4:30pm brownies

Bless her heart Heidi, who sent along two pieces of a batch of brownies for my birthday last week. I had one yesterday, after my moldy morning, and I'm pretty sure the dark chocolate with bits of saltiness helped clean out my system. I saved one for today because they are pretty exceptional brownies. (Hear that Heidi? Exceptional!).

Chipotle

I am causing all sorts of lunch travesties today - having a salad from a chain, at my desk while talking to Pittsburgh via skype. I think my brain was addled from the hour or more I just spent in a moldy doctor's office that we're going to renovate into a religious sanctuary. Great challenge I know! The space has been abandoned since October and is a warren of rooms, layers of ceiling peeling off, debris and leftover equipment scattered throughout. I needed all that salad and tart tomato to clear out the stale air clogging my lungs.
Chipotle, 680 Sixth Ave, NY, NY 10010 (btwn 21st and 22nd)

7:45pm eclairs

This is technically from yesterday, but you'll forgive me right? I can't seem to keep up with the dessert posts with M. still away. But I had to share these delicious eclairs from the bakery at newly opened French eatery, Lafayette. Andrew Carmellini seems to have no shortage of funds for new restaurants, the old Chinatown Brasserie has been so thoroughly eradicated, the space completely revamped to his style of upscale interior. John got me the birthday eclairs, whose chocolate interior was pleasantly bitter.
Lafayette, 380 Lafayette St, NY, NY 10003 (at Great Jones)

Hill Country, with Suj and Heimi

I took my old and dear friends visiting from Switzerland to Hill Country because I knew they would want to eat only non-Swiss things and what could be more fun than down and dirty Texan barbeque. We shared a mess of things, finishing off every last little bite. Yum delicious.
Hill Country, 30 W. 26th St, NY, NY 10010 (btwn Broadway and 6th Ave)

The Stage, with Anne

While M. is off gallivanting about Japan, I am meeting book club friends at beloved places like The Stage. When I woke up this morning I debated very briefly between pierogies or meatloaf but meatloaf won hands down. Usually the deep fried meatloaf comes covered in gravy but it wasn't today and I think it was even better that way. Each bite had a pleasing combination of crunchy breadcrumbs and crumbly bits of meat. I also like each forkful laden with vegetables and mashed potatoes. At the end of a very long and tiring week, I am holding on to that delicious memory for awhile.
Stage Restaurant, 128 Second Ave, NY, NY 10003 (btwn 7th and 8th Sts)

Markt

A lot of talking about meat before lunch time, combined with the wafting scent of street meat made me really crave a steak. So I went and got one.
Markt, 676 6th Ave, NY, NY 10010 (at 21st St)

Wei Mah Fast Food

You can probably tell from the photos that M. is away for a bit. This one is unabashedly blurry, despite trying to hold my hand really still in the low lighting. While at a job site meeting that ran over into lunchtime, I realized the rest of the site had gone silent as all the workers were busy eating what I instantly identified as the fried chicken leg over rice from Wei Mah. After that, no matter what thoughts I might have anticipated for lunch, I couldn't do anything else but go get myself a fried chicken leg over rice.

Wah Mei Fast Food, 190 Hester St, NY, NY 10013 (btwn Baxter & Mulberry) 

4:27pm chocolate cranberry cookie

In its prime, this would have been a truly delicious chocolate cranberry cookie.

Once Upon a Tart, with Thu

After a crushingly disappointing meeting with a plan examiner at the DOB not really interested in helping forward a project along, I walked up to west Soho to meet a sister for lunch at Once Upon a Tart. We wholly satisfied ourselves with a shared lunch of potato garlic soup, cucumber salad and our ever favorite roast loin pork sandwich, happily restored to its original sandwich bread.
Once Upon a Tart, 135 Sullivan St, NY, NY 10012 (btwn Prince and Houston)

Lenny's

There is very little in terms of ambiance at Lenny's that makes it worth staying for awhile, except when you're eating alone and thoroughly engrossed in a good read. I got waylaid by the Italian combo and was more than pleasantly surprised to discover a more than above average hero. It was big to be sure, but the light touch of Italian dressing, the shredded lettuce, and the bits of spiciness made for a rather tasty solo lunch. I guess there is little incentive for them to change the space, but man I wish it were a more pleasant dining environment, one reflective of the rather good eating experience.
Lenny's, 16 West 23rd Street, New York, NY 10010 (between 5th and 6th Avenues)