Put On Your Best Dress For Tea At The Lowell

Pembroke Room - The Lowell Hotel - Upper East Side

28 E. 63rd St., New York, NY 10065

Afternoon tea is served between 3pm and 6pm. Reservations recommended.

While still in the single digit years, I insisted upon having tea with my American Girl Doll at Colonial Williamsburg. On my first trip abroad to London I cajoled my father (or rather my mother, whose agenda was the same as mine, cajoled my after) into participating in British High Tea. While in Hong Kong I somehow managed to re-convince my father to partake in afternoon tea, this time in the famous Peninsula Hotel lobby. For my sister's bridal shower, I rounded up the talent of several family friends to throw a spectacularly lavish high tea, complete with crustless finger sandwiches, scones, clotted cream, and an assortment of chocolate-laced desserts. 

I can't put my finger on anything in particular that drives this lifelong interest in tea time. But, then again, why shouldn't I love it? If you don't have another excuse to get gussied up, put on your best dress and head to the Pembroke Room at The Lowell Hotel for a short entrée into elegance and luxury. 

With a pot of chai steeping by my side in a silver kettle, we tackled the three-tiered silver tray of finger sandwiches, tarts, and sweets. Like good girls, we started with our sandwiches before proceeding to "dessert". Once we made it through the cucumber sandwiches and triangular tartines with smoked salmon, it was a mountain of éclairs, berry tarts, iced cakes, and--my favorite--French macarons. 

For nearly three hours my friends and I sipped fine tea from finer china while participating in the age old tradition of social banter (gossip). It was nothing but lovely. 

The All-You-Can-Drink Brunch at Stecchino May or May Not Be Worth The Food

Stecchino - Hell's Kitchen
765 9th Ave. (Btw 51st and 52nd), Manhattan, NY

Not bad, but not worth it.

That was my take-away from Stecchino's all-you-can-drink brunch.

The most exciting thing that happened was being engaged by a lovely (at least semi-drunk) Canadian couple with whom we chatted for 20 minutes, discussing New York's culinary and theatrical delights and Toronto's cartoon of a Mayor.

An over-peppered, washed out Bloody Mary sparked a food debate that began with Clamato, clam-tomato juice Canadians mix into a punchier Bloody Mary, and ended with the relative merits of poutine, the gravy-slathered french fries of the Great White North. (We were all in agreement that Americans do Bloody Mary's an injustice by not using Clamato. But there was a sharp debate on poutine: one female American agreed with one anti-gravy male Canadian that fries and ketchup belong together, and one male American staunchly vouched for the female Canadian in a pro-gravy stance.)

Stecchino took a back seat to all this excitement. Though I had procured a deal--all-you-can-drink brunch for two for a total of $30--that beat the menu price by $5 per person, once I added in the tax and pre-calculated, mandatory tip, the $50 bill just didn't seem worth it. The best part of my Mexican omelet was the candied bacon, which fell short of expectations, followed by the small, decorative salad. (The omelet itself scratched the surface of mediocrity). The Canadian woman beside me didn't have such nice things to say about her salmon burger, which she traded to her more willing husband. He seemed to enjoy it, and the woman was much happier after she made the trade.

If you're planning on merrily drinking yourself under the table for $20, this is a nice atmosphere in which to do it. The drinks aren't bad. Just one Bellini (served in a tank of a wineglass glass rather than svelte Champlain stemware) was enough to make me fall asleep at the planetarium, so there was really no need to "get my money's worth" on the drinks side of the equation. I'd much rather eat well. Though, I realize others have a different Sunday brunch agenda. So, if you're going to order at least two drinks elsewhere, maybe the mediocre food merits the $20 price tag for bottomless booze.

Stop By Little Town Before Hitting The Big City

Little Town - Union Square

118 E15th Street, New York, NY

Choose your beer from the colored chalk listings. Among the pints of ale you can order are "Nipple Top" and "Mother's Milk". Not a beer drinker myself, my brew buff of a roommate gives them the thumbs up. For $6 it's not a bad price, either.

The small bar remained packed for the duration of our stay, and constant noise did impair our conversation capacity. But despite the full house, it wasn't unpleasant. The crowd likely had an average age of less than 30 years. And people weren't just young--they seemed attractive and normal. People mingled; no one was obnoxious, and no one got rowdy.

During the week Little Town offers $.99 oysters; we settled for $1.25 each. Don't expect a waiter to come over to your table and ask if you'd like any, though. Once you place your order at the bar, a server will deliver a round of oysters atop chipped ice with lemons and sauce. 

A whiskey sour and three oyster slurps later, we left for our next destination. But, I would come back. Little Town is a pleasant pit stop on the way to the big city. 

Take Refuge At Riposo 46

Riposo 46 - Hell's Kitchen
667 9th Ave., New York, NY 10036

Despite being just a few blocks away from Times Square mayhem, Riposo 46 feels like a calm get-away. The restaurant consists of a few high wooden tables and an L shaped bar. It was busy--I took the only empty seat--but not noisy or overwhelming.

Wine glasses range from about $9-$12; the menu was diversified, not pretentious. With a glass of white hanging from my left palm, I asked the bartender to surprise me and bring Riposo's best flatbread.

He returned several minutes later with a large Prosciutto di Parma, big enough to share, with Prosciutto resting in folded heaps across the arugula. Thin, warm bread, fresh greens, and salted strips of fine charcuterie folded up into bites of Italy.

Have A Bluesy, Boozey Night At Tomi Jazz

Tomi Jazz - Upper East Side
239 E 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022

For a bar, Tomi Jazz provokes a price reflex: $10 minimum + $10 cover. You mean, I have a $20 tab and I haven't even ordered anything yet?

But it's cheap compared to what a concert might cost. This dark, basement bar is a Japanese Jazz club with sake, ramen, cocktails, and singing. A favorite regular of mine is Allegra Levy, frequently accompanied by the tall, lanky piano savant, Seán McCluskey.

After an ironically festive mojito for a bluesy joint, I simplified my cocktail to a whiskey sour. The blank-faced waitress smiled as I placed my order. She repeated it back to me, which I repeated back to her, hearing her hesitancy. We executed this exchange two or three times, each time with her voice ending in a high question tone, and each time mine responding in a stern, flat whiskey sour. 

Five minutes later she returned with a whiskey soda.

At that point it wasn't even worth it. I stopped another waiter and asked for a few limes rather than going through all that again.

Still, it was a great night. Captivating music beats staying home on a Friday night (which was nearly the case). So, double win.