To continue where we left off, somewhere around the corner of N. 10th and Bedford, we are still discussing the arguably pointless topic of restaurants that we are interested in getting to as soon as possible.  These spots are at the top of our list, but of course since we haven't eaten at any of them, we cannot provide useful insight into the dining experiences, but instead only our preconceived notions formed by hearsay and driven by hunger.  Nevertheless, now that you have heard us go on and on about what's cooking in Brooklyn, we've made sure that the other half of the list drags us across the river to the island of Manhattan, where we still enjoy dining every once in a while.  Just as the Brooklyn hit list ended up being exclusive to Williamsburg and Greenpoint, the Manhattan list exists solely below 14th Street, and mostly below Houston.  Hey, the good news is that if you want to hit all of these restaurants in a single day, you won't have to walk very far.

MISS LILY'S FAVOURITE CAKES - 132 West Houston Street @ Sullivan Street; 646-588-5375  

(MISS LILY'S photo via eater.com / photo: Michelle Rick)

 From Serge Becker of LA ESQUINA and THE BOX, we have a white hot postage stamp sized party place for the beautiful people, where simple Jamaican food is served to a gorgeous and fashionable clientele by stunning, long legged West Indian waitresses.  Sounds like heaven and hell all wrapped into one, but the food will end up being the thing that makes or breaks the place.  As exemplified by our favorite restaurant in all the land, BAR PITTI, just around the corner from MISS LILY'S, high profile celebrity hangouts can absolutely be worth our while, even lots of fun perhaps, if the food is spectacular.  We're hearing mostly good things about what's coming out of the kitchen at MISS LILY'S, although we've overheard a few conversations that raise some slight questions as to the authenticity of the Jamaican fare.  Of course, restaurants that immediately establish themselves as a 'scene' run the risk that the food will not be taken seriously or that it will quickly be relegated to irrelevant status.  We'd like to eat at MISS LILY'S before Miss Lily, herself, is eaten by the giant party monster.

SAUCE - 78 Rivington Street @ Allen Street

(SAUCE photo via thelodownny.com)

Frank Prisinzano has been making the East Village smile with hearty homemade Italian food for over a decade at FRANK, SUPPER and LITTLE FRANKIE'S PIZZA (not to be confused with the other two Franks--Falcinelli and Castronovo of Frankies Spuntino and Prime Meats fame).  This new addition to the empire known as SAUCE, opening softly as we speak on Rivington and Allen, looks like it aims to be a casual restaurant along with a takeout window, a retail butcher counter, a beer and wine license and late night hours.  We expect it to be a low key, high quality restaurant that expands upon his tried and true concept and livens up an otherwise drab corner of the Lower East Side.  Prisinzano is another one of those great neighbors that we love having in NYC, one that feeds us well and consistently shows us a good time.  In the true spirit of THE BROOKLYN GLUTTON, Frank P. mixes it up with a side of rock music.  Prisinzano also owns EAST VILLAGE RADIO, which streams live on the internet from a storefront window on 1st Avenue and 1st Street, sharing his good vibrations with the neighborhood and beyond, along with his meatballs.  You can checkout EVR at www.eastvillageradio.com.

PARM - 248 Mulberry Street (Prince Street/Spring Street)

(PARM photo via ny.eater.com)

We adore TORRISI ITALIAN SPECIALTIES as described in a detailed post last December, but sometimes we don't have the time to wait two hours for a table or thirty minutes for a sandwich.  However a new configuration and format, utilizing a neighboring retail space may hopefully make the whole situation somewhat easier to navigate.  Next door, owners, Rich Torrisi and Mario Carbone, have opened PARM, which will essentially handle all of the sandwich making duties that we have come to know and love during daytime hours at Torrisi, plus a whole lot more, not the least of which will be a pasta special here and there, some baked clams, an "Italian Thanksgiving" Turkey Dinner, and a full bar and cocktail menu.  The real upshot of PARM's arrival is that it will make room for more prix fixe wonderment at Torrisi.  The first come, first served $50 prix fixe dinner will remain a bargain at $60 per person and it will soon be available for lunch as well as dinner.  Word has it that Torrisi will also soon be taking reservations for a new $125 tasting menu consisting of 15-20 courses.  According to The New York Times, this will all be up and running by the beginning of next week.

REDFARM - 529 Hudson Street @ Charles Street; 212-792-9700

(REDFARM photo via immaculateinfatuation.com)

We are such suckers for Chinese food, and as much as we love getting down and dirty in Chinatown, we are also perfectly okay with an Americanized, sometimes even overpriced Chinese feast if it is well prepared and comforting in the way that only good Chinese food can be.  REDFARM is a joint venture between Chef Joe Ng of Noho's Chinatown Brasserie, and downtown restaurant stalwart and Chinese food afficionado, Ed "Glasses" Schoenfeld.  The emphasis at REDFARM is on dim sum, and authenticity takes a backseat to flair, nevertheless the consensus seems to be that the end result is delicious enough to warrant enduring the communal tables and cramped quarters.  The simple pleasures of the unassuming and now-defunct Mama Buddha used to lure us to Hudson Street in the West Village for inexpensive, consistently satisfying Chinese food on a regular basis.  REDFARM might be a tougher ticket, but we'll be headed back to the neighborhood soon for some fun with dim sum and home cooked Chinese specialties.

LEFT BANK - 117 Perry Street (Greenwich Street/Hudson Street); 212-727-1170

(The 'Timballo' at LEFT BANK.  PHOTO: Michael Allin / New York Magazine via newyork.grubstreet.com)

Wrapping up what has, in effect amounted to somewhat of an unintentional wishful weekend walking tour of North Brooklyn and downtown Manhattan, we end up on the far West reaches at LEFT BANK, a stark, elegantly simple New American Bistro on Perry Street, two shorts block from the Hudson River.  From Laurence Edelman and Micheline Gaulin of THE MERMAID INN and THE RED CAT, LEFT BANK opened to some rave reviews this summer. We probably wouldn't have noticed the place for some time frankly, had we not read reports of the special Timballo dinner for 8-14 people, where, with several days minimum advance notice  $65 per person gets you your share of the enormous baked drum of goodness along with a salad, some greens and dessert. 

In our favorite food movie of all time, Stanley Tucci's "BIG NIGHT," the story culminates in a huge feast, the centerpiece of which is the 'Timpano,' as the identical dish is referred to in the film.  Stanley Tucci also wrote one of our favorite cookbooks, in which he and his mother share family recipes.  The book is called CUCINA & FAMIGLIA, and a photograph of the Timpano is prominently featured on the cover.  Many years ago, we purchased the proper enamel pan, as described in the book, and four of us rolled out the huge round dough and laid it out on a patio table before filling it with meatballs and sausage, ziti and tomato sauce, hard-boiled eggs and provolone, and wrapping it up to bake like some kind of gargantuan knish.  The outcome was one of the most rewarding and memorable cooking and eating experiences ever, with lots and lots of red wine and good times with great friends enjoying great food made together with love.  It would be wonderful to be reminded of that experience once again without having to actually go to the trouble of making it.  LEFT BANK seems like it might be a nice place to grab 7 or more of your closest friends and seriously get down and mangia!  It's great that such an opportunity exists in the world.

So Serge Becker the owner of my favorite spots in NYC, La Esquina, opened up a new Jamaican eatery in the city last month, Miss Lily's. Apparently over the past month its been getting a lot of buzz from the cool kids out there.

The editors at W Magazine recently did a piece about how stylish the waitress' there are. To read more click here.

Miss Lily's 132 W. Houston St. New York, NY