Tiny's, Sugar Sweet Sunshine, Le Grainne

A-man and I spent this past Sunday strolling around the city. We checked out Mike Nelson's exhibit "Psychic Vacuum", did some light shopping, of course, ate lots of good food continuously throughout the day. After I had a mild tantrum over not wanting to eat sandwiches, we went to Tiny's Giant Sandwich Shop on Rivington Street. Tiny's is a small shop serving a variety of sandwiches and not much else. They serve the basics - turkey, BLT, ham and swiss, tuna, veggie, grilled cheese, roast beef, plus a few twists on basics: Chicken Po'Boy, Crab Cake sandwich, "Silly Philly Portobello", which is a philly cheese steak made with grilled portobello mushrooms and onions. I ordered the Crab Cake sandwich and Amar ordered the Chicken Po'Boy. My sandwich was pretty good...although I tasted more breadcrumbs than actual crab meat. Amar's sandwich was by far the better choice. The chicken was tender and the cheddar was perfectly melted and gooey. The toasted semolina bun had a crunchy outside and soft inside. Tiny's doesn't seem to serve up anything creative or particularly memorable, but it is a good choice if you find yourself on the Lower East Side and don't feel like spending too much for a fancy schmancy meal. Prices range from $4 - $8.

After our lunch at Tiny's, I of course had to pop into Sugar Sweet Sunshine and pick up one of their amazing cupcakes. I always pick the Ooey Gooey: dark chocolate cake with chocolate almond butter cream frosting. But this time I forced myself to pick something different. I settled on the Sassy Red Velvet: red velvet cake with chocolate almond butter cream frosting. Look at it...isn't it a beauty? I sunk my teeth into that cupcake and squealed with delight. I hate to say this, but I think the Sassy Red Velvet might have a slight edge over the Ooey Gooey. The frosting holds its shape, without being too stiff, a problem that a lot of cupcakes have. It's thick, creamy, melts in your mouth and has a delicious hint of almond underneath and initial taste of chocolate. The red velvet cake is moist and not too dense - my favorite kind of cupcake.

Later in the day, we ended up in Chelsea on 9th ave. Had I not already had something sweet just a few hours ago, we would have ended up at Billy's Bakery. But instead, we crossed the street over to Le Grainne Cafe, a French bistro, to get something to drink and to rest our feet. Le Grainne Cafe is really cute and laid-back...the interior has a rustic feel, the tables are covered by brown butcher paper, there are rooster motifs everywhere and ceiling fans whirl gently overhead. The restaurant serves all the things we provincial Americans think of as being French: mussels, crepes (savory and sweet), croque monsieur, coq au vin, ratatouille, croissants and tarts and a extensive list of coffee drinks and wines, and a bad attitude! (I kid I kid.) Neither of us were very hungry, so we just ordered iced tea and Tartine: a toasted french baguette served with soft butter and apricot jam. Since we didn't really eat there, I can't vouch for food, but the restaurant itself is nice and has that rare neighborhood feel to it. I can't wait go back to Le Grainne on a chilly winter night and warm myself up over a nice glass of red wine and some entree that sounds really French. And speak in an obnoxious fake French accent the whole time, of course. How romantique!