By Karen Holly Berliner
Breakfast is a meal skipped by many but truly passed up by none! Who doesn’t love this meal from a quick bagel and coffee to a full plate of eggs, toast and breakfast meat; bacon, sausage, ham?
With mouthwatering options and in the spirit of love, why not indulge?
PlantShed
Imagine yourself if you will, not just tip toeing through the tulips but sipping and dining among them!
This go-to floral destination for interior designers, luxury brands and the like opened its first East Village retail location and floral café. The PlantShed East Village café offers artisanal coffee and light bites alongside the plants and the florals. This location brings an upscale, yet casual aesthetic and offers easy does it dining with both indoor and outdoor seating, along with a pop of a showpiece marble bar inset into street-facing windows. The interior invites you in with soft blue accents and earth tones merged together with PlantShed’s signature touches, such as custom lighting, marble fixtures and a curated collection of art and décor.
Stop by for a delightful breakfast and sip high quality coffee supplied by Partners Coffee. The artisanal coffee menu here includes espresso concoctions, drip coffee selections, loose leaf tea, matcha and more, with dairy and vegan milk options to suit all. The menu offers tantalizing pastries and light bites from Brooklyn’s Colson Patisserie and The Good Batch Bakery, as well as vegan and gluten free pastry options from Long Island City’s Sans Baker. plantshed.com
Pavé
What’s better than chewing on a warm piece of bread, fragrant and fresh out of the oven?
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Pavé is a European-style cafe/bakery from Chef Jonghun Won (of Jungsik and La Tabatiere fame) and Jin Ahn (noreetuh, Jungsik, Per Se). Pavé likens itself to a small bakery in France via its rustic and charming interior, resplendent with hexagonal mosaic flooring and other subtle touches in design.
Breakfast all day is expressed by Pavé’s mission; to rekindle the art of baking bread fresh throughout the day through artisanal simplicity. Chef Won believes the perfect sandwich begins with freshly baked bread filled with sustainable, organic ingredients. Bread options include baguettes, sourdough, multigrain and olive ciabatta, proudly baked in their state-of-the-art Bongard Paneotrad dough divider, proudly the first used in the US. Sandwich selections include such delights as Saucisson sliced dry pork sausage on a petit multigrain with salted butter and cornichon Croque or Monsieur; melted gruyere and béchamel with ham, Dijon mustard on sourdough bread and many more choices.
Pastries such as Green Tea Scones with white chocolate, Brioche with passion fruit filling and more are baked in-house daily. Pavé offers specialty coffee drinks from Counterculture Coffee to pair to perfection.
Bear Donut
Located in NoMad, Bear Donut is a reimagined retro American donut shop with South Korean flair. Their new breakfast menu includes a delightful spin on a donut and a waffle fused; the Doffle! Doffles are made with mochi donuts, served with creamy, sweet yogurt whipped cream, all house-made. Flavors such as the Spice Donut – pumpkin cream filled, pumpkin spice or the Maple Glazed Donut – maple glaze with crunchy banana chips are popular and fast becoming signatures.
Ice cream for breakfast?
Why not?
The Lavenduo Soft Serve; lavender soft serve with their signature lavender glazed donut is new and classic at the same time.
The Sour Grapefruit Poppy is unique and surprises the palate while the Brioche Cream Puff donuts are filled with such options as Double Milk Tea and Matcha Custard, each topped with powdered sugar and Dirty Choco, filled with Nutella and glazed with semi-sweet chocolate.
The shop bakes fresh donuts twice daily, the first batch ready at 10am, the next at 2pm, allowing for the partaking of delicious grab and eat breakfast all the day through. The shop also features house-made soft serve ice cream, in milk and Thai Iced Tea flavors, as well as specialty drinks such as Draft Oat Milk and other varieties, in flavors such as savory Cheddar Cheese and Black Sesame. Bear Donut also features coffee from La Colombe such as fresh brew, cold brew, draft latte and the treat of all treats; the Bear Donut Coffee, a coffee float made of iced or hot coffee with milk soft serve. Go ahead and make it yours.
After all, you only live once. beardonut.com
Old John’s
Born in 1951 at 66th and Broadway, this little classic diner back in the day, fast became a hot spot for celebrities and locals alike. Sadly, the diner was forced to shut down during The Pandemic in 2020, but boldly relocated, reopened and renovated in 2021 by Louis Skibar, a former employee of Old John’s.
In the spirit of authenticity and to respect and preserve the history of Old John’s, key elements were kept such as the Art Deco lighting, mosaic tile floor and the original ceiling. Even many staff members of times past are still in attendance, serving you with unmistakable old school appeal.
Enjoy a stack of buttermilk pancakes or waffles, regular or chocolate variety or an omelet made to order. A lox sandwich satisfies and there’s nothing quite like a good old bacon, egg and cheese sandwich. Steak and eggs here are a class act and a New York City staple and nod to days gone by. oldjohnsluncheonette.com
The Underground Donut Tour
I can’t think of a more beloved grab and go breakfast than a donut.
The Underground Donut Tour showcases all of the best donuts in New York City. Starting in the Flatiron District of Manhattan, where your tour guide will share the history and architecture of this dynamic city, you will all the while, delight in trying some of the best donuts this city has to offer. One unique donut shop has a brioche style donut that’s especially tender and moist with unique flavors. The next stop is a city icon, a donut shop that has been around for over 50 years. Finally, the donut tour finishes up in Greenwich Village, where you will sample an everything donut along with a few other delectable donut treats!
These tours are available in several other cities, so get out there and grab a few.
Tours are also available in Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Miami, Nashville, Philadelphia, Santa Monica and beyond. undergrounddonuttour.com
