Dervish (47th St. btw 6th and 7th)

I met my parents at Dervish for a quick Turkish dinner. The Iskander Kebab was actually pretty good! The lamb and the tomato sauce was quite good, although some of my pieces of pita were a bit stale. The salad was delicious though - cucumber, tomato, onion, etc. Very refreshing and light.

The place was pretty cute, and well decorated, but there were fruit flies flying around me! I know it happens, and sometimes there's really nothing you can do about it (I know, I worked at a vineyard where the fruit flies were unbearable during harvest in the fall!), but it's still a nuisance. It was a good meal, but I've had better Turkish/Mediterranean food in NYC. Convenient location for theater though!

Cookshop (10th ave at 20th st)

This place is a bit overpriced, but Cookshop is really good! I went here for a lunch during work, and got the mezze platter. It was probably the best mezze platter I've had. Seriously, all the dips were amazing, and the pita was to die for. Obviously I liked the place. I wouldn't make it a weekly ordeal, but I definitely recommend the cuisine. They also have outdoor seating for nicer weather, and a very chic interior.

Balade (1st ave between 12th and 13th)

I went to Balade with a Lebanese friend, and she picked a good place! I got fried Halloumi cheese that came with pita bread, tomato, and cucumber. It really was good, but I have to say, I wish there was a) more tomato and cucumber, there was only one slice of each! and b) a sauce to dip it in other than the olive oil on the table. My friends got sandwiches, so maybe I would try that next time, instead of getting an appetizer for a meal!

Del Posto (10th ave at 16th)

Phenomenal. The prix fixe lunch at Del Posto is $29 and you choose your three courses. Definitely worth not participating in casual Friday! I went with 4 other colleagues to celebrate a few things we had going on a work, and 3 of our birthdays that were all within a few weeks of each other. The waiters are so helpful and knowledgeable about the menus. I so badly wanted to take a picture of everything, but it would have been super inappropriate. Check out everything you get (and EVERY bite is a party in your mouth):

1. Gift #1 - They bring out a silver platter with 3 amuse bouches per person, and a recommended order in which to eat them. First is a gazpacho-like tomato soup... I didn't know tomato soup could taste so good! And the rim of the mini cup had a flavored powder thing on it (not sure what that was). Next was sauerkraut wrapped in prosciutto - who would have thought! And last was pretty much every expensive food you could think of, put into a tiny sandwich. I took and we all just looked at each other in awe. I'm not entirely sure of the exact contents of that mini bite of bliss... but I know there was lobster and caviar!

2. Bread - Of course it was very good bread. But it also came with little dishes of fresh butter and pork lard. Not going to lie, the lard looked disgusting, but tasted like gravyyyyy.

3. Appetizer (1st choice on the prix fixe) - I ordered insalata primavera. It was a bunch of random vegetables and herbs, playfully scattered on the plate, and with a ricotta dressing. It was really good... beet, zucchini, snap pea, radish, maybe tomato... I don't quite remember each one.

4. Main (2nd choice on the prix fixe) - Per the waiter's recommendation, I chose the skate which I've never had before. Light, buttery, flaky fish that was perfectly seasoned. It came with mini squash chips scattered over it, a green sauce on the plate, and then a light tomato broth that they poured over it at the table. I also tried the pansoti that someone else had ordered and it was fabulous. I would probably get a pasta next time!

5. Gift #2 - Another box was brought to the table at the same time as our desserts. The waiter suggested we eat the mini lollipop of olive oil ice cream dipped in chocolate and rolled in something crunchy first... heaven... then next was a mini donut filled with an amazing cream and it was still warm. It was SO good, not an over-processed piece of unflavorful fried dough. Then the waiter pulled out a little drawer from the bottom of the box and there were more goodies inside!! It was a hand-made chocolate ganache/truffle, and a little piece of grapefruit that had been reduced and cooked in something, then had something crunchy on top (we actually had those two after the dessert).

6. Dessert - I'm a chocoholic for sure, but I decided to branch out a little bit. At a restaurant like this, you know everything is going to be amazing. So I ordered carrot cake with a sage gelato. Great decision. I was unsure about the sage, but it was so perfect - it added to the carrot cake, without being too strong. But of course, I also tried the chocolate cake dessert with the olive oil ice cream. It was delicious, but I'm glad I branched out because that carrot cake was fantastic.

Obviously, I enjoyed Del Posto. I recommend it and would definitely go back - maybe dinner next time :)

Fig & Olive (west 13th street)

Nothing like a two and a half hour lunch on a beautiful Friday afternoon :)

Restaurant week got extended (yay) so we got a 3-course Mediterranean meal at the amazing Fig & Olive. I started with gazpacho, then had orecchiette with halibut, tomatoes and some sort of sauce, and finished with an awesome chocolate pot de creme. Everything had rosemary in it (we were even surrounded by little rosemary plants that blocked off the outdoor seating area), and even the focaccia and olive oil we started with was great.

This restaurant has such a great spread of food, and the atmosphere is adorable, inside included. I had actually been to the Midtown East location before for a brunch, and the cocktails are delicious as well. I love that so many places have unique, signature drinks.

Adorable place, great location, fantastic food.