Dating Manhattan...I'm totally in love!

Dating Manhattan...I'm totally in love!
We truly do live in one of the best cities in the world...last Thursday,on a beautiful sunny day, while playing hooky from work with my new beau who's a total keeper despite his non-Manhattanite nationality (the office was closed for Veteran's Day and I don't really have the balls to literally play hooky but either way...saying it is way more fly).

It's taken me a while, but we decided to date Manhattan together!

Now don't get me wrong here, it's not that I can't share my true love (NYC) with anyone, it's just that I've never really dated Manhattan with anyone...in fact, I've always enjoyed her all to myself...it's time I share my true love for this fantastic city with someone and play nice in Central Park's Sandbox.

We started our day with an early brunch at my favorite (close to home) neighborhood restaurant, Cafe Mogador...strong coffee and fresh food...amazing hummus, pita with Zatar and their Arabic salad with olive oil, lemon, and parsley...I added Bulgarian Feta (I seriously felt like I was in Tel Aviv)...I usually go to Mogador for Sunday brunch (nothing cures a hangover better than Mogador's fresh squeezed OJ, Hummus, and poached Halumi eggs)! The scene is just as good as the food. with French flying off of the majority's tongues and bits of Hebrew and Italian too. Grungy old school Lower East Side meets Europe's finest...well if I may get into this a literally, it's more like North Africa's finest with Morocco at the top tier!

Check out what Zagat had to say about Mogador...http://www.cafemogador.com/zagat.htm

Getting lost in Paris, Rome, Florence, or Neve Tzedek is amazing...who said you can't do that in NYC too?! Even though I've lived here for most of my life, I still love to stroll the streets of any neighborhood even my own! After experiencing Mogador's love in the late AM, walked through my next favorite hood in the city...Bowery between Houston throough Cooper Square...you walk a little south west of Houston, & BOOM...you're in SOHO...the crossroads between the LES, East Village, NoHo, SoHo and Bleeker's start...The Bowery is simply asking for it...we first stopped at The Cooper Square Hotel (my idea of the PERFECTLY decorated abode), home to Chef Scott Conant’s Faustina, I secretly pretended I was walking into my own apartment (shhh don't tell anyone I still play pretend...).

The Sitting Area @ The Cooper Square Hotel

Lobby @ The Cooper Square Hotel

Calla Lilies & Paper Wrapped Chandelier @ The Cooper Square Hotel Lobby

We sat on the benches outside of Keith McNally's bakery and bistro, Balthazar (which by the way, can NEVER GET OLD)...we manged on Tuna Tartar (topped with wasabi fish roe & spicy wasabi mustard mayo) at Delicatessen's...need I mention the mid-day drinking or is that a given? We finally made it back to Avenue A & Houston.


Either I'm in love or simply in love with Manhattan but I can't get enough of her and the wonderful things she has to offer...and yes, despite the prefix, Manhattan is a woman...a deep, intricate, inspiring, cold (at times), driven, sexy, beautiful, passionate city that's home to everyone and anyone. Whether straight, gay, tall, short, fat, thin, weird, straight laced and dry, urban, country, foreign, rich, broke (more stylish way of saying poor), funny, retarded, idiotic, smart, whatever....you name it...ANYONE can date Manhattan!