Carl was a hilarious instructor who kept the class interesting and the music flowing. His attitude was light hearted and he wanted to make sure everyone was enjoying themselves since after all it was a Friday night. The class was not Body Pump but it was cutting edge and focused the majority of the time on my “trouble areas” of arms and thighs. I enjoyed the class and will most likely make it a weekly addition. His spin class directly following was VERY intense filled with climbs and sprint intervals. At the thirty minute mark my thighs were screaming and I was more than elated to head out since Bo and I had to shower before our dinner reservations. Overall, we both LOVED working out together on a Friday night. It was a great way to start the evening, refresh our energy which is often drained after a long Friday, and feel relaxed and happy before going out!
How Can A Raw Vegan Restaurant Be On Fire and other Gramercy Discoveries
Saturday afternoon Bo and I spent two hours soaking up the soon on the Highline Park. The people watching was better than ever as I was able to check out everyone’s new spring fashions while Bo spoke with people who had just come from the Apple store bearing their new iPad. It included lots of this:After working up an appetite reading and people watching, we headed to Pinkberry for a cool and delicious afternoon treat. Bo loved their new mango flavor and enjoyed a small mango with fruity pebbles. I enjoyed mango as well but loaded up on toppings including blueberries, kiwi, strawberries, and animal crackers. This was definitely a treat but it did a wonderful job of holding me over for a few hours. In addition, nothing says warm weather like a cool cup of frozen yogurt.
Barbounia Restaurant: Gramercy Chic Greek
Apartment hunting works up an appetite, especially when it is preceeded by an 11 mile run. In between two broker meetings on Saturday Bo and I only had an hour to find lunch and knew we wanted a restaurant where we could relax and have space to review the apartments we had seen throughout the morning. We were in the Gramercy area and quickly headed towards Park Avenue as we figured this large avenue would provide the most options. Cosi is always a reliable chain but we weren’t in the mood for a chain, Sushi Samba and City Crab weren’t serving lunch, and the 24 hour diner was jammed pack.
That left us with Barbounia, a large restaurant we spotted across the street. We could tell it was open as there was a large sign out front and the door was propped open welcoming newcomers. As we approached we realized the sign was an advertisement for their brunch special: add $12 to your brunch and enjoy all you can drink champagne, belllinis, and mimosas. While this is definitely a good deal, unfortunately Bo and I knew we couldn’t enjoy the special due to our afternoon broker meetings.
Upon entering Barbounia, we were both amazed with the atmosphere. The space is quite large and airy, displying an open kitchen in the back, fun whimsical throw pillows along the side tables which all in all bring back visions of Aladin and Arabian Nights. The lavish warm gold and yellow tones are inviting and welcoming against the ornate decorations which channel the restaurants Mediterannean and Turkish roots. We were quickly greeted by a friendly hostess who was able to seat us promptly. Luckily the restaurant was only half full when we arrived though the bar area was alive with friends recapping Friday night’s events and girlfriends meeting for lunch. The seating was well spaced during lunch and we had ample room on either side which is a refreshing change from most New York City restaurants. The menu, while only one page, featured Mediterannean fare spanning from fallafel, hummus, eggs, and the classic greek salad. Bo quickly chose the Falafel sandwich (tahini, chopped salad, and zhoug) while I chose the Classic Greek which featured Classic greek romaine, tomato, cucumber, black olives, feta, and za’atar. I knew that a mere salad wouldn’t satiate my post long run hunger so I added grilled shrimp for some added protein. Upon our waitress’ suggestion we also ordered an the hummus tapas.
The hummus tapa came out quickly and looked absolutely decadent. The hummus did not come out with warm pita but instead a warm salt and rosemary encrusted doughy loaf of bread. The hummus had a light garlic and lemon flavor though the true winner was the bread. The doughy texture and warm salt was just what we were both craving. It was clear that this is one of their most popular menu items as every table around us was enjoying the same appetizer. I caught a glance of the eggplant tapas and regretted not choosing that instead as I bet the flavor would have been even better. Oh well!
Our main courses came out a few minutes later and were presented beautifully. Bo’s fallafel sandwhich was in fact a gyro and the warm hummus and tahini was oozing out the end. The flavor complex was spot on while the crunchy greek inspired vegetables (tomato, cucumbers, lettuce) balanced out the richness of the tahini and fallafel. In one word, Bo described it as a delicious vegetarian lunch. In fact, he was very proud of the fact that he ordered a vegetarian entree as he is trying to be more open to enjoying vegetarian meals instead of dwelling on their lack of meat. My salad blew my expectations away. I had prepared myself for a typical greek salad with bits of feta, chopped cucumbers, and way too much olive oil. But, intsead I was delighted and overwhelmed with the large triangles of feta, the jumbo shrimp, and the flavorful herbs. I was glad that I requested they serve the dressing on the side as it was far more oil than herbs and vinegar. However, when used in small amounts it was a perfect addition.
Overall, Barbounia was a perfectly chic brunch spot which we will hopefully enjoy again soon one evening with friends. I can only imagine what the space would be like at night with the energy of a Saturday night crowd and their creative drinks.
In addition to Barbounia, some of our other Greek recommendations in NYC are as follows:
Avra
141 Est 48th Street, 212-759-8550
Tends to be a bit pricey but this is a perfect restuarant to go when entertaining clients, enjoying a corportate meal, or celebrating.
Pylos
128 E. 7th St, west of Avenue A/212-473-0220
It’s lasted in the East Village for over six years. That in itself makes it a success!
Thalassa
179 Franklin St/between Greenwich & Hudson/212-941-7661
They have 5,000 bottles in their wine cellar, need we say more?
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