STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

bumblebee wrote:

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for a fab/not expensive dinner i highly recommend bar pitti.  it's friendly and cool, directly next door to da silvano, and you can sit on the patio.  they have lots of good italian wines, some under $30, and the food is very yummy and reasonable. 

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where is it located?  any specific menu recs?   Sorry, i'm so bad at choosing food at restaurants- i really always just want the house special (what the restaurant is best at) since i'll eat anything, but servers always say, well... everything's good.  Drives me crazy.

i'm not much of a foodie... spice (on university and tenth, not the indian place) is good, cheap, and it would work well for a group. it's thai food. if you're in the area, you can go to pop afterwards for drinks. i haven't been there in a really long time (like more than a year) but i don't think it's changed that much. it's upscale, but not super swanky and they have a cool drink menu, which is always fun.

i've heard good things about boca chica (i think jmr went there) but it's kind of small. also inoteca is supposed to be good too, but the last time i tried to eat there it was super packed.

as far as shopping i would definitely do soho. you can get everything (chain stores, hoochie stores, upscale stores, street vendors) there.

for drinks i really like employee's only. it's on hudson. it also gets crowded, but i like the ambiance and the postcard is super cool.

Smaller chill bars are sometimes hard to come by on Friday and Saturday nights in the cool parts of Manhattan. I usually either pick a bar in a neighborhood that will be kind of dead or pick a neighborhood that has tons of ok bars and just hop from bar to bar until I find one that isn't packed.

Where in Brooklyn do you live? Have you been to either of the pizza bars yet? The Alligator (Metropolitan and Lorimer) or Capone's (I think it's on N9th and Roebling). I've never been to Capone's but I go to the Alligator all the time and it's often pretty empty on Friday and Saturday nights. I think that could be fun. Most of my friends from out of town are totally amazed by the free pizza. Plus it's totally low key.


As far as Manhattan goes....maybe Lakeside Lounge (Ave B and 10th). It has two rooms so it doesn't usually get too crowded. They have a photo booth (well at least they used to, I haven't been in a while).

Welcome to the Johnsons is fun but be warned - it is pretty divey. Just wanted to let you know in case your friends might be horrified.
Here's a tiny pic of it looking all neat and clean and empty


It's also right across the from a bar called The Magician which I like. It isn't super hip and it can also get crowded but it's worth a shot if you're in the area. It isn't that small though.


Other ideas - go along Ludlow. Most of those bars are a nightmare on weekends but you can try Max Fish, Darkroom, Pianos, Motor City Bar. Also I like to eat at the Pink Pony sometimes - it's on Ludlow just south of Houston, next to Max Fish. And if you're out really late and want a snack you can get crepes at the tiny storefront on Ludlow and Rivington or the pizza place on the corner of Orchard and Rivington.


If you decide that you want something a bit better and more hip I sort of like The Delancey which is on Delancey and Attorney right at the foot of the Williamsburg bridge. They usually have djs upstairs and bands downstairs but there is also a back room with nice little booths.


I'm bad with restaurants too but let me try to throw out some ideas.
I really like this Tibetan place called Tsampa on 9th between 2nd and 3rd. I've gone there twice with big groups and it worked out well - it's not very crowded and they have some big tables. Plus the ambiance is nice. Here is some info as well as the menu.

I also love Yaffa Cafe on St. Mark's. They have great pasta, my friends are addicted to the Chicken Curry and they have a great carrot vinagrette dressing. The decor is really eclectic and it's kind of crowded inside and they also for some reason play techno most of the time but the food is really good.


As for activities I think shopping and wandering is a lot of fun. Museums can be hard in a big group. Oh they just opened an ice skating rink in Bryant Park and it's free! Well plus $7.50 for skate rental if you don't have your own. I haven't been by on weekends so I don't know how crowded it gets but it's open from something like 8am-10pm.

Hope this helps!

Aren't you in Williamsburg?  My favorite places to eat in the Williamsburg/Greenpoint area are Relish and Enid's.  Relish is an old style diner that has really good food and really good drinks.  There are lots of Williamsburg hipsters in there if you are looking to give your friends an idea of Willamsburg.  Enid's is a great place for brunch.  You will probably have to wait a while, but the food is really good.  They even have a veggie version of biscuits and gravy, yummy!

One of my favorite Brooklyn things to do when people come visit is to walk over the Brooklyn bridge from Manhattan into Brooklyn.  Then you can take the stairs down and walk around Dumbo.  There is a nice park where you can look over on the city plus there is the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory which makes the most amazing creamy ice cream ever, Grimaldi's (sp?) is down there (it is one of the places that competes for the best pizza in New York) and Jacques Torres chocolate is also down there on Water Street.  There are also a few stores West Elm the ABC store (but I think it is closing).  There is also a resturant called Rice down there (there are a couple around the city) that has good Thai food.  HTH! 

Oh, there is also a cool bar that is also an arcade in Williamsburg (if you are looking to entertain the guys while you get to hang out).  I can't remember the name, but if you are interested I can ask my husband.

-- Edited by mckenke at 11:21, 2005-11-10

Thanks cc...Barcade...should have been able to remember that one