Dinner on a Saturday night before a set at the Village Vanquard
 

Haven't gotten much input on Chowhound, so I thought I'd ask here. Not looking for fancy, or seafood, both of which are covered on this trip. Just something interesting and good, perhaps within walking distance of the club.

Extra points for suggestions for dessert and coffee after.

~Liz

For dessert:
Cafe Dante on MacDougal St between Bleecker and Houston
or
Venieros on E. 11th St between 1st and 2nd Avs.

Either is a little bit of a walk, but well worth it.

Check menupages for restaurant ideas.

Some possibilities in the general area are:
Trattoria Toscana
Berimbau
Cafe Espanol
Antica Venezia
Grano Trattoria
Le Gigot
Cornelia St Cafe
Po
North Square

Blue Ribbon Bakery
AOC

There are a lot of good recos here already. I'll add Agave or Yerba Buena West (Mexican) and Extra Virgin. For dessert, Rocco's on Bleecker st.

Of MFNYC's suggestions, I strongly recommend Trattoria Toscana, an excellent Italian on Carmine Street between Bedford Street and Seventh Avenue; and Le Gigot, a tiny French bistro on Cornelia Street between Bleeker Street and Sixth Avenue. Po, also on Cornelia, was Mario Batali's first restaurant, but he is no longer associated with it. It's still pretty good, though.

Le Gigot would be my pick of those mentioned. I adore that place! Book ahead. Have the crabcakes or the oysters first.

OK, now I'm torn!

I had already made a reservation at Le Gigot before posting on Chowhound, which led me to Perilla, which sounded closer, and maybe a tad better.

I'm not usually indecisive, but somehow I am this time. In addition to good food, we really prefer someplace that won't be too frantic on a Saturday...admittedly a tough requirement.

~Liz

I like Le Gigot much better than Perilla. Just one person's opinion, but still...

Had dinner at Extra Virgin last week. Really good, prices weren't bad. Total cost for 2 was $150 which included a $40ish bottle of wine and one pre-dinner glass of champagne.

Check the menus on menupages.com, and see which appeals to you more. Both are good, and neither should be frantic.

If you'll be in NYC between Memorial Day and Labor day weekends, the city is much quieter (except in the Time Sq touristy areas), because many of the locals leave town on weekends. This is my favorite time of the year to be here.

We've returned from our trip, and had a great dinner at Le Gigot, turned out to be just right for us. It was so darn hot in NYC, that getting back to our cool hotel room was more inviting than coffee/dessert after the VV!

~Liz