Cava Grill

I have a new top lunch spot. My normal routine of rotating between the kale Caesar at Sweetgreen, a giant smoothie from Juice Generation, and a square of zucchini topped focaccia from Eataly has been interrupted this week with a new addition: Cava Grill. It seems that food entrepreneurs in DC have mastered the art of making healthy, filling, fresh, beautiful lunches, with both Sweetgreen and Cava Grill being founded there in recent years. Thankfully, both these business have now spread their wings and flown off across America, much to the delight of those of us who don't live in Washington.

Cava Grill opened a couple of weeks ago right by Union Square, and I’ve become a full-blown grain bowl addict since then. The food at this new lunch spot is predominantly Greek (and less dominantly broadly Mediterranean) cuisine, and the totally customizable menu features all my favorite flavors and ingredients such as feta, tahini, hummus, eggplant, falafel, cabbage slaw, lightly pickled vegetables, crunchy pita chips, nutty brown rice, and wonderfully spicy harissa. While your first visit may seem daunting as there’s no ‘suggested’ bowls or wraps available, meaning you have to make all the many decisions yourself, I’m pretty sure that you couldn’t make a bad lunch from these options, no matter how hard you tried.

I’ve already stumbled on a favorite combination, which starts with a base of brown rice, arugula, and baby spinach, is topped with crazy feta (feta smashed with jalapeños), hummus, and tzatziki, crispy falafel balls are thrown over that, and then the whole thing is sprinkled with cabbage slaw, cherry tomatoes and lightly pickled onions, chopped pita chips, and another sprinkling of feta, before being coated in a herby tahini dressing. All this is also served with a mini pita, in case you're still hungry. This lunchtime feast is worth waiting in line for, no matter how slowly the crowd of people seem to be progressing towards the checkout. And if you’re extra hungry, there are Ovenly chocolate chip cookies available for dessert. Just FYI.

Cava Grill, 143 4^th Avenue, New York, NY 10003

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The Perfect New York Saturday Morning

A perfect New York Saturday morning goes something like this: I wake up slightly before the alarm, as the sun is creeping in through the blinds, promising a day of warmth, bare legs, and blue skies. B and I then set off on a quick run around the park - it's sweaty, and warm, and we're up before the crowds so have the streets to ourselves. We sprint home, de-sweat, change into summer outfits, and rush off to meet friends for breakfast.

A feast of coffee, avocado toast, and poached eggs is ordered. This is definitely the most reliably fantastic breakfast. I need to move to the West coast for improved access to avocados (and sunshine). Santa Barbara, here I come.

Once we've wiped our plates clean, we pose outside in the sunshine for a quick photo to remember this happy morning, before going our separate ways.

A stroll through Washington Square Park, and up 5th Avenue leads me to my next destination: Union Square Greenmarket. It has been too long since I've roamed the stalls with no meal plans, nowhere else to be, and no raindrops falling on my head. There are spring greens, ramps, garlic, herbs, fresh cheese, and multiple flower stalls selling hyacinths, tulips, potted plants, cacti, peonies, buttercups, and lilacs.

I struggle to decide between which petals to buy, and eventually settle for the wild-looking lilacs: They seem more suitable for my weekend of directionless meandering. I fill the rest of my bag with green leaves, radishes, and fresh camomile, and rush home to sit out on our sunny patio and drink a pot of camomile tea, soaking in the last of the rays before the clouds come in.

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