The Aussie Who Ate The Big Apple

Early Lunch at Cafe Gitane

Today Kit and I dined with his sister for an early lunch at Cafe Gitane (242 Mott St Btwn Prince & Houston St)
Always busy and always filled with models and celebs, I wasn’t surprised to see Carlos Leon sitting in the corner. ( For those who don’t know… Madonna + Trainer = Baby Daddy #1 )

I love Gitane. Its Moroccan/French cuisine is always fresh and full of flavor and in the years of coming here I have definitely found a few favorites.

Let’s start with the Avo Toast.
Avocado, Lemon Juice, Olive Oil, Chili Flakes On Seven Grain Toast
Rich and creamy avocado w/ tangy lemon juice and then my favorite thing to add is the fiery red chili oil from their jars of Harissa.

I also love the Hearts of Palm salad, which you can also add organic chicken to. I always feel wonderfully fresh and healthy eating this. It’s light and tangy but has just the right amount of fat from the avocado. ( And yes I add harissa/ chili oil to this too )
Hearts Of Palm, Avocado Orange And Endive Salad, Lemon, Olive Oil And Chili Flakes

Kit ordered the Hachi Parmentier, Organic Ground Beef with mashed potatoes garlic and cream and organic mixed greens. He said that it reminded him of a great plate of comfort food. The creamy mash and beef filling him up well to start the day.

Gitane also has great coffee. We always order lattes and I love their touch of adding a small square of dark chocolate on the side of your cup.
In the morning - Come here for a fruit salad w mint or one of their delicious baked eggs breakfasts.

CASH only.

Bonjour Tartinery - Lunch in Nolita

Oh to have a beautiful spring day in March in NYC. The sun is out, its in the 70’s and life is grand…
I had friends in town from Milano and wanted to take them for some lunch in Soho/Nolita.
I chose Tartinery 209 Mulberry at Spring Street for its delicious open face sandwiches ( Tartines ) and also their $13 lunch Prix-Fixe.
The space has a sweet window side cafe at street level and then drops down into a fabulous sunken dining room space, complete with a large tree in the center of the room. The light streams in from outside through large floor to ceiling windows and drum-like lamps hang over the tables.
Most of the waitstaff are actually French and both times I have been here, they’ve been very attentive and quite charming.

Lunch Prix-Fixe - For $13 you can choose one of their soups and also a selection of 8 different Tartines from their menu.

If you choose not to order the Prix-Fixe for lunch, the main Tartines are definitely recommended as a Main course or to share.

I ordered the Bouillon De Poulet Soup w/ chicken, mixed vegetables and chervil.

A seemingly simple soup with carrots, celery and tender pieces of roast chicken, had a delicious depth to the broth and the vegetables were fresh and tender.

For my tartine I ordered the Poulet Roti - roast farm chicken, herb mayo, shaved fennel, olive oil.

I love the combination of the delicate shaved fennel and fronds on top of the chicken and herbed mayo.
There is something about this sandwich that takes me back to my childhood in Australia where one of my favorite lunches was pulled rotisserie chicken atop freshly baked white bread with a little mayonnaise.

Of course this version is a little more grown up - on French sourdough and spotted with slighty fruity olive oil but it still has that comfort food feeling.

This is a definitely new favorite Sandwich for me….

To show you the scale of the A La Carte Tartines, here is the CLUB turkey, brie cheese, bacon, tomato, iceberg, herb mayo.

….next to the lunch Prix-Fixe Saint Marcelun : saint marcellin cheese, prosciutto, arugula, olive oil.

Tartinery also has freshly squeezed juices and an extensive wine list.

One thing I noticed on their menu, which I will without a doubt be back for, is the Rillettes De Canard. Duck rillettes served with poilane toasts.
Shared with a friend and a bottle of French Rose…. ah yes please!

Twitter @Tartinery