Puma Venus Runner Sneaker, $65 on endless.com
These sneakers have all the key colors I love. Black. Silver. And a little
bit of girly pink. Yup. I like pink.

Okay Saucony's, you've had your day in the sun. I have been loyal to you ever since I moved to NYC. Yes, you have been cushion-y and sponge-y soft. Especially (but sadly only) during the first week of wear, I feel like I am walking on bouncey clouds, instead of on the punishing New York pavement. But let's face it, you wear out too quickly. I am going back to my old school standby for a little while. We'll see how it goes.

Note the missing numbers. But still $10.

There is a thrift store in a certain Brooklyn neighborhood that specializes in the most aesthetically-displeasing objects from the worst periods in design. Their offerings are largely from the 70s; however, other decades are represented as well. Each item is such a specific assault on the eyes that I thought, half-way through the store, this was no accident.

They were purposely specializing in failed design.

There were rows upon rows of ripped/dusty/rusty gold, brown, burnt orange velvet, veneer and more, and not the good kind. What's more, each item was so overpriced, it was comical. For some reason, their favorite two prices were $2.99 and $49.99, perhaps due to a defective tagging gun that could only print orange stickers in one of these two amounts. This Brooklyn neighborhood being steeped in detached irony as it is, I decided this thrift store was some sort of art installation, and not the good kind.

The final joke was the Super Sale section of only broken items, and each $10. (These signs were all hand-written. You see? My defective tagging gun hypothesis holds up.) Broken items! For $10! Oh yes, their detached irony was not lost on me.

Take the 7 Train to 82nd Street/Jackson Heights
and pay a visit to La Delicia en Pandebono. The whole street is filled
with great food shops, bakeries and small restaurants.


All sorts of delicious freshly baked Colombian breads in the case.
Yes, I could camp out here all day and try them all.


You can get two pandebono and two cafe con leche for under $5.

My hubby and I shared a delicious treat on our anniversaire weekend: pandebono and cafe con leche at our favorite place in Queens, La Delicia en Pandebono. We discovered this place a few years ago when it was still a check-cashing place with a little pandebono stand on the side. Recently, they eliminated check-cashing altogether and devoted themselves to baking the most delicious Colombian breads and treats full-time. Their pandebono are always fresh and hot and chewy and delicious.

You must pay them a visit if you like the sound of yucca flour and a hint of cheese all mixed up together and cooked into an otherworldly delight. Prices are extremely reasonable. La Delicia pandebono, the largest on 82nd Street (believe me, we have sampled widely), are $1.25 each.


La Delicia en Pandebono
40-23 82nd Street
Jackson Heights, Queens
347.448.8020

The latest in the Patina Restaurant Group's oeuvre, Lincoln, opens today in NYC!


The facade on 65th Street. Look closely: these are all names of films.

Designed by Diller, Scofidio + Renfro, the looks of Lincoln from 65th Street.

The new restaurant/lawn behind Avery Fisher Hall near the reflecting pool won't be called the "Lincoln Center Hypar Restaurant" as I thought in July 2009. Although it is a hypar, the name will be more plainly spoken (written): Lincoln. And rumor has it, it's opening today! When I was at Lincoln Center for Fashion Week last week, I got a glimpse, snapped some pics, and asked a lot of questions. The menu will be continental Italian. The chef will be Jonathan Benno, formerly of Aqua, French Laundry, Daniel, Gramercy Tavern, Craft, and most recently, Per Se. Sounds great! I'd eat anything at this restaurant, just to experience the space. But since Lincoln is part of the Patina Restaurant Group, I'm pretty sure the food will be good.

And by the way, a hypar is a hyperbolic paraboloid shape. Get it? Think of it as a 3-d parallelogram with a sexy curve.


Lincoln Ristorante
142 W 65th Street
Lincoln Center
New York
212.359.6500

Getting set up for the special Fashion Week event


Some of the fashionable get to sample Lincoln's hospitality during NYFW


I love the angles


under the eaves


The reflecting pond


Very steep steps to get up to the lawn. I wore heels. Tricky terrain.


The lawn is so lovely! And the smell of real grass is like heaven to a New Yorker.
Real grass!


And look at the views!


This is one heck of a lawn.

My favorite fashion seasons are the transitional ones, where you can still wear sandals with your coats, sweaters, and the like. I loved the print, fabric and structure of her coat. Perhaps it was neoprene?

Identities obscured to protect the fashionable.

Even when it's a bit gloomy outside, Grand Central still looks spectacular. One rainy day, I was cutting through on the way to the pool. The chandeliers looked particularly lovely on this darker day. For some reason I thought about what it would be like to change all the light bulbs. And then I saw a man getting into a lift to do just that.

That's a lot of light bulbs.

The much-anticipated new Paris Baguette in New York's Koreatown!


Banquet seating in the front. Très luxe.


Good lighting. I'm a sucker for good decor.


A subtle nod to French café society: metal stools originally
designed by Xavier Pauchard in 1934


That's a lot of French pastries.

All the food bloggers have been wagging their tongues about Paris Baguette, which opened in Koreatown on September 9. So much so, that I ran all the way to check it out! I ran because I just got a heart rate monitor watch, and wanted to see how many calories I could burn getting there. (Only 30, but I didn't eat anything, so it was win-win.) As you know from previous posts, one of my hobbies is dessert-gazing. Not eating, just gazing. So enjoy the pics, and go taste for yourself. They have another Paris Baguette in Flushing, which I think I've actually been to for some reason. Again, I just gazed. What is it with me and loving to look at desserts?


Paris Baguette
6 W 32nd Street (5th Avenue/Broadway, closer to 5th)
Koreatown
New York
212.244.0404

The self-serve station.
Grab yourself a tray and a pair of tongs and get ready to dig in!


Every pastry looks impeccable. And the place is fastidiously clean.


This light, flat sheet dotted with almonds fascinated me the most.


Japanese love "choux creme" too. I don't think the French refer to it as such...




These cakes are works of art. I'd definitely get
one for a dinner party.


I wonder how they taste?


...and now for the sinfully delicious (-looking)

I love the staff outfits: cute Paris-style striped shirts and berets.


The seating area in the back is also quite nice.
But I prefer the front banquets.


Checkout in the back. Lots of drinks too.
Like a matcha frappe. And cappuccino, etc.
Meet me for coffee!

This post is featured on Midtown Lunch for September 24, 2010

Anyone ever tried Batiste Dry Shampoo?

Do you know what I love about walking around NYC at lunchtime? Everyone hands you some sort of fun freebie. I think I get a freebie once a week. Dove chocolates. SoyJoy (A lot. Too bad I don't love their bubble-gummy texture.) Mini boxes of cereal. Energy bars. Ice cream sandwiches. (That was the best!) Gum. Mints. Chap sticks. Eye shadows. And on and on. Today I got a goodie bag from Duane Reade. In it, a SoyJoy (oh well), a sample of Fructis, some allergy eye relief, and the most interesting: Batiste Dry Shampoo in "Blush." I wonder what "Blush" smells like. I'd try it, but it's an aerosol, and I'm not a fan of aerosols... Maybe I'll get someone else to try it and smell their hair.

Joan & David Women's Arrington Sandal, $97.43 on endless.com

Well, I am a little surprised with all the taupe patent shoes I've seen walking around NYC, that these by Joan and David are the only cute ones I could find on Endless. I do love the fringes and the tassels, but I'd rather have a heel. I'll keep looking.

You see? Taupe patent shoes are everywhere in NYC. Everywhere I look, at least. I think the friend is sporting stockings with black monopoly houses on them.

Oh great. Instead of getting to watch the Gucci SS10 fashion show live from Milan (with my e-seat, 8180H), I got this error message:

Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_VARIABLE, expecting T_FUNCTION in /srv/gucciconnect/sites/production/public_html/application/controllers/signin.php on line 37

It works!! Here are some stills from the show!