LiMe took to the streets of the West Village for a lovely evening of eating and vintage shopping. We managed to walk away with new dresses and boots... and definitely a full stomach!
Our first find was Batch. We saw this cute little bakery across the street and literally stood on the street corner debating between it and Magnolia Bakery. Being the spontaneous bunch we are, we went for Batch! It was so cute inside with paint-splattered pink walls, chandeliers and a window seat to sit and enjoy the sweets. The owner Pichet Ong served us and was very friendly and informative. We learned that Batch uses butter rather than shortening (as nearby bakeries use...Magnolia...) and thus the cupcakes are refrigerated. And they are best when they sit at room tempature for 10 minutes before eating. But trust me... how could you wait!
I had the Carrot Salted Caramel cupcake and Lidia had the Vanilla Bean. What a bunch of suprises these innocent looking treats were! My cupcake was made of a super moist and lightly spiced carrot cake. The cake part was more moist and dense than traditional cupcakes and the icing was thick and not overly sweet. Suprise#1 was the lime cream cheese filling in the middle of the cupcake. Suprise #2 was the coarse sea salt decorating the caramel icing. Apparently salt is the new sprinkles!
The Vanilla Bean cupcake also had a suprise filling and was delicious, but the Carrot/Caramel cupcake was my favorite. They were really amazing cupcakes and we will definitely be back for more!
Batch by Pichet Ong
www.batchnyc.com
150b West 10th Street
Next we ate dinner at Ghandi Cafe. There are several vegetarian options and we ended up choosing the Chana Masalla and Mixed Vegetable Curry served with basmati rice and naan. The restaurant is very small and it was boiling hot inside! Restaurants are supposed to be an oasis from the blistering NYC heat... not this cafe.
Our meal was pretty good. Good but not great. Lidia's distinguished palette decided that the problem was too many cloves. We absolutely love Indian food but this was not as comforting as we are used to. The best part of the cafe was all the fun little suprises we got. After our meal, a small dish of orange-coloured rice pudding arrived and it was great. After our mini-dessert a cup of chai tea arrived. All complimentary! The tea was very weak and watery but the thought was appreciated. Overall it was OK. Our favorite Indian place in NYC is still Curry In A Hurry... a fabulous little joint we will be reporting on soon!
Ghandi Cafe Inc.
283 Bleeker Street
(Between 7 Ave South and Jones Street)
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