Brunch at The Cornelia Street Cafe & delicious gelato in Greenwich Village

I guess I’ve been spending a lot more time in Greenwich/West Village. It’s not my fault they have such cute brunch spots! The Cornelia Street Café is no exception in terms of aesthetic — it’s an inviting, chatty cafe with a very neighborhood feel and outdoor seating for sunny days. They change up the artwork monthly (when we went, it was lined with Martin Silverstein paintings). I found out later the cafe has a pretty interesting history — it was opened by three artists in 1977 and doubled as a restaurant and performing theater. People come by to read poetry, play jazz, or even cabaret. It’s now considered an NYC cultural landmark with about 700 shows a year. Unfortunately, I didn’t really feel like the food we ordered lived up to the ambiance.

My friend Shahla and I wanted to split something savory and something sweet, so we went for the Huevos Rancheros (fried eggs with black beans, cheddar cheese, salsa cruda, creme fraiche and corn tortillas, $10). I just didn’t feel like it had a lot of taste…we did order it with egg whites though, so that may be part of the reason. But it was a small portion as well. The buttermilk pancakes were a little better.

They served it with fresh fruits and maple syrup. But again, nothing special. Maybe because NY has so many great brunch options, it’s a matter of comparison for me. Like Cafe Orlin on St. Mark’s — I think their brunch is not only delicious, it’s unique and not something I necessarily feel like I can make at home by myself for a third of the price. That said, I didn’t know about all the performances and have a new itch to go back to Cornelia just to catch one. They have a whole schedule of their shows on their website you can check out.

BUT! This has a happy ending. We were directed to a pretty amazing gelato place right after which more than made up for the underwhelming meal: L’Arte del Gelato.

So, another story — a few days previous to this we went to the Milanese gelato place, Grom around the corner from here which I found to be pretty…gross. Even their hazelnut sucked — how can you go wrong with hazelnut?? Well this place is around the corner, so don’t waste your time with the lines at Grom and come straight here. They have a brilliant arsenal of rotating flavors all written in Italian (and even some you wouldn’t find in Italy, like caramel or licorice). The owners, Francesco Realmuto and Salvatore Potestio, were actually diamond cutters interestingly enough, who missed the sweet treats from back home and decided to open shop (first in Chelsea Market, and soon to other locations like this one).

But you might as well be in Italy — when we went, the whole staff was speaking Italian (even to some fancy customers). And it probably costs just as much as you would pay there, if you’re converting from Euros maybe: $5 for a small cup.

So worth it though.

Restaurants’ Info:
The Cornelia Street Café
29 Cornelia Street
New York, NY 10014
212-989-9319

L’Arte del Gelato
75 Seventh Avenue South,
New York, NY 10014
212-924-0803
West Village

x
Shy

PS. I know Mohsin’s going to read this and be like, “Who told you about the gelato place, huh? ninininini” or definitely something like that…so yeah, Mohsin, here’s your credit line.