Slope sandwiches and such

Naidre's
384 7th Ave (btwn 11th/12th)
Park Slope, Brooklyn
718.965.7585

This tiny coffeeshop/cafe on 7th has always been delicious, no matter what we've tried. Personality is showcased on the sidewalk chalkboard sitting outside and updated each day. They sell coffee, sandwiches, salads, a display-case-ful of treats and pastries and cookies. Their sandwiches are perfect when I am craving something tasty but not formal and not from home. The Alamo is my absolute favorite--a chicken wrap with black beans, avocado, and chipotle dressing. The 7th Avenue, with chicken & avo on ciabatta, is very nice, as is the Farmer John with apples & mustard. Their house salad inspired me to put cranberries, goat cheese & walnuts on my own salads at home, though I haven't perfected their tasty balsamic dressing myself. Check it out for sandwiches & snacks!

Grey Dog Cafe

Grey Dog Cafe
33 Carmine Street
West Village, New York City
(212) 462-0041

So we found ourselves in the West Village this sunny Sunday morning, and decided it was the perfect time to check out the Grey Dog Cafe, which the hubby informed me was "the place to brunch in Manhattan." Despite the fact that he used to live in this neighborhood, he'd never been there before, and it seemed the perfect suggestion to fight off the Sunday hangover headaches...

Most of the other places in the area weren't opened yet at 10:30am, so we were happy to see the Grey Dog already bustling. From the front it looked like a place that would fit in perfectly on Key West's Duval Street; open-air with painted carribean-style sign posts in the entryway and fence posts and ocean buoys lining the front entrance. Everyone waits in line, whether you are taking out or eating in, and hopefully tables open up as you wait. You put in your order and pay, and then orders are brought out by name. When you finish you just get up and leave, since you're all paid up; reminded me of an English pub or caf in that respect. Guess they get faster turnover that way. The interior was pretty cute, had a lot of character. The sandwich menu looked amazing, but we had breakfast in our sites. I do want to go back and try the hot pressed sandwiches though, with chicken, mozzarella, pesto, roasted tomatoes... and another with turkey, brie, and raspberry-mustard sauce!

The iced cappucinos we got were divine, I would definitely recommend their coffee. I noticed you can buy bags of it for home as well. I had a simple breakfast plate with scrambled eggs and "hash-mash" and toast. The eggs were fine, standard; the hash-mash was tasty crispy hash browns. Hubby got an omelette; each was about $7.50 (with a few dollars more for the omelette toppings). Helped ourselves to silverware and condiments, and scarfed in our low blood-sugar hunger, as it got more and more crowded.

Overall, glad we got to check it out; on Sundays if you're awake before 11, I suggest go then before it gets crazy, and love the coffees. Perhaps a hot pressed sandwich next time...

Blog Soop reviews of Grey Dog Cafe