Everyman Espresso: Best of Latte Art

 

  

Where: Everyman Espresso, 136 East 13th Street, Union Square

What: Adjacent to a local theater company, Everyman Espresso is situated in the old box office area for the Classic Stage Company. Theater posters line the walls and give the shop a thespian vibe. Otherwise, the store is simply decorated and feels clean and open. There’s plenty of natural light and bar seating as well as benches and small tables.

We got two lattes and an almond croissant. They also carry Dough donuts, along with other breakfast pastries. Their coffee menu had a good variety. An extra touch was when they asked if we wanted sugar in our lattes, which avoided the problem of ruining your latte art when stirring in sugar. The lattes were big, foamy, and smooth. The croissant was filled with almond flavor and flakey.

We have a feeling that Everyman Espresso is a great pre or post-show hangout spot for actors. So if you’re an aspiring actor or actress, stop by!

Ngam: Best of Asian Cuisine

Where: Ngam, 99 3rd Avenue, East Village

What: Nestled along 3rd Avenue with many other restaurants, Ngam stands out amongst the rest with its delightful Thai menu and chic interior. We stopped by for a weekday lunch, but the restaurant also offers a larger dinner menu and separate brunch menu, along with unique sodas and teas. We tried out two of their unique pad thai offerings. We ordered the zucchini pad thai and papaya pad thai, both made with Ngam’s Pad Thai sauce, eggs, peanuts, garlic, Chinese chives, and tofu, but the dishes differed in that one was made with zucchini noodles and the other consisted of green papaya noodles. Decidedly, the vegetable and fruit-based noodles gave the pad thai an extra crunch. While the texture was different than your typical pad thai plate, the fresh and zesty flavors of thai cuisine still came through.

Ngam offers many seating options with stools at the bar across from the kitchen, small tables, and a large communal table. The interior is decorated with lightbulb strands, exposed brick, and large chalkboards. The disco ball towards the front of the house adds a fun, relaxed vibe to the space, making Ngam the perfect place for a casual lunch or special dinner.

Madman Espresso: Best of Latte Art

Where: Madman Espresso, 319 East 24th Street, East Village

What: Escape the craziness of Union Square by stopping by this quiet coffee shop a few blocks east. The shop may be small, but their menu certainly isn’t. They have your classic coffee options, in addition to specially crafted drinks. Madman Espresso also serves doughnuts from Dough, as well as croissants, danishes, and muffins. We tried the “Madmanccino,” which was a chocolate, chai, and cinnamon cappuccino, and the “Sarahbella,” which was a latte with honey and cinnamon. On the side, we both ordered plain croissants. They were sizable and very flakey – just how a croissant should be! The prices were reasonable, especially with the 10% student discount.

Although the space was small, it was decorated like a classic European coffee shop with tan stucco walls, a white arched ceiling, and exposed brick. There were two different seating areas, one window bar and another table against the wall. The service was friendly and the shop was full of frequent regulars. Madman also had beautiful latte art. For Halloween, they treated customers to pumpkin latte art.

With their friendly service, wide menu selection, and convenient location, Madman is the type of coffee shop where you’ll want to become a regular.

Amorino: Best of Hot Chocolate

 

Where: Amorino, 60 University Place, Greenwich Village

What: Although Amorino is known for their flower-shaped gelato, we stopped in to try their hot chocolate. You can pick from ten varieties, ranging from classic milk chocolate to orange. We decided to get the coconut and gianduja, a variety of hazelnut spread, hot chocolates. We took a seat at one of their many small tables and waited for our drinks to be brought to us. The seating area also offered a small fireplace seating. The store was decorated with pictures of their many desserts, which include gelato, crêpes, waffles, croissants, and macarons.

Our hot chocolates arrived at the perfect temperature. The consistency was more like a light pudding than of regular, smooth hot chocolate. Our chosen flavors were added in small shavings mixed throughout the drink. The coconut flakes and hazelnut pieces added extra texture to the drinks. They were served with a spoon and a pirouline, perfect for dipping. The drinks were the perfect amount of chocolate – not overly sweet or rich.

Just because the weather might keep you from getting gelato, don’t pass by Amorino. Instead, stop by and get some of their amazing hot chocolate!

Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Co.: Best of Ice Cream

 

Where: Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Co., 25 East 17th Street, Union Square

What: We weren’t sure what to categorize Chloe’s under because technically, they don’t serve ice cream! Instead, they offer soft serve fruit, a combination of fruit, water, and a small amount of organic cane sugar. Their soft serve is more like Italian ice with a creamy texture. Just like a typical froyo store, they offer a wide variety of toppings. Chloe’s also serves smoothies, popsicles, and breakfast options including waffles, oatmeal, and a fruit platter.

We got two sundaes, the Crunchy Salty and the Tropical Sunrise. The Crunchy Salty was banana and dark chocolate soft serve fruit with banana, pretzels, warm natural peanut butter, chocolate chips, and melted chocolate. The Tropical Sunrise consisted of mango soft serve fruit, mango, pineapple, and banana, which we substituted with toasted coconut. Both flavor combinations worked very well and the topping varieties added a fun crunch.

For a regular size, the plain soft serve costs $5 with $.50 per additional topping, which adds up quickly, especially with the sundaes. Both of ours were about $7, which felt expensive for a cup of ice cream. However, Chloe’s does offer a product that is much healthier than ice cream, so it might be worth the splurge if you’re in the mood for something more natural.

Their Union Square location, which is the only one besides a seasonal location in Montauk, offered a few tables and window-bar seating. The space had tall ceilings and was bright and colorful. It was perfectly situated off of Union Square for people (and dog!) watching.

Stop by Chloe’s for a refreshing afternoon pick-me-up that will brighten the rest of your day.

Mimi Cheng’s: Best of Asian

Where: Mimi Cheng’s, 179 2nd Ave., East Village

What: Walking past all the colors, lights, and people on Second Avenue, you’ll surely notice the clean and crisp interior of Mimi Cheng’s. The simplicity continues with the menu, which only has 3 varieties of dumplings, plus a seasonal offering, seasonal vegetable sides, a dessert dumpling, and seasonal drink options. We ordered The Reinvented Classic, which had pork, bok choy, and cabbage, and The Mimi Cheng, which had chicken and zucchini. Each had the option of pan-fried or boiled. We chose one of each. The dumplings were definitely fresh and light. We even saw dumplings being made in the kitchen right in front of us. Adding Mimi’s Secret Sauce brought out the dumplings’ flavor, but was a little spicy for our taste after a while.

The white interior of Mimi Cheng’s created a great backdrop for the eclectic and lighthearted prints featured throughout the restaurant. Bright yellow stools lined the walls where bar seating was located. The was also a larger communal table. The small restaurant was full on a weeknight. The employees were especially nice. The cashier gave us suggestions, and another employee brought our meals directly to our table.

If you’re craving a fun, fast, and delicious lunch or dinner option, take a break at Mimi Cheng’s!

Feel Food: Best of Juice

   

Where: Feel Food, 496 Avenue of Americas, Greenwich Village

What: We went to Feel Food with the intention of getting freshly pressed juice, but when we realized they were $9 each, we had to shift our strategy. Instead, we went for the açai bowls. As we waited, we walked to the back of the restaurant and passed cases of bottled juices, yogurts, sandwiches, salads, and other drinks. They also had many dry healthy packaged goods including granola bars and kale chips. Their menu offers freshly made breakfast and lunch options, ranging from porridge to wraps and soups. Feel Food also offers gluten-free dessert. The store’s decor reflected the healthy menu with plants and bright whites and yellows. We especially liked the giant “Juice” sign in the front of the store. The store was relatively large with plenty of seating at tables and the front bar.

Our açai bowls were perfectly sized. They blended a mix of açai, bananas, strawberries, and orange or apple juice with granola layered on top. The blended fruit made the açai taste fresh while the nutty granola added just enough crunch. At $8 each, the açai bowls were expensive for their size. It’s definitely not an everyday breakfast, but it’s certainly a fun once-in-a-while treat.

On a gray day, Feel Foods will be certain to brighten your mood with their bright exterior  and satisfy your tastebuds with their healthy menu.

Dough: Best of Donuts

Where: Dough, 14 W. 19th Street, Flatiron

What: We were happy to welcome this Brooklyn native to Manhattan on its second day of business. Dough is a donut shop that offers a wide range of flavors, from tropical chili to chocolate with earl gray. When we stopped by, they were selling 10 of their 16 flavors.

On our visit, the shop seemed to still be getting set up. The shelves were bare, credit cards were not accepted, and there was no coffee or milk. Hopefully this will be straightened out in a few days, but we were surprised because they already have a shop in Brooklyn, so they should know the ropes by now.

We got the hibiscus and café au lait doughnuts. All of their doughnuts seemed to be a plain with different glazes, which was disappointing compared to other doughnut places like Doughnut Plant, which create unique doughs and frostings for each doughnut. The glaze on these doughnuts was still flavorful enough to give the whole doughnut flavor, but it was not as exciting as it could have been. The doughnuts were well sized, tall, and fluffy. Each donut looked gorgeous. The café au lait had both a glaze and a sugary crumble on top. The hibiscus had glaze and a small candied garnish. The only problem was that the hibiscus glaze smelled off, which made taking each bite a little unpleasant. The doughnut tasted completely fine, however.

Although we were not completely satisfied on this visit, we hope that Dough irons out its kinks and becomes a neighborhood staple.

Momofuku Milk Bar: Best of Ice Cream

Where Momofuku Bar, 251 East 13th Street, East Village

What: Momofuku has a milk bar, noodle bar, and other asian-inspired restaurants all throughout NYC and Toronto. We tried out their milk bar one night for their soft serve creations. Although they had a wide variety of bakery options, they only had two soft serve flavors: cereal milk and crack pie. Each of the six locations carries cereal milk plus a different flavor. Cereal milk is made from milk that has soaked in cereal. Crack pie tastes like butter and toasted oats. They also offer fudge or crunch toppings.

We tried the cereal milk with crunches and the twist, which was cereal milk and crack pie, with crunches as well. The cereal milk is creamier and a little more than savory than the crack pie, which is sweeter and more flavorful. The crunch, dispersed on the edges and bottom of our cups, was flakes of corn cereal. For $5.25 the cups were disappointingly small and barely bigger than your fist.

There are several milk bar locations, but we visited the East Village one, which was small and only offered seating outside. The employees weren’t the nicest people around, but we were served extremely quickly. There were a lot of people on the outdoor benches, so we took ours to go.

Momofuku Milk Bar is worth trying once for their fun and unique flavors, but you’ll get a better bang for your buck elsewhere.

City Bakery: Best of Hot Chocolate

   

 

Where: City Bakery, 3 West 18th Street, Union Square

What: As the weather cools down, it’s time to start replacing your iced drinks with hot concoctions. We started out by going to the classic hot chocolate spot, City Bakery. We also ended up getting a sampling of their lunch options. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by lots of different food stations. There was the drink and bakery area, a juice bar, a hot foods counter, and a cold buffet. We grabbed corn salad, pasta salad, chicken salad, eggplant, and queso fresco form the cold bar and spaghetti squash from the hot foods counter. We got their signature hot chocolate at the bakery section. We opted for seats by the large windows, but there was plenty of seating elsewhere around the store and upstairs. The tables were small and the area was crowded with people on their lunch breaks.

When City Bakery says “hot chocolate,” they literally mean hot, melted chocolate. After we ordered our drinks, we watched the barista ladle melted chocolate out of a heated pot into bright blue cups. The hot chocolate was really hot at first and thick enough so that you couldn’t drink too much in one sip. Even after we finished our entire lunch, we still hadn’t finished our hot chocolates. We took them to go, but ended up not being able to down the whole cup of rich deliciousness. It wasn’t that they were bad, just that they were overwhelmingly rich by the end.

With the fast-approaching holiday season, City Bakery will definitely be on our regular rotation.