La Palette - New York, NY

I love living in New York City for a number of reasons, and one of those reasons is the weekly ritual of meeting friends for brunch on the weekends. That is just what New Yorkers do.

This past weekend I met up with friends at La Palette in the West Village (94 Greenwich Avenue between 12th and 13th Streets). This is the type of café that you walk into and already love before you even order. The atmosphere is very quaint with seating for only about 24 people. In the warmer weather, they also have an outdoor patio area to dine in. I have yet to see this area, but you can count on me visiting it this summer!

This café serves French and Brazilian dishes with a focus on crepes. They are also evidently known for their burgers, but since my friends and I love the crepes so much, we have yet to try the burgers.

I ordered the Saumon Fume ($12.95), which is a crepe filled with smoked salmon, swiss cheese, scrambled egg and scallions. The first time I tried this, the smoked salmon was miraculously remained in its original smoked state and did not cook through in the frying process. This past weekend, however, the salmon was fully cooked. It was still good, but I missed the previously crepe I had tasted.

Gemma ordered the Poulet et Pesto crepe ($11.95). This crepe was filled with grilled chicken breast with a creamy pesto sauce. I did not taste Gemma’s crepe, but she loved it and it did look great.

I think the real winner of the crepes was the Pissaladiere ($11.95) that Carrie and Alison ordered. This is filled with goat cheese (how can you go wrong with goat cheese???), roasted onions, kalamata olives, fresh basil and roasted tomatoes. It was fabulous! The kalamata olives provided such a nice burst of flavor with the subtle, creamy taste of the goat cheese. Combined with the onions, basil and tomatoes; it made for a really nice rounded flavor. The next time I go to La Palette I am definitely ordering this crepe.

La Palette also has a second location in Soho at 50 MacDougal Street (Between Houston and Prince). I have not eaten at this location, but I am under the impression that it is the same experience as offered by their West Village location.

Whether you prefer Soho or the West Village, I do definitely recommend trying out this little gem of a café.