Very recently, I was walking through the very calm streets around Madison Square Park. I made my way over to Fifth Avenue from the East Side and entered a black door. I felt a little like I had stumbled to the other side of the wardrobe. In fact, I was hit head-on by the bustle of the indoor mega marketplace known as Eataly. After taking several minutes to orient myself, I began to scope it out. I was meeting my friend for a coffee and was looking around for the best place to sip and chat. Distractions, however, met my gaze at every turn. Unique products, fresh groceries, cheese galore, amazing looking produce, a vegetable butcher (!), crusty bread, coffee, gelato, a piazza with a restaurant and much, much more.
As I walked around, my stomach began to growl and when my friend finally arrived, we both realized that neither of us had yet eaten lunch: how serendipitous! We headed for the aptly named restaurant, La Pizza and Pasta. BELIEVE THE HYPE! The pasta was brilliant. It was exactly what you would get in Italy: simple, fresh, al dente pasta bursting with subtle flavors. Perfection. I had the spaghetti al pomodoro while my friend had the penne Napoli (with tomato, mozzarella and basil). Both were incredible. I can’t wait to go back. And it doesn’t hurt that the gelato and sorbetto were spot on either. I had the vanilla pear sorbetto…yum! (Of course I got a photo of dessert but not the pasta).
La Pizza & Pasta – Eataly
200 Fifth Avenue (near 23rd)
212-229-2560
Currently based out of Boston, Jesal is a blogger, freelance writer, yoga enthusiast and lifelong vegetarian who spent four years eating her way through New York City and various other cities around the globe. After answering hundreds of emails and phone calls answering the question, "Where's a cool place I can take my vegetarian friend out to eat" she started Veggiewala to efficiently share her knowledge of the vegetarian food scene with curious carnivores, flexitarians and other vegetarians.