551 Amsterdam Ave., Manhattan

Obviously you want to hear about the popovers. But first, I have to tell you that Pat and I got married. It was the best fun! I recommend it to anyone.



But let's talk popovers (or Yorkshire puddings, as my kin the Brits refer to them). I was excited that there was a cafe devoted to them, but it was just so-so. We're talking about Popover Cafe on the Upper West Side. I had one big ol' popover with strawberry butter, and a bowl of chicken noodle soup, and a mug of hot chocolate that really should have been bigger and sweeter for the $5 pricetag. My popover kind of failed to thrill, which is odd for a place that is all about popovers, right?

Oh well. The important thing is that now I am married.

Soma By Nature, 123 William St., Manhattan

I went on SeamlessWeb last night with an eye toward sushi. Soma By Nature, in the Financial District, was very highly rated and offered sushi, but my eye was caught by a user review that was very positive on a dish called the Emperor's Rice Cake Stew (dapoki, this user called it). So I took the plunge.

The dish was delicious and perfectly spicy. I am not familiar with Korean food so I don't know how typical were the fat, cylindrical rice cakes (about half an inch in diameter and 2-3 inches long). Chewy and sticky, they weren't my favorite part of the meal, but still perfectly good, and the meat and vegetables were lovely. I wish there had been more of them, proportionately, in the stew.

Bennie's Thai Cafe, 88 Fulton St., Manhattan

I ordered red curry with beef and bamboo shoots from Bennie's Thai Cafe in the Financial District, via SeamlessWeb, and found it pretty bland. Likewise with the spring rolls. Really not that much flavor to either of them. And that's really all I have to say on this matter.

Cascabel Taqueria, 1542 2nd Ave., Manhattan

You cannot get good Mexican food in England, according to my sister Amy, who is visiting from London. She has vowed to eat her weight in Mexican food during her stay, and we got la bola rolling with a trip to NFT-recommended Cascabel Taqueria on the Upper East Side. It was SO DELICIOUS. I had the carne asada tacos, which come in corn tortillas with creme fraiche, oyster mushrooms, and crispy onions. My tastebuds thrill at the recollection. Amy had the pollo chipotle tacos, a little spicy in a good way. We shared a huge dollop of lovely guacamole. We had a table outside on a perfect day, and laughed at the UESers' small, in-bred excuses for dogs walking by. We are thinking of returning 24 hours later because the experience was so pleasant.

We traipsed through Central Park a bit and then Amy was hell-bent on a red velvet cupcake, so we visited a place totally without a name on 72nd St. on the Upper West Side. Seriously, no name on the shop, no receipt, no name on the boxes....it was a whole bakery; why no name? In the end it doesn't matter, because our cupcakes were sub-par, on the dry side. Forgettable even if we did know the name.

Then we had drinks at Wine and Roses, 286 Columbus Avenue, then we went to a downscale bar whose name I didn't note, then I got another cupcake at Magnolia Bakery on Columbus. I liked it (red velvet, per Amy's influence) but it had a whipped cream frosting and I really prefer a heavy buttercream. That was dinner yesterday - two drinks bookended by cupcakes! It felt so good to put aside the wedding checklist and be self-indulgent for a day.

Ulysses, 95 Pearl St., Manhattan

When Pat got home from work yesterday, I was a little crazed from a day of wedding checklist activities, and so while we did not theoretically have time to spare for an evening out, we went out anyway. We walked in the direction of Stone St. and ended up in Ulysses, in the Financial District.

The fish aspect of my fish and chips was bland, but the chips aspect was right on the money: crispy, tasty. Pat had the "soft" lobster roll that left us still wondering what made it particularly soft. It too came with the satisfying fries but the sandwich itself featured a lot of filler, and too much dill for my taste. My St. Boltoph Town Brown Ale washed it all down nicely.

Ulysses' atmosphere was fine. It was sort of standardly tavern-like. Pat looked at the old lyrics sheets for Irish drinking songs adorning the walls and said he wished he and his friends had had those back in the day when they would knock back drinks and disturb other patrons with half-remembered verses about "spending all my tin on the ladies" etc.

Bubby's, 120 Hudson St., Manhattan

Brian and Becca came into town for the car show and chose Bubby's in Tribeca for dinner on Saturday.

I ordered the barbecue combination platter, and while they were out of one of the three meats, the remaining two were REALLY good. My sides were top-notch: broccoli with a dreamy cheese sauce, and creamed spinach. I got a Dark And Stormy to drink and it was great; I would have had a second (and possibly even a third!) but for the $12 price tag.

As we were eating, an enormous fiberglass cow was placed outside window right in front of our table, its rear haunches facing in at us. Humourous.

Brian and Becca told us the coconut cake was out of this world, and I tried a bite of Brian's: YUM. My own dessert, peanut butter and chocolate pie, was really good but far more peanutty than chocolately, unfortunately. It really needed a fudgy, half-inch layer of chocolate under all that peanut creaminess.

It has to be said that the service was slow and haphazard. It was as if the several different staff who attended to us were all thinking of something entirely different. We were kicking back and enjoying the company so it wasn't really a problem, but it was certainly an area in need of improvement.

Champ's Deli, 71 Broadway, Manhattan

This deli is wickedly close to where we live in the Financial District, so I have tried it on a couple recent occasions.

The first time, I had a ham and fresh mozzarella panino, on focaccia with sundried tomatoes. It was really mouthwatering.

The second time, I used SeamlessWeb to order a small make-your-own spinach salad with chinese noodles, fresh mozzarella, broccoli, avocado, and Russian dressing. When I went to pick it up, they realized I had ordered at their other location (30 Broad St.) but said they'd bring it right over - and sure enough, it showed up about 3 minutes later! So A+ for service.

As for the salad itself, the application of dressing was very generous, which I liked, but I prefer spinach salads made with baby spinach - these were huge coarse leaves, which could also have been more finely chopped. And for an $1.00 each, they could have thrown in a bit more avocado and the mozzarella. Overall an okay choice, but not great.

Island Burgers & Shakes, 766 9th Ave., Manhattan

Pat had to drop off his car at the dealership in Hell's Kitchen last night, so we made dinner plans there. We started with the "world flight" of beers at Valhalla, 815 9th Ave. There were a variety of 5 small tasty beers from Belgium, Germany, America, and elsewhere. We were very pleased. The bar was a little loud as it was happy hour, but we had a table to ourselves. I looked around and said "look at all these people with their friends!" and we laughed ruefully as we have not exactly spread our social butterfly wings here yet. Fortunately for us, we're still in that phase of coupledom where we find each other's company entirely fulfilling.

After our drinks we went to Island Burgers & Shakes, where the shakes were terrible! Pat's was vanilla and mine chocolate and both arrived at our table melted. Pat flagged his concern to a waiter and got a new one, exactly like first one.

The burgers were decent, though. Mine was Derrick's Burger, with pesto and a lotta spice that sort of overwhelmed me till I got used to it. Its ciabatta roll was probably a poor choice as it was a little too chewy. Pat got the Route 66 Burger, with bacon and avocado on rye bread.

On an entirely unrelated (fortunately) note, Pat and I have been dismayed by how much the subway stops smell like urine. How much urine must be there for the smell to be so powerful? I theorized that perhaps people are peeing onto the air vents at street level so the smell just gets circulated constantly underground. However it happens, it is truly repulsive. Pat remarked how quickly you can go from marvelling at all that is dazzling about New York to marvelling at some of its seedier features.

Also strictly unrelatedly, I have now met our neighbors in 2 apartments. Across the hall from us are Emily and Kim, who do not live there but use the apartment as an office. They showed it to me - it has the most spectacular, huge half-circle window. They told me that the woman who used to live in our apartment (she also had theirs and used it as an office as they do) was a crazy Wiccan type who painted everything purple, red and black, and eventually departed owing several months' rent. The others I met were Heather and her boys, Nolan and Elliott. Last week, Pat noticed that each of the apartments in our hallway had a note under the door similar to the one we got: "I like you. From: Nolan. To: You." It was very cute. We left a note under their door in response: "Hi Nolan! Thank you for your note! We like you too. From Jennie and Pat."

Zaitzeff, 72 Nassau St., Manhattan

Yesterday featured fairly miserable New York weather, so Pat and I ordered from Seamless Web last night. We got kobe burgers and a side of mixed (regular and sweet potato) fries from Zaitzeff in the Financial District. The burgers were very good, and we liked the English-muffinesque buns. The mixed fries were decent. Our only critique was that the food could have been a little hotter, which was surprising given how fast it arrived (25 minutes).

We explored a very cool store - ABC Home. As soon as I walked in, I basically wanted everything, which is striking given the "I have way, way, way too much stuff and why are we all so materialistic?" tune I have been singing lately. The experience reinforced how little overlap there is in my and Pat's tastes, alas, but we enjoyed poking around. We thought we would come back after we have someday finished unpacking and setting everything up in our apartment and determined what we still need, although we'll probably still be loathe to contend with the steep prices!

We also went back to Luke's Lobster, for lunch. Aside from a delivery order Pat got from one of the restaurants we'd visited before, this represented the first time we have repeated at a restaurant. It was every bit as delightful as our first trip, the bread buttery, the lobster succulent.

Room Service, 690 9th Ave., Manhattan

Room Service, our first culinary pursuit in Hell's Kitchen, was a recommendation from Pat's father's friend Bill, and it was spot on. We waited about half an hour for a table and it was loud and the tables were close together, but oh! Those spicy basil noodles! They made my mouth happy with their flavor and their mixture of textures and their perfect spiceness. Perfect! The shrimp were cooked exactly right, and the noodles were soft and full of flavor, and it was all rounded out with some crisp vegetables and fried egg. It could not have been improved upon.

Pat's panang curry with chicken was also delicious, overall highly coconutty and with a drool-worthy drizzle of coconut on top. Pat is freaked out by the phenomenon of green beans in his panang curries in New York and can't decide whether to be heartened or dismayed at the hard-core veggies in his decadent curries. It does give you your daily greens.

I had a mango mojito and Pat had a coconut mojito. I liked them both but he wasn't wild about his.

Our appetizer was perhaps a misstep - mixed fried shrimp, mini-egg-rolls, balls of chicken and tofu sticks. Undistinguished.

Pat is 95% certain that Vanessa Williams, B-list celebrity these days, was sitting three tables down. I don't know what she looks like well enough to verify, but certainly the woman three tables down was very striking. And the place is cool enough, and the food good enough, that celebrities should make it a destination.

The prospect of the spicy basil noodle leftovers thrills me.

BLT Bar and Grill, 123 Washington St., Manhattan

Marc Fungard was the first of Pat's friends to descend upon NYC for the bachelor party tomorrow, so we went out to dinner with him at BLT Bar and Grill in the Financial District. This was another notch for me in the BLT bedpost (see earlier post about BLT Burger).

It is apparently new, and a very hip space. One nice touch was that sitting with our backs to the window on the 2nd level, we could look up at mirrors angled for a view down of the street.

Our waiter seemed a little skittish, perhaps new, but all our food was excellent. Pat had a lobster risotto; Marc and I each had the burger special, with different meats blended together and caramelized onion. My cocktail, the Saint Gin, was very delicious. The cheesecake was positively delightful, with a thin crunchy top and a tangy berry sauce. The profiteroles had a nice chocolate drizzle.

Max Restaurant, 181 Duane St., Manhattan

After Pat finished work, I met him at his office and we just wandered north and looked for something appealing for dinner. We found Max Restaurant in Tribeca. Our first pleasure of the evening was Delirium Tremens on tap.

The next was a prosciutto and mozzarella appetizer. The mozzarella....so FRESH!! Every bite was a brand new joy. Why isn't there mozzarella like that in Washington? What is it about New York that makes unbelievably fresh mozzarella a possibility that doesn't exist 200 miles south? It doesn't matter, does it - all that matters is that we have arrived in Mozzarellaville and we're not budging.

Our entrees were superb, for the price ($12 and $14). Pat had spaghetti with a lamb ragu sauce. At one point, after he had consumed every last noodle, I witnessed him dipping a piece of bread in the remaining sauce, tapping parmesan on top, and then spooning more sauce on top of that, then eating it. My ravioli with spinach and ricotta was in a perfect tomato sauce and let's just say there was no question as to whether I had finished, when I had finished.

We were on such a roll that I couldn't resist a dessert I wasn't even hungry for, and I'm not sorry at all about polishing off that tiramisu. It was a little gooier than traditional, but that probably only made it more tasty.

We'll be back.

Walkers, 16 N. Moore St., Manhattan

Guided as usual by NFT, we walked to Walkers in Tribeca. It was not, incidentally, on the corner NFT said it was on. Sometimes I have creeping doubts about NFT. Anyway, Pat knew vaguely where he was, pointing out restaurants and bars he had frequented with our friend Matt a couple weeks ago. Pat has become something of a Tribexpert. Ha ha ha!!

The layout of Walkers is odd. When we walked in it looked totally packed, but a waitress informed us that the host station was at the back. I elbowed my way there, passing a drunk gentleman who said "Hello, gorgeous," extended his hand, and introduced himself as Jeff. I kept moving. It turns out there are two rooms behind the bar, and Pat and I were seated immediately.

Our food was decent. I had a chicken sandwich with a very pleasing salsa and oozing cheese, and a side of mashed potatoes. Pat cobbled together a meal of seafood stew (lots of nice seafood), chili (nicely spicy), and fries (good, but too many remainder pieces). Jeff lurched past at some point, on his way to and from the restroom; he did not acknowledge our very special moment earlier. The waiter was nice. I have to say I did not find the food "surprisingly" good as NFT promised, but it was fine.

KoKo Asian Fusion, 120 Greenwich St., Manhattan

KoKo Asian Fusion, in the Financial District, is new. The decor is attractive, with swaths of decorative fabric, shades of yellow and red, some Asian pieces on display (a lacquer chest, a porcelain horse), and lots of backlighting. It was a little too quiet and too light, though, perhaps. These are the kinks of a new restaurant, along with things like an awkward arranging of the plates on the table (just set them down and leave, man!).

My egg roll was dry and uninteresting. My chicken pad thai was fine, but it did not taste like pad thai should - no sweetness. And what are little bits of cabbage doing in pad thai? On the other hand, Pat's Grand Marnier Shrimp (made, according to the menu, with condensed milk, oddly) was delicious. The sauce was lovely and the walnuts and broccoli were a nice accompaniment.

A particularly nice touch was included with our leftovers. It was a tidy ziploc bag with spoon and fork, napkin, sauces, and even a mint!

choices, choices!

Pat's co-worker Tasleem sent us an amazingly long list of her favorite New York restaurants, which I am pasting below so it will always be at my (and your) fingertips. This will also guide me as I start a wedding registry on http://www.foodieregistry.com/. I just heard about this and it's brilliant: we have too much stuff already in our little apartment, and we love eating out...so why not register for what we really need and want, which is restaurant gift certificates! Tasleem's list:

1. 3 Cups (east village cozy, low key, great pizza)
2. ABC Kitchen (very cool new Jean Georges)
3. Alta *tapas
4. Annisa
5. Apiary (contemp American - lower east side)
6. Babo
7. Babouche
8. Bao 111 *excellent Vietnamese, inexpensive, cute restaurant with character (east village)
9. Bar Blanc (west vill, trendy and good for small groups)
10. Bianca *cheap, excellent, must try Italian - one of my favorites off bleeker st
11. BLT Steak great meal - perfect for client dinner
12. Blue Hill (lovely and for foodies)
13. Blue Ribbon Bakery *fantastic brunch, west village
14. Blue Ribbon Brasserie (SOHO)
15. Blue Ribbon Sushi
16. Bond Street *beautiful restaurant, intimate but high end but delicious Japanese and cuban food
17. Brio (UES near bloomingdales - reasonable and yummy Italian)
18. Bukhara *Indian
19. Cafe Cluny (brunch)
20. Cafe Mogador *one of my favorites in the city - very reasonable French bistro, Moroccan food
21. Cafe Noir *wonderful, French/Moroccan in soho
22. Cesca - upper west side, delicious and an elegant restaurant!
23. Chennai *Indian, very affordable and best Indian vegetarian place I know
24. Commerce
25. Cook shop
26. Crispo *Italian, excellent value and food - midtown west side
27. DBGB (Daniel Boulud)
28. Del Posto
29. Dell'anima
30. Devi (great Indian good - Union Square)
31. Downing St
32. Elephant * great Thai but loud - east village
33. EN Japanese Brasserie (tribeca, Japanese - airy and lofty - very cool and yummy)
34. Ethos (greek by the UN)
35. Falai *unusual but high end Italian - small, east village
36. Fig and Olive *west village, trendy but good food and nice bar (again nice to bring people from out of town)
37. Fish (rustic, new England vibe - west village)
38. Frankie Spuntinos
39. Freemans *great brunch - understated but cheap and delicious!!
40. Gascogne
41. Geisha (60's and park - cool, trendy but great place for dinner - Japanese)
42. Gentleman Farmer (french, lower east side)
43. Gradisca
44. Holy Basil *excellent Thai, east village
45. I tre merli (west village location)
46. Il Buco
47. Il Mulino (expensive but SO good and generous portions)
48. Inoteca *excellent and unusual tapas, east village
49. Italianissimo Ristorante (on 84th between 1st and 2nd)
50. Jack's Luxury Oyster Bar (LES - cute and yummy)
51. Jo Jo (romantic, French, UES)
52. Jubilee (amazing and simple french food near the UN)
53. Juliet (more of a dinner club atmosphere - not good if you don't like a scene - the food is ok but the combo is nice)
54. Junoon
55. Kenmare
56. Kings Carriage House *upper east side - townhouse restaurant with superb brunch and high tea
57. La Caravelle
58. La Cote Basque
59. L'artusi (perfect place to bring family and friends - so good)
60. Le Bilbouquet *a European high brow scene but great French food - celebs often eat here but it's very small (not hard to get a table but might be a wait)
61. Le Colonial * great Vietnamese food, beautiful restaurant
62. Le Grenouille
63. Le Pere Pinard *excellent French food, east village
64. Le Refuge (UES - romantic or great ambience for a meal with family visiting - French food)
65. Le Tableau
66. L'ecole
67. Les Enfants Terrible *tiny, rustic, superb French food in the lower east side
68. Lombardi's (expensive but really good pizza)
69. L'Orange Bleu *French, Moroccan - lively and fun - good food
70. Lupa
71. Lyon
72. Macondo (LES, tapas - very cool)
73. Marea (expensive Italian but VERY good - central park south)
74. Max *great Italian in east village
75. Mercadito (East or West Vill)
76. Minetta Tavern (best black label burger!)
77. Momofuku Sambar
78. One *trendy but good food
79. Pane e Vino *nothing high brow but simple, affordable Italian near bloomingdales
80. Paradou *trendy but great French food (meatpacking)
81. Park Avenue (seasons)
82. Pasita (Venezuelan pizza west village)
83. Pearl Oyster Bar (best lobster roll ever)
84. Phillipe *high end Chinese - delicious - same chef as mr
85. Po *excellent Italian - intimate and elegant but very reasonable - great food
86. Raoul's *excellent French food in soho
87. Rayuela (lower east side - tapas)
88. Red Cat
89. Resto (brunch)
90. Savoy (soho/French and cute, romantic for dinner)
91. Setai - Sho Shaun Hergatt
92. Sofrito *latin food, very good - east village
93. Sparks
94. Stanton Social *trendy but good tapas - must make reservations far in advance - good for guests from out of town
95. STK *more of a scene but decent food and good NYC atmosphere when you have people in town
96. Strip House *favorite steakhouse in nyc - union square
97. Supper *inexpensive great food, east village
98. Table d'Hote (tiny, rustic - 92nd and mad - delicious/intimate - feels like you are in a cute town in france)
99. Tamarind Tea room (small cozy Indian sandwiches and soups - so cute in the winter time)
100. The Food Hall (Todd English restaurant at the Plaza Hotel - informal stations with different types of food - sit where you want but still has menus/waiters) - love it!!
101. The Smith (brunch)
102. Travertine
103. Tribeca Grill *perfect for client dinner and close to the office
104. Union Square Cafe (Italian)
105. Yuca Bar (casual, east village, so good/tapas)
106. Zucco

The Grotto NYC, 69 New St., Manhattan

Pat and I just wanted something close and cheap last night so we turned to our trusty NFT and would up at the Grotto in the Financial District. The place is open till 9:00 PM but it was awfully lackluster for dinner and I can only hope it serves up better stuff at lunch. Pat had a chicken parmesan sandwich and I had a spinach calzone. We were totally unimpressed. You can't beat the ubiquity of restaurants in New York but we have reached a point where we want them to be good more consistently. Some people have given us massive lists of their favorite places so it is time to start making our way down those lists, I guess.

BLT Burger, 470 6th Ave., Manhattan

Matt is one of Pat's college friends, and luckily for me, he is currently unemployed. He proposed lunch at BLT Burger in the West Village. I started with a Grandma's Treat spiked milkshake, which was soooo good, and for better or worse, did not make me drunk. We got fried pickles and tuna tacos (delectable) as appetizers and then my burger was the Great Hills Blue. It was wonderful, if not very blue-cheesy. We had a grand time lingering at our table in the middle of the day. I entreated Matt not to get a job and he made a note not to use me as a reference. Of course I do want him to find a job but not before we spend some more afternoons hitting the Shake Shack, Buttercup Bakery, and all the many other BLT restaurant permutations.

Bao Noodles, 391 2nd Ave., Manhattan

I am becoming a Seamless Web regular. I love picking the food from the online menus, and then it shows up at my door, pure and simple. Many of the online reviews at Seamless Web complain about the delivery times but I've gotten my food within the specified, perfectly reasonable window each of three times now.

Today's order came from Bao Noodles in Gramercy. The grilled pork sandwich was great: a perfect combination of veggies, tasty meat, and spicy mayo, on good bread. And $4.95 is a nice price for a hearty sandwich. I ordered the sticky rice with chicken just out of curiosity. It was, indeed, very sticky, and I liked that, but the flavor was bland. It was better with a touch of the pepper sauce on it. The grilled chicken vermicelli was not so good. The chicken quality was pretty poor and none of the other elements were terribly compelling. We're not sure how hot it was supposed to be, but it didn't arrive hot. The shrimp summer rolls were heavy on the lettuce, but otherwise good.

Mary's Fish Camp, 64 Charles St., Manhattan

Pat's coworker Jen and her husband Brian chose Mary's Fish Camp, in the West Village, as last night's dinner destination. We arrived early enough (6:45) to get a table right away; by the time we left, the tiny restaurant had enough people waiting to be seated that I literally could barely make it past them out the door. Granted, this was only about 10 people. There's just not that much space! It's very pleasant, though, and the waitstaff was very friendly. Bonus points for the 80s on the sountrack: "Rock Lobster," "What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)."

Brian ordered a platter of oysters and I had two of them, just enough to get that exhilerating feeling of connection to the watery beginnings of time that oysters always give me. Jen's appetizer, Guatemalan shrimp, was not quite as hoped - with the shells on, they required a lot of work. Jen and I both had the lobster roll as an entree. The chunks of lobster were fat and delicous, but I came away still feeling Luke's Lobster has perfected the genre, and at half Mary's price, too. The grilled vegetables we ordered on the side were satisfying, and Pat's trout with pancetta and winter vegetables was very good. Our bread pudding for dessert, with rum sauce and whipped cream, was scrumptious.

Jen and Brian are a lot of fun and it's great to feel like we're getting to know fun people in New York.

2nd Yo Sushi, 351 2nd Ave., Manhattan

I have been waiting patiently for spring. Okay, that's a lie. I don't wait patiently for anything, especially when I've been staticky and itchy since November, but in any case I feel utterly betrayed by the snow and sleet today. Where in the sam hell is spring?

I refused to go outside for lunch so I took my second stab at Seamless Web, and chose 2nd Yo Sushi, in Gramercy, based on high viewer ratings. It was okay. I wasn't thrilled with the pureed texture of the tuna in my spicy tuna roll, but my eel and avocado roll was better, pleasantly flavorful. The delivery was very prompt, 30 minutes after I placed my order. The delivery guy was all wet. I was nice and dry.

I forgot to note a funny incident yesterday. I get asked directions everywhere I go in New York. I apparently look like someone who has been here more than 3 weeks. Rarely can I be of assistance, but I was able to confirm for a guy yesterday that he was on the right side of the subway platform, and as he thanked me and walked away, he called out, "you look cool!" This was clearly a reference to the citified Dick Tracy hat I've been sporting. Strangers never told me I looked cool before I bought my fantastic hat. It made my day.

Earthen Oven, 53 W. 72nd St., Manhattan

Last night I got to meet Pat's lovely friends Ann and Eric, and their son Julian. We went to their house and got Indian delivered from Earthen Oven, in the Upper West Side. They said everything they order from there is good, and I agree. We had chicken tikka masala, palak paneer, various naans, and other miscellaneous goodies. Good food, good company. We eagerly await the day when they introduce us, as promised, to a cookie that will change our lives, plus ice cream that will blow our minds.

Coco Roco, 392 5th Ave., Brooklyn

Pat and I stumbled onto something fantastic to do this weekend: a recreation of the Minnesota State Fair at a hall in Brooklyn! http://mncultureclub.com/statefairaffair

I really thought this would be better in concept than in reality, but I was wrong in the most wonderful way. People were even lined up to get in.

We arrived just in time to see Minnesota Sen. Al Franken take the stage to judge a "food on a stick" contest, and it was hilarious. The most creative (but according to Sen. Franken, bad-tasting) entry was "Boundary Waters on a stick," a gelatinous blue and green blob that was actually quite evocative. Pat and I spotted a sample of that on the stage after the judging was over, with one bite taken out of it, and we believe it was the very sample that Sen. Franken tasted. We did not take it home as a souvenir.

The mob to taste the various foods on a stick was daunting but I secured sticks for me and Pat with balls of cheese curds and wild rice shaped like snowmen, and it was not only tasty, but brilliantly clever. What a great execution. It would be perfect for the actual Fair.

Then we witnessed the sculpting of sticks of butter (and, in some cases, lard, which was not authentic but apparently the organizers were challenged to find blocks of butter) into Minnesota-inspired shapes: a leaping fish, a tractor, the collapsed Metrodome, and Bob Dylan, for example. It was all great fun. Clearly I need to look into more events organized by the Minnesota Culture Club.

Afterward we walked into Park Slope, which I had visited without Pat when I first got to New York, so very long ago. Ha. We picked Coco Roco for dinner just on a whim, and were very happy with the food. As soon as we sat down we got a dish of delectable fried plantain chips with dipping sauces, and odd scrumptious dried corn kernels. Then he had a chicken sandwich and I had a pork sandwich. YUM. I am sure I don't need to tell you I am already salivating at the thought of the leftovers I will enjoy for lunch tomorrow.

Kathleen & Paul's, Stockton Rd., Union, NJ

It may not be open all night like some of the places in Manhattan. It may be too undiscovered for a Zagat rating. No one who works in the kitchen there has ever made an appearance on the Food Network. But when the chefs of Stockton Road prepare a meal, you do not want to miss it.

Kathleen, Paul and their mothers treated their extended families to a St. Patrick's Day party last night, starring corned beef and cabbage, carrots and potatoes, turnips and parsnips, soda bread, key lime pie, and rice pudding. It was all wonderful and plentiful. We enjoyed the warm family-style atmosphere, the festive shamrock decor, and efficient all-you-can eat self-serve buffet, and you really couldn't beat the price.

I can't believe this place isn't in the NFT Guide.

Nomado 33, 165 E 33rd St., Manhattan

I don't think I have ever under-ordered sushi. I look at the options and several of them sound good and I never quite realize how much food I'm ordering. At Nomado 33 in Murray Hill, we ordered a banana tempura roll, a rainbow roll, a California roll, and a rock 'n' roll (hee hee) and we left there stuffed to the gills. It was all good, though. I think the rock 'n' roll was the best. We washed it down with sake.

Last night I did the unthinkable: I COOKED DINNER AT HOME. I know! It is MADNESS!! It was not because I was sick of eating out (although Pat was a little sick of eating out); it's just that there are all these alluring specialty food stores and I wanted to take advantage. The shopping wasn't as much fun as I envisioned, though. Di Palo's, in Little Italy, was kind of chaotic, and I deplore chaos, plus there were only a few things for a meal I could get there, so I had to hunt down a proper grocery store afterward. And since I didn't even have basic spices or things like sugar and olive oil, there was a certain amount of pantry-stocking that added up monetarily, to the point where it might have been cheaper to eat out once again.

The results were good, though. We had a mouthwatering Italian staple, the insalata caprese (LOVE that fresh mozzarella), and spaghetti with a tomato clam sauce. I thought it was decent but Pat seemed exceptionally happy with it, which made me feel good. There was a ton of leftover sauce so I stuck it in the freezer.

PJ Clarke's Sidecar, 915 3rd Ave., Manhattan

Our destination two nights ago was PJ Clarke's on the lower edge of the Upper East Side, but it was packed with people and the noise was overwhelming. We walked out and happened to notice another door, marked "Sidecar," on the side of the building. We peeked up the staircase at a closed door and were just turning around, assuming we were at a dead end, when some other customers came in and told us they'd been referred up there by the main restaurant. So up we went.

It was a cozy brick space and the menu is more expensive and refined than in the pub below (putting the "up" in upscale, I guess!). The steak and scallops ordered by the people at the next table looked just as delicious as our deluxe burgers, complete with sides of "smothering onions" and chili. The fries were thin and perfect. We ordered a plate of asparagus to assuage our guilt about gorging ourselves on rich food night after night, then we gorged ourselves on rich food plus asparagus. I felt overly full until I fell asleep that night, but it had been darned good. Pat was particularly smitten with the whole experience.

PJ Clarke's is a chain but did not feel like a chain, and apparently this is the original location. There's even one in Washington, though I haven't been there. Pat said it is the bar to which the "Mad Men" are always referring.

Yesterday I spent the day in Washington. It was sort of a pathetic relief to go to Chop't for a salad for lunch.

Le Veau D'Or, 129 E. 60th St., Manhattan

People who reviewed Le Veau D'Or online either loved this place or hated it. Some were captivated by the time-warped quality of the restaurant; others repulsed. Some found the waitstaff charming; others found them haughty. Some gushed about how great the food was; some gushed about how awful it was.

It is on the lower edge of the Upper East Side.

Pat and I saw the good and the bad of the place. It is definitely old school: when we arrived, the only other patrons were suit-wearing old men and pearl-adorned old women. One woman's hairstyle screamed Margaret Thatcher. Possibly those customers have been visiting the restaurant for decades. Eventually, a theatrical man in a green turtleneck arrived and regaled one of the restaurant employees, clearly a friend, with tales involving Richard Gere and Jerry Stiller.

Our food was a mixed bag. You get an appetizer, entree and dessert for one price (price depends on the entree). Pat's salad was sort of pathetic, but my cream of asparagus soup had a nice taste and consistency, although it was a little too salty. My roast duck with cherry sauce over wild rice was a little overcooked, but at the same time very tasty. Pat's seafood in lobster sauce over white rice was somewhat disappointing - he liked the sauce but the shrimp were dry. Pat's dessert (flan?) was good, mine ("floating island," a merengue in a creamy, caramely sauce) was delicous.

We found our ancient waiter amusing. He talked us into a bottle of wine after downplaying whatever wine was available by the glass (not on the menu) and insisting we could get a nice bottle for almost the same price, and he was right, I think. I enjoyed the French-English mix used by everyone who worked there and I threw in a "merci" or two as we left.

I've been seeing a lot of the Upper East Side recently. After seeing how close the 6 train is to Central Park when we visited the Neue Galerie on Saturday, I decided to go for a run there yesterday afternoon, since the 6 is also right around the corner from where we're staying. I got off the train and started running in what I thought was the direction of the park, and went way too far before I realized I was going in entirely the wrong direction. So by the time I turned around and reached the park I'd already been running quite a while and didn't get very deep into it. It was a good idea with poor execution.

Patsy's Pizza, 509 3rd Ave., Manhattan

Pat was aggrieved last night that he had spent 2 weeks in New York without any really excellent pizza, so he picked one up from Patsy's Pizza in Murray Hill. Just tomato sauce, mozzarella, and basil. We found it to be somehow dry, and could only imagine that a little more oil (in the crust? in the toppings?) would have been beneficial.

New Kam Man, 200 Canal St., Manhattan

We went for Dim Sum at New Kam Man in Chinatown. We waited about 20 minutes for our number to be called and then journeyed up a long escalator to a massive banquet room filled with maybe 200 tables, and were seated with 2 elderly Chinese ladies with whom we interacted not at all. Cerin, the expert, selected for us steamed dumplings (peanut and pork being the best), fried calamari (not so good with their oddly buttery flavor), funky white things with chicken inside, and delicious sesame-coated balls of goodness.

For dessert we went to Rice to Riches, 37 Spring Street in Nolita. Pat and I had been there before, when we stumbled upon it during a post-Thanksgiving pizza excursion. It is a slick, cheeky rice pudding bar, with irreverent "grains" (ha ha ha) of wisdom on rice-shaped signs everywhere and maybe 15 flavors of thick rice pudding, plus toppings ("Jesus droppings"). Pat and I shared a 2-serving bowl with caramel and panna cotta flavors; Cerin had chocolate hazelnut. Mouthwatering.

Then we went to a hat shop, The Village Scandal, and Cerin and I each bought one. Mine is a yellow fedora that gives me a Dick Tracy air and makes me feel like a hip New Yorker.

Before heading out of town, Cerin picked up some items to go at Ennju, her favorite Japanese restaurant, at 20 E 17th St.

Cafe Sabarsky, 1048 5th Ave., Manhattan

Tia, Cerin, Pat and I walked a whopping 73 blocks (the short blocks, but still) up 5th Ave. from brunch at Danal to the Neue Galerie in the Upper East Side. It was a dreamily springy day. Taking the subway would have been wrong.

The gallery is small but they have a lot of Klimt stuff, and some cool furnishings from early 1900s Vienna. But the real purpose of the trip was a visit to Cafe Sabarsky, a dead ringer for a Viennese coffee house that had long been on Cerin's must-see list. I just had dessert but Tia had a smoked trout wrap thing, which she found good in an interesting sort of way; Cerin had a goulash that she liked so much she left almost no trace of it in her bowl; and Pat had a preztel and weisswurst, simple and well-executed. Having spent 9 months in Austria many years ago, I was sent down memory lane by drink options like gespritzt and Stiegl. All our desserts were delicious. I had a chocolate cake with marzipan and orange accents.

Danal, 59 5th Ave., Manhattan

Our fun friend, lead guitarist, and self-proclaimed nerd Cerin came to visit for the weekend, and lent us a couple of her friends, since we are running short in New York. We had brunch at Danal, in the Washington Square neighborhood, with Esme and Tia. Danal was Esme's choice and it was an excellent one. I had a deeply enjoyable omelet with bacon, onions, and cheese, and sides (which came with it automatically) of roasted potatoes and sauteed apples and walnuts. Pat (and Cerin) had the croissant French toast that was really phenomenal.

The decor was French country and the staff was wonderfully hospitable; a man (perhaps the owner?) seated four of us before our fifth had arrived, saying he'd be happy to pull up an extra chair when she came. I was further endeared to him later when I saw him behind the bar with his arm comfortably around a woman, both of them grinning. They made it feel like a happy place. Esme told us there always seem to be plenty of tables available, which is surprising given how great the food was.