Owner and baker, Jerome Audureau, a man who believes baking isn’t baking until you shape the dough with your hands, adds Parisian flare to this simple, sweet space that is warm in decor (wicker and iron chairs), with walls that are painted in serene hues. Amidst soothing jazz, you’ll hear a constant buzz from patrons clicking on laptop keys or the family of tourists seeking refuge from the maddening galleries and street artists that flank West Broadway. Akin to the sidewalk cafes and bistros in Paris, you’re not gently prodded to the door as soon as you’ve polished off your goat cheese and portobello sandwich. Table-turn is an evil word at Once Upon a Tart and on a chilly Saturday afternoon, I met an old friend for hot tea, delicious treats and good conversation. During the three hours we spent in the cafe, I sampled the pumpkin cranberry biscotti AND scone, the roasted turkey and cranberry mango chutney and frisee sandwich, and a selection of their British teas, and couldn’t have been more satisfied. Wonderfully seasoned with a care for presentation, my late lunch was not only savory but sweet and flavorful. The freshest ingredients are used here and the proof is definitely in the tasty fare. The baked goods were heavenly – biscotti, light, crispy and the scone unbelievably light and flaky.

Whether you’re jetting in for a quick pumpkin cranberry biscotti or spending a lazy afternoon sipping green tea and indulging in fluffy, decadent scones or being very, very good with a savory sandwich and tossed salad, Once Upon a Tart brings a little bit of whimsy into downtown bohemia.

Once Upon a Tart
135 Sullivan Street (Btwn Prince/Houston)
New York, NY 10012
212.387.8869
Subways: C/E to Spring Street or N/R to Prince Street

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Make no mistake, for good pizza, this girl will travel. Three trains and 45 minutes no less, but enter the non-descript DiFara Pizza on Avenue J, and after sampling the fare, the goods are certainly worth that wait. Amidst the bakeries, kosher delicatessens and laundromats that line this predominately Orthodox Jewish section of Brooklyn, in a small space you’ll find Dominick DeMarco, dressed in comfortable shoes and his flour-dusted apron, making thin Neapolitan pies the same way he’s been doing it for over forty years.

What sets DiFara apart from the legions of other pizzerias about town? DeMarco uses only the freshest and finest ingredients, buffalo and fresh mozzarella cheeses imported from Italy and after a few moments of watching him coax the dough, handle the pie in conspicuously non-wood-burning oven, no doubt you are in the house of a perfectionist. An artisan that serves up a wafer-thin crust, bits of fresh basil (grown in the window), and a lacing of extra-virgin olive oil through the sweet tomato sauce. The unveiling of the pie gets a ceremonial dusting of grana padana, administered in slow, deliberate, old-world style by the master himself.

Tip: Bring a book, folks. DiFara tends to make them in, with fans traveling as far as the West Coast to indulge in rustic, down-home pizza.

DiFara Pizza
1424 Avenue J
Brooklyn, New York
718.258.1367
Subway: Q to Avenue J

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Imagine for a moment the perfect pizza. A thin, flaky crust. Piping hot mozzarella cheese and savory toppings like sausage, homemade basil pesto, creamy mushrooms. Now imagine this pizza is healthy. You heard right – a pizza that’s actually good for you.

Featured on the Food Network’s show, “Recipe for Success”, twenty-something owner, Miki, a self-diagnosed lactose intolerant, couldn’t find delicious, guilt-free pizza that could be eaten anywhere. Seeking to make the ultimate American comfort food with the freshest, organic ingredients while giving customers the option to substitute traditional cheeses for rice/soy, coupled with an entrepreneur spirit – Slice was born.

It’s cozy space in Manhattan’s Upper East Side is clean, minimalist in decor and you’re greeted with soothing, indie music and spoken word. The tasty menu is penned on a chalkboard and the options are enough to make your mouth water, no doubt. I sampled the “Novice” – sundried tomatoes, pesto, organic mozzarella on an unbleached, herbed crust. That was just the beginning of my meal. Fresh, wholesome salads, homemade, gluten-free and chocolately desserts, I left without the heartburn from all the grease and oil that is the staple of traditional pizza joints that clutter the city streets. And although the slices are on the pricey side ($4), the portions are fair and the outcome incredibly delicious. Who knew healthy could taste so darn good?

Slices and pies range from “Dunce” to “Genius,” becoming more expensive as you get educated – $3.50 a slice/$18 a pie for a bruschetta-like “Dunce” to $24 for a “Master.” (A build-your-own “Genius” pie starts at $20, and toppings are additional.)

So, if you’ve got late-night cravings (they deliver!) or you just want to sample some tasty, healthy pizza, Slice is the perfect spot.

Slice The Perfect Food
1413 2nd Avenue
New York, NY 10021
Tel: (212) 249-4353

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Yoga is not a workout. Repeat: Yoga is not a workout. People who aspire for the sleek Gwenyth abs, the uber-sculpted Madonna arms, saunter into studios that offer racks of $400 Marc Jacobs mat bags, ready to kick their new-year’s resolution body into shape, and after time, they realize they’ve been tricked. Yoga is a life practice – how you live life off the mat – and this is the kind of pragmatic, yet inspiring philosophy you’ll hear at Virayoga, a minimalist Anusara yoga studio, that has developed a a devoted following in the four years they’ve been in business. Hidden away from the chic couture shops and industrial-chic buldings that swarm Soho streets, you’ll find the scene at Virayoga free from pretension and attitude.

Enter the 2,000 square foot studio billowing with light, and you’ll encounter a friendly front desk staff, minimal hocking of trendy yoga wares, and a class that is focused and precise. Sure you’ll leave having gotten your workout grove on, however, don’t be surprised when a little Tantra philosophy sneaks in.

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You vote with your dollar, it’s as simple as that. Every purchase you make – from sheets to heirloom tomatoes, from washcloths to pet food, what you buy dictates the future of our environment and the value, we as consumers, place on it. For months I patroned my local supermarket simply for the fact that it is located a few short blocks from my house, but soon I grew sickened by the fluorescent overhead lights, the wilting legumes, the roach-infested aisles, and I sought produce and chicken elsewhere. I became one of the many Brooklyn-ites to cart home bags from Whole Foods on the subway: pricey, but luxurious greens, free-range chickens, gluten-free breads – until I learned that I could save a significant amount of my grocery bill (essential in these precarious times of living as an artist, working freelance) but still get locally-produced, sustainable, or organic foods.

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