A New York Dining Paradise with Hannah

Hannah is of the mind that if you're going to spend $5 (or any money, for that matter), it might as well be on something exquisite. I love her philosophy and she really does live beautifully yet frugally. She took us to so many reasonably priced places to eat in New York. None of them are places we would have found on our own and we would certainly never have walked into them if we'd passed them on the street. We saw a much more interesting New York with Hannah than we would have on our own.

For anyone visiting New York, I strongly recommend that you arrange for Hannah to be your tour guide.

We had lunch at the Roebling Tea Room one day (only a few blocks from our loft) and then met up with a group of Hannah's friends one other evening for drinks and desserts after which we all went to our loft for more drinks and fun. It was nice to meet some of Hannah's and Dani's friends. Rumour has it that Bill Murray's son works at the Roebling Tea Room.

We had an excellent dinner at the Diner in Williamsburg (right in our neighbourhood). It doesn't look like much from the outside but what a hoppin' place and it's really good! The menu changes daily (or at any given moment) so there is no printed menu. The waiter tells you (with individual flair) all the details of the rather extensive menu, writing keywords on the paper tablecloth as he/she goes. By the end of the menu, your mouth is positively watering! Everything sounded so good and our meals were fantastic! There's another associated restaurant attached right next door, Marlow & Sons - they share the same kitchen, and we went there for drinks and oysters one day. It was also very cool. They have a little shop where they sell nice things such as locally made artisanal chocolate ... mmmmmm. They have their own butcher which specializes in locally sourced grass-fed meats and they make their own signature sausages. Good stuff. You should go there.You should go to all the places I'm talking about here.

I bought some of that beautiful, award-winning chocolate at Marlow & Sons - Mast Brothers Chocolate. Hannah was going to take us for a tour of the place where the chocolate is made but we didn't have time. I would love to see it if we ever go again. The packaging is so beautiful, I can't bear to open it. Again, this fits with Hannah's philosophy. Just read about the various flavours and see if your mouth doesn't start watering. See how beautifully they're packaged! *sigh*

We stopped for coffee (Kevin), tea (Hannah), and hot chocolate (me) at Cafe Gitane - apparently a hip place - see who was spotted there. Look at my hot chocolate! How cute is that?!! I read that the food there is very good and there are some specialties to die for! It was certainly a busy, little place!

Hannah took us to this quaint little place called Bakeri where they made these beautiful and delicious scones and cakes. It was such a charming little place! Another similar place she took us to that was also very nice was Radish, which was a couple of blocks from our loft. I also can't remember the name of the little cafe that Hannah took us to that's famous for its soup. And the soup truly was the best I've ever had.

Another FABULOUS dining experience was the lunch we had at Frankies. We were at the Manhattan location. It was phenomenal! Our lunches were delicious and beautiful (as per Hannah's philosophy). They sell they're own commissioned organic, extra virgin olive oil (first cold pressed) from Partanna, Sicily. It's made with Nocellara del Belice olives. It tasted SO GOOD, Hannah bought me a litre of it to take home with me (for my birthday). I've never tasted an olive oil I've liked so much. Dani's Mom took a couple of bottles home with her, too, when she was last there. They also sell a raw, unfiltered extra virgin olive oil. Their cafe on the other side of the restaurant sells the Stumptown Coffee Kevin wanted to buy. Very convenient. Hannah once brought Kevin Stumptown Coffee from New York and he really liked it so she bought him more for HIS birthday while we were there.

We didn't eat at this restaurant but we had a good laugh at the sign. If you can't read it, click on the photo for a better view.

We had a STUPENDOUS meal at Five Leaves - again, not far from our loft. The place was SO happenin' and even when it's quite cold, people will sit at the outside tables with their wine while they wait for a table. We went quite early and were lucky to get this corner table after only a 20 minute wait. Dani joined us. The food is fresh and everything we had was EXQUISITE! So tasty! So delicious! I had a drink that was so good, I had two. It was called a Southern Belle and I am going to try to reproduce it ... somehow. I haven't done any research yet.

Five Leaves is the restaurant Heath Ledger had made his pet project before he died (read here). It opened after his death. It's a rustic but warm, inviting place ... loud but not so loud that you can't talk over the noise. It just feels like a great party. Luke would know right away that is "smells like fun". The music they played was great, too. Again, loud but not too loud. We had SUCH A GOOD TIME THERE!

If you want a heavenly gastronomical experience for a reasonable price, just take Hannah with you. I've never eaten so well in my life ... delicious AND healthy!! Exquisite!!