janiekins

I stay at the Elysee around 4-5 times per year. Small boutique hotel. Very quiet and clean. The staff is wonderful.

I have also stayed at the Giraffe Hotel (their sister hotel) many times and I love that. The Elysee is more "old world" and the Giraffe is more modern. Love them both. During the week they have a very upscale free continental breakfast and wine, champagne, hors d' oeuvres from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m.

Bowsprit

I'll add my vote to Scalini Fedeli.

http://www.scalinifedeli.com/scalini...niNYCMain.html

165 Duane St. near Hudson. It's fabulous.

There's another restaurant, L'Absinthe, near Central Park that's got a great atmosphere and more than passable food. Have him check out the website; it's intriguing and very French:

http://www.labsinthe.com/

travelzoo.com has a bit of a special going on for Hotel Mela right now for under $200.00. He should check that out as soon as possible if he's interested. The Ace Hotel is discounted on travelzoo.com too. Here's the link:

http://hotels.travelzoo.com/new-york-hotels/

He can get a good idea about the hotels if he checks the pictures on trip advisor. Tell him not to bother with the written reviews on trip advisor, though. They're often misleading and unreliable in my opinion, but the photos are worth a thousand words.

btw: You must be the 'cool' aunt! Lucky for him!