New York, New York, New York

New York, New York, New York

Our granddaughters had their second birthday party yesterday in a clever place with a huge water activity center, giant slide, and cave. It’s hard to believe that two years ago we were racing home from Capri to face grandchildren born three months prematurely. We are eternally thankful that we have been granted these miracles, who are healthy and ever-active.

Once we got the girls home, Maria and I took off for Saturday Vigil Mass, and I chose the Church of the Transfiguration in Chinatown, on Mott Street. It’s a gorgeous place, with a predominantly Chinese congregation and an Indian priest the evening we visited.

We hang out in Tribeca quite a bit when we visit the kids, and one of our favorite places is the corner suite in the Greenwich Hotel. The place is great—you can have breakfast in a courtyard—and the entire area is thick with trendy, busy restaurants of every persuasion.

I had told the concierge that I wanted to try something that was great even for this area, and we were sent to the Greenwich Grill, a few blocks away. We were greeted cordially, escorted to one of the prime, corner tables, and then the restaurant bought us cocktails because the hotel had sent us!

We opted for the 8-course Chef’s Seasonal Tasting Menu (I cheated, and also ordered some uni—the place has a sushi restaurant downstairs) and the entire meal was outrageously good. The fare is billed as “Italian/Asian fusion” and somehow it works wonderfully (more than half the packed house was Asian). On some nights they have both Japanese uni and California uni!

If you love high-end food and trendy places, don’t miss this excellent restaurant. The ambiance, service, and food are standouts, even in New York and even in Tribeca.

New York,  New York, it’s a wonderful town….

© Alan Weiss 2010. All rights reserved.