Your City

Words cannot stress our preference for homemade Valentine’s day meals. They are thoughtful gestures, quiet escapes and this year, an apartment romance will offer a particularly needed break from Fashion Week and long weekend tourists. But if he can’t cook, you’re too tired, your roommate smells like Fontina cheese, go to Emilio’s Ballato.

Ballato’s odd location on Houston between Mott and Elizabeth, is far from romantic, but walk in the door and you are transfoerred to Old World Tuscany complete with stucco walls and white table cloths.  If there can possibly be a hidden treasure left in New York City, it’s Emilio’s. The staff are courteous, prompt and present, and owner, Emilio, is there every night chatting with regulars and welcoming new patrons.

Ballato’s menu rivals the best Italian food in the city. The broccoli rabe, bolognese and caprice salad are delicious. The mozerlla literally melts in your mouth like cream cheese. Fish dishes are often prepared in a simple lemon caper sauce. The veal saltimboca is excellent – the proccuito crisp and veal tender. The homemade cannoli puts anything you find in Little Italy to shame.

Yes the celebrity sighting rumors are true, but because Ballato does most of their business with regulars (again, the location is odd and unassuming), it lacks the snottiness of other city dining hot spots. Call today for Valentine’s Day reservations.

Ballato’s 55 E. Houston  212.274.8881

Emma Dinzebach

You know how no one in Soho (minus delivery persons) go out to breakfast. So when my client wanted to meet in Soho for breakfast, I had a minor panic attack. Balthazaar? No siree. My editor and I tried that a few weeks ago, and it was tourist hell.

My friend suggested a neighborhood favorite on West Broadway called The Cupping Room Cafe. I had been there for dinner and was less than impressed but had few choices open before ten, so I decided to give it a go. The atmosphere is a bit blah. It’s too rustic/indoors/restaurant for breakfast but would be too cafe-esque for dinner. But if you can get past that, you get the food.

Basically everything you could possibly want for breakfast they can cook for you. They make waffles (whole wheat A-mazing waffles), oatmeal with berries, brown sugar, raisins…whatever, stuffed french toast. Yes, I said “stuffed french toast” complete with cream cheese, granola nut and raisin. I don’t even like raisins on things, but this was so sweet slash tart with melt-in-your-mouth yumminess I thought I might faint. In terms of baked goods, you name it, they carry it. I’m not sure who/where the baked goods come from and the waiter pretended he didn’t know what I was talking about when I inquired.

The eggs! You can have any omelet any way you want. They serve delicious eggs benedict, florentine, or customized eggs benedict. My favorite side was the chicken sausage (avove). The whole experience was delicious and best of all, transpired before 9 a.m.

The Cupping Room Cafe opens for breakfast at 7:30 a.m. and has a quiet, kind group of locals who defy Soho norms and create a peaceful start to their day.

The Cupping Room Cafe  corner of Broome & W. Broadway 212.925.2898

Emma Dinzebach

So maybe it’s the oldest stereotype ever that Jewish people eat Chinese food on Christmas, but when we asked our friends, the stereotype held true about 50% of the time. A quarter didn’t eat Chinese food, and the last quarter celebrated with gentile friends. Where’s the best place? we wondered. Apparently for a cultural experience, you head to Peking Duck House in Chinatown and for a more posh version, eat at Tao on 58th Street.

At Peking Duck House, a cozy elegant haven tucked away on the grungy part of Mott Street south of Canal, you have to order peking duck. Um, duh. The house made pancakes and eggplant in  garlic sauce are amazing. But take it from the website, it’s all about the duck. They slice it at your table, and it just might be the best peking duck in Manhattan. There is actually a midtown Peking Duck House too, but for some reason it doesn’t taste as good sans Chinatown excursion.

Peking Duck House 28 Mott Street  212.227.1810

At TAO, the Peking duck is also delicious. The vast former theater houses a coy fish pond, a third level private room and hands-down my favorite dessert in the city. But for the main course, the sea bass, lobster dumplings and short ribs are crowd pleasers. Keeping with Christmas tradition, the Peking duck rivals Peking Duck House. And afterward, enjoy the dessert tray (you only need the small) of mouse filled fortune cookies, Mochi, chocolates and sorbet. A small dessert tray feeds up to five. If it’s the weekend, go later because TAO has live roaming musicians on the weekend nights starting around ten.

TAO Asian Bistro  58th Street between Park and Madison  212.888.2288

And toast to a Merry, Merry Christmas.

Emma Dinzebach

Today you sit around stuffing your face with more than you normally eat in a week, lie down and complain that your stomach hurts, then eat pie, pie and more pie. And tomorrow you’ll feel like shit. What to do?

Here are our two recommendations for a post Turkey Day Detox. Because honestly, Thanksgiving is a bit a gross, and come tomorrow, you’ll be in desperate need for something a bit lighter.

In BK: Urban Rustic strives to bring Brooklynites grocery items grown locally. They know where their food comes from. Fruits and veggies are never frozen, pesticide free and make your insides say “gracias.” Don’t be tempted by the burritos, although they are delicious. This weekend go for the smoothie and juice bar. Breakfast with a paradox smoothie (banana, vanilla, wheat germ and honey) and lunch with a protein-based sandie on multi-grain or vegan friendly spelt. Don’t be scared of the veggie juices. The Urban Rustic V-8 uses seasonal veggies and can be customized to your liking.

If you are one of the lucky who didn’t cook on Thanksgiving, then Urban Rustic’s grocery store offers deliciouso options to prepare your own healthy dinner and detox through the weekend. Feeling lazy? For the health-conscious couch potato, they deliver!

Urban Rustic 236 N. 12th Street, Brooklyn, 718.

In Manhattan: Liquiteria is a bit more commercial than the cozy BK grocer, but you will learn to love the efficiency. And so will your body. The pressed juices come complete with immunity defenses and kidney and liver detox. The Mr. Green is outta this world; and it might be your answer to post-Turkey sludgery. Think shopping fuel. Smoothies and fresh squeezed juices are made to order, but if stuffing has rendered you indecisive, go for the Power Pina Colada or Berry Powerful. Liquiteria is better for, er, liquids, so skip the sandie. If you aim to try on clothes, you don’t need it anyway.

Liquiteria 170 2nd Ave @ 11th Street  212.358.0300

Emma Dinzebach