A Southern Grace: bistro brunch and marvelous market

June 27, 2008

bistro brunch and marvelous market

Yum

Our last day began with brunch at a classy French bistro called Pastis. We were given the choice to be seated inside or outside, and opted for the more peaceful, more people-watching-friendly outside. (After all, we were right down the street from the Food Network office space, so you never know who might stroll by...)


Still stuffed to the brim from my glorious meal at Mesa Grill, I chose a lighter meal of granola with fresh berries and yogurt:


(thick yogurt, crunchy granola, and sweet, luscious berries)

Jamie got the croque madame:


(hearty bread, plenty of cheese, and a nice, runny egg)

Katie, cheese fan extraordinaire, ordered an omelet stuffed with herbs and lots of goat cheese:


(it came with crispy fries, too)

About 85% through our meal, the sky clouded over and the rain began. Fortunately, we came prepared...


...and were able to stay relatively dry until they could find a table for us inside.

After brunch, we headed down the street to the famous Chelsea Market. There are lots of bakeries (including the Fat Witch Bakery, which offered free brownie samples and is therefore awesome), as well as multiple shops and markets.

The Italian market (Buon Italia) is full of great stuff. They have many, many varieties of cheese, which means Katie was in heaven:


I was also in heaven, for they have pretty much every bean known to man...


...and chocolate. Lots o' chocolate:


They had oodles of fresh produce at the Manhattan Fruit Exchange--things like squasharinos...


...peppers...


...some questionable merchandise...


...and a few things I couldn't identify:


Anybody?

Update: Okay, one of my favorite Greeks, Peter of Kalofagas, tells me it's coconut. I'm slightly embarrassed. :)

There were no run-ins with any Iron Chefs, but it was still an incredible experience.

22 comments:

LyB said...

I want a croque madame NOW, one or a dozen of those chocolate bricks and I want to go to New York!!! Looks like you had another wonderful day. :)

Peter M said...

The chocolate for the nether-regions...I like and as for the last photo of the white, conical thingy...that's coconut!

Nic said...

A chocolate thong? You wouldn't want to wear that in a heatwave!

Anonymous said...

It's coconut isn't it? I think I see this at my store every day. When I go today, I'll look for the name.

Cathy - wheresmydamnanswer said...

The croque madame are amazing - I was in France a month ago and that was one of the foods of Choice!!

What a fun day - I love the Chelsea area where the Food Network is!!

Cheers
Cathy
www.wheresmydamnanswer.com

Albany Jane said...

A chocolate thong? I can only imagine the mess that would make. I'm guessing that it isn't intended for long wear purposes, otherwise a sexy treat could look like an embarassing accident!

The candy garters and whathave you remind me of when I was on a candy necklace kick in middle school... I'd have a rainbow necklace on even after I took them off.

kellypea said...

Those are coconuts that have had the hull cut off. What a lot of great places to see and Mmmmm....I love Mesa Grill. Haven't been to this one, though. And the chocolate thong? Hmmmm...sounds sticky. ;)

Deborah said...

Oh, how I wish I had a market like that here!

Anonymous said...

Yah just don't see chocolate thongs in my local grocery stores! All those wonderful photos makes me want to go to New York to eat.

Chef Jeena said...

I wish I was there! The vegetables look so fresh and all those chunks of chocolate yummmmmmmmmmmmmm!

coffee and queso said...

lucky girl! everything looks amazing--makes my pantry... and panties... look rather dull.

Alanna said...

coconuts! I saw them labelled as Thai Coconuts at my local store the other day.

Katie said...

What a fun trip. I want to go to NYC so badly. And FYI Tastespotting is back.

Lore said...

I couldn't have decided between that cheesy-herby omlette and the croque madame, I would've just ordered both :D

Emily said...

That market is insane! I could have spent hours in there.

I wouldn't have known that was a coconut.

I don't know about that questionable merchandise...

Anonymous said...

LOL Questionable produce! I love the sound of the goat's cheese omelette. your trip sounds great!

Geggie said...

I like Pastis. One of my fave restaurants in the city is its sister restaurant, Balthazar in Soho. Yum!

Vicarious Foodie said...

Oh my gosh I continue to be INCREDIBLY JEALOUS of you. What an amazing time.

Anonymous said...

Wow, what fun! I'm so jealous.

krysta said...

I love how the thong was right next to the marzipan. Why couldn't someone get create a marzipan thong.

Jaime said...

wow, i'm so jealous you have access to so many great things.

LOL at the chocolate thong!

and yes, it's a coconut - they just shave it down a bit for convenience so that's why it isn't brown and hairy on the outside :)

Anonymous said...

beans! i am with you on the beans!

as for the coconut, i live in chinatown, and it's fairly common to see people walking around with a coconut with the top peak cut off with a straw in it... i've never tried, but maybe someday soon.