Valentine's Day in NYC
 

Takin' my sweetie for an overnighter in NYC for Valentine's Day. It started off as a Sat. day-trip by bus from DC, then the Stanford Hotel sent me an e-mail special of $99 a night, so I booked a Sun. return. (The bus trip originally was $32 RT for the two of us; the additional return fare was $40 -- still not bad!)
Anyway, thinking about taking the DH to Lupa Restaurant for a nice Italian dinner and was wondering what the proper dress would be. Hoping to avoid the coat and tie for DH, tho he said he would.
Also looking for suggestions for Sunday brunch/lunch, maybe somewhere between ESB and Central Park ... or so. Thanks!

Lupa is very casual. Jeans and a T-shirt would get a second glance. Excellent food, fun atmosphere. Call 30 days in advance.

brunch - Artisanal is right by your hotel. There is a new French place, Bar breton that's supposed to be good.

In midtown, you might check out Mia Dona, Avra, or Brasserie - there are tons of places.

check out www.menupages.com and/or www.nymag.com for addresses, menus and reviews

Sorry, that is jeans and a T-shirt would NOT get a second glance.

Just stay away from the chocolate places filled with desperate boy friends and husbands.

Wherever you decide to have dinner on Valentine's Day, make your reservations NOW. That's the busiest night of the year for restaurants.

Also, realize that on Valentine's Day most restaurants are NOT at their best- since they're usually filled to the rafters with people wanting elaborate/"romantic" meals. The fact that it's a Saturday this year will only make it worse.

We always do try to do something special the weekend before or after - and celebrate the day itself at home - to avoid the mobs.

We had lunch at Rosa Mexicana recently and it was really good.

61 Columbus Avenue at 62nd Street
http://www.rosamexicano.info/


Would be fun and nice for Sunday Brunch.

Get the made at the table guacamole; it was excellent.

Deb

Lupa is one of my absolute favorites but not my choice if you want a romantic/cozy atmosphere; it's pretty loud and busy. but the food is excellent!
Depending on your budget, you'll get equally good or better food and a much quieter, upscale experience at Convivio.
For a very small, cozy restaurant with excellent food, try Po in the village. It'll make you feel like a true local to find such a cozy lil place on tiny Cornelia street.
Also for a V-day trip like yours, I recommend walking around in the West Village, stopping into a place like Sant Ambroeus for coffee & a pastry or stopping by Magnolia Bakery on Bleecker St. for cup cakes made famous on Sex And the City.
Another good place for after-dinner desserts & digestives is Vinieros in the East village (been around for 125 yrs or so)-big selection of desserts that aren't too expensive. but there's often a long wait.
Rosa Mexicano is good & they also have a location near Union Sq, in case you find yourself in that hood.

Thanks, for the suggestions!
mp, I'll let DH know that he can leave the tie at home, but hoping to get him into a sports coat at least! :) I'll check out your brunch suggestions.
mdn, I checked out Convivo's menu -- lovely, but the wine list is quite a bit pricier than Lupa's and I know we'll prob. go thru 2 bottles. (And a busy restaurant is fine -- we have plenty of quiet dinner at home and it is New York, after all!;)) Po looks very nice, too. Hmmm....
Maybe we'll do Lupa for dinner and then stagger over to Po for dessert and vin santo.
Magnolia Bakery was on my list -- sweetie is a SAC fan, too!
Any chance of an Italian butcher in the neighborhood that carries wild boar?
Thanks!

Around the corner from Po on Bleecker Street are two great butchers - Faicco's Pork Store and down the block toward 7th Avenue is Ottomanelli's Butcher shop. Both are fine establishments. Also on Jones Street, just about a block north of Bleecker Street is one of the finest butchers in the city, the Florence Meat Market. Ottomanelli's might have frozen wild boar - or maybe even fresh - give them a call.
(212) 675-4217

These 3 places are all within 2 blocks of each other. I love NY.

Thanks, mp! I'll be sure to add them to my list!
Gotta love New York!

Ditto mp. If you call the butchers in advance, they may be able to arrange for wild boar for you in time.

Balthazar is a fun place for brunch.located in Soho.

Fresh wild boar for Valentine's Day sounds right.

Got my reservation for Lupa this morning! They didn't start taking them until 10am and the line was busy, busy, busy! Had to go to a meeting, so passed my cell phone off to the receptionist and she got us in at 7:15! Perfect! (Definitely owe her a nice bottle of red!)
Now who do I talk to about a little snow for that evening?!!!

Just wanted to thank you all for your help! We had a great weekend in NYC, and a fabulous dinner at Lupa! We were sat in the back room -- much quieter than the front -- and had wonderful service from the waitress and the sommelier. (Hubby picked out a bottle of wine that cost more than our hotel room!) The food was excellent! The Stanford ("the Stannie") was lovely! One of the best hotel sleeps I've had. The Boltbus was on time and like new. We started with pizza at John's at Times Square. We brought back goodies from Murray's Cheese shop and Faicco's. And shared a pastrami on rye from Katz deli on the trip home. Everyone we encountered in the city was very friendly. Excellent trip! Thanks!!! :)

Sounds fabulous SoloNoMo!