There was a story this week on the cities with the happiest residents. The top three were in Louisiana; the city with the most unhappy people was said to be New York.
It is foolish to say, “How is it possible?” because we are a city of millions, with millions of different histories, millions of different dreams, and with different hands dealt to us. I am fortunate, and I recognize that every day. But I also enjoy my days and there is no time I love my city more than during the summer.
The day starts with a walk in the park where I have pockets of garden flowers that fill me with joy.
There are the baseball games with school kids and grown kids, the families settled in for a happy afternoon with picnics and folding chairs.
And there is my Oliver who finds, in every season, some aspect of the park to love. Now it is the long grasses, the shade, and the rocks that are cool on the tummy.
Metta, Norberto Piattoni's Fort Green neighborhood restaurant[/caption]
Francis Mallmann, the revered Argentinian chef made famous by his many restaurants around the world, a couple of books on his cooking style and a hit television series, Chef's Table, has ensured his legacy with a diaspora of chef proteges, two of whom have rolled up in New York. Norberto, better known to his friends as Negro, recently opened Metta, a neighborhood restaurant located on a quiet corner two blocks from the Fort Greene farmers market in Brooklyn. It offers sustainably sourced, vegetable-forward dishes all cooked in a custom designed, open-fire kitchen, using South American asado techniques, utilizing all aspects of the fire (smoke, flame, ash and embers) to create layers of flavor in dishes. Packed with happy diners the night I went, it is relaxed, delicious, interesting and fun.
[caption id="attachment_8248" align="alignnone" width="500"]
Flora Bar, Ignacio Mattos' third opening in New York[/caption]
Ignacio Mattos was born in Uruguay and learned to cook in the kitchens of Mallman and Slow Food legend, Alice Waters. His two other restaurants in New York, Estela, with its bold, Mediterranean-inspired cooking, and Altro Paradiso, with its Italian cuisine, are favorites of mine. Now, Ignacio has come with his team to the Met Brauer on 76th and Madison, offering small bites as well as main dishes in a comfortable setting either indoors or on the open terrace. Service is superb, wines delicious and the food captivating. The space, in my opinion, could do with some tlc - easily accomplished. If you can serve food like that, a bit of flower planting and decorating should come easy.
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