I used to live on the corner of E 3rd St and Avenue A, and I loved the neighborhood. This was before this blog existed, but I still was excited about the many food options available to me: Nicky’s Vietnamese Sandwiches, Mama’s, and a 24-hour Key Food, among others. I was not, however, aware of the existence of Perbacco, an Italian restaurant that blends tradition and the avant-garde. Lucky for me my friends Jess & Garrett knew about it, and the three of us met there for dinner last week. Lucky for you also, because their photos came out much better than mine (click the link to their blog if you don’t believe me).

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Jess & Garrett dined at the East Village branch of Caracas Arepa Bar and loved the drinks as much as the arepas. Click the quote for their impressions.

Caracas occupies about as much space as Venezuela does in a textbook map and eating in its tiny dining room can be a boisterous affair, with expats and staff mingling and hugging and chatting in a mix of English and Spanish.

Jess & Garrett sampled the sweets at Make My Cake. Click the quote for their full write-up.

For us, it’s hard to walk into a bakery and not think of Wayne Thiebaud — or how many slices we can eat before being called “piggish.”

Perhaps tired of hearing me complain about falafel, Jess & Garrett went to Taim, which they claim is serving the best falafel in NYC. Click the quote for their write-up:

Taim serves the best falafel in New York, not so surprising when you consider that the chef/owners cut their teeth at Bouley, among other five-star kitchens…

Jess & Garrett sampled the South African cuisine at Madiba. Click the quote for their full write-up.

Madiba — Nelson Mandela’s nickname — charges a premium for its large portions of (relative) exoticism. We started with Durban samoosas, bigger-than-bite-size tri-cornered pastries stuffed with vegetables and spiced with cinnamon.

Jess & Garrett wrapped up Restaurant Week at Fleur-de-Sel, though they inexplicably neglect to tell us just how good the bread pudding was. Bread pudding fans demand to know! Click the quote for their full write-up.

The Restaurant Week menu only had two options for each course, so we ended up ordering everything they offered.