A Quick Bite at La Parisienne

Diva1, famished, on her way home, stopped in for a quick dinner at the friendly-looking restaurant-diner, La Parisienne on 7th Avenue not far from Central Park.

It did seem like a good idea at first: Diva1 was quickly shown to the one booth not yet occupied, handed the menu, asked if she'd like something to drink (yes, please, a black coffee) while a glass of iced water was placed before her. So attentive. So efficient. And Diva1 does like a place lively with folks eating & schmoozing.

There were plenty of burgers on offer, which were tempting, but Diva1 has been watching her scale march relentlessly upward this past year, so when she spotted a grilled chicken special on the menu, that's what she ordered.

Waiter: The sandwich?
Diva1: Oh. The grilled chicken special. If that's a sandwich, I guess so.
Waiter: Raises eyebrows, gives withering look to Diva, scratches on his pad. Will that be all?
Diva1: Hm. It comes with french fries?
Waiter: French fries.
Diva1: That's all then.

Reader, it was a sandwich, of the open variety, a hunk of grilled chicken lying unadorned atop a toasted burger bun. French fries, a slice of tomato and a lettuce leaf shared the plate.

Waiter: Would you like some cole slaw or pickles?
Diva1: Pickles would be great, thanks!

And so arrived a small plate bearing two nondescript limp pickle wedges.

The first disappointment was the french fries: pale, mealy, no crispy goodness whatsoever. Still, the Diva was hungry, and they were not, after all, inedible. She did not eat the sandwich as a sandwich, opting instead to eat the chicken by itself and treat the bun as a side of bread. The chicken wasn't horrible, but was on the dry side, and not quite flavorless, but almost. The tomato slice was large and juiceless, the lettuce leaf crisp and delicious. In fact, that lettuce leaf and the toasted bun were the best things about this meal.

After all that, Diva1 was going to forego any thought of dessert, but on the other hand she thought ... well, she's unsure just what she was thinking ... she ordered apple pie. Which arrived cold. And, like the tomato, juiceless.

La Parisienne. Diva1 has never been to Paris, but she imagines that no Parisian would want to be associated with such a meal. Sighing deeply, she left a now empty restaurant (no, it was not closing time), belly full but heart heavy: it had seemed so promising. Alas.

Still basking in the afterglow....

of the spaghetti and meatballs on Wednesday night. What did you think I meant?

Needing fresh air and wanting an outing, Diva2 took the bus down Queens Blvd. to the Tower Diner in Rego Park.

First the bus ride: highly entertaining in the black comedy sense. Diva2 took the first seat she could find; there was a reason it was empty. Directly in front was a religious fanatic who spent the whole time talking to air about the joys of Jehovah's Witnesses. It was a thrill when her cell phone rang and she had to have a normal conversation for 2 minutes, but boy did Ms. Fanatic get off the phone fast, the better to be talking to air again.

At last, Tower Diner is in sight. It's a funny triangular shape - methinks it might have been a bank in a former life, but it's very light and cheery. There were some unusual lunch specials (coconut shrimp with orange dipping sauce, anyone?), but in the end I went for that rainy day comfort classic of Chicken a la King. It was a great choice. It came with a decent basket of breadsticks, melba toast and a roll plus a really nice salad; the salad had generous slices of plum tomato and cucumber as well as a big slice of red onion (and the usual iceberg lettuce, of course).

The waitress was at the top of her game, asking me if she should put in the order for the C a la K while I was eating the salad, or did I want her to wait until the salad was finished? Now,please. The C a la K was dee-lish! The chicken pieces were big and the chicken had been grilled first, so it had nice color and a great taste. The sauce was quite tasty and there was a nice timbale of rice, studded with peas and carrots, to go with the chicken. The portion was huge; Diva2 took home enough leftovers for dinner tonight.

The only mistake was dessert. They were out of coconut custard pie so I had lemon meringue. Generic at its best and not helped at all by today's rainy weather; even good meringue could not stand up to this dampness.

Boring bus ride home - no professional eccentrics on this one.

2 Times in 1 Day at 3 Guys

The Diner Divas were meeting up for an afternoon together on Manhattan's upper east side, so DinerDiva1 decided to have breakfast at 3 Guys Restaurant at 96th and Madison, knowing dinner would also be there later.

DinerDiva1 arrived at 3 Guys about 10:30 a.m. Promptly and cheerfully seated at one of the large booths by a window, she was handed the breakfast menu and immediately ordered a cup of black coffee, which arrived within seconds. She'd thought she was in the mood for a cheese-and-onion omelette, but didn't see that listed among the omelette offerings. Sure, she could have asked for it and no doubt it would not have been a problem, but she thought, since this was a late breakfast/early lunch combo, the equally filling corned beef hash with 2 eggs over easy would do just as nicely. This came with home fries and whole wheat toast. Both the hash browns and corned beef hash arrived with a bit of crunchy crust on them, which, while fine for the hash browns was not a favorite for the corned beef hash but certainly not a major turnoff. The toast was acceptable, nothing special, and the eggs were perfect. A full stomach and a refilled cup of coffee later, DinerDiva1 paid her modest $9.75 bill, plus tip, and went off to meet up with DinerDiva2.

Some hours later, DinerDivas1 and 2 were at 3 Guys together at a corner booth they'd chosen away from the windows and the door. Again, seating was prompt and cheerfully accomplished. DinerDiva2's immediate request for tea was promptly delivered and we settled in to survey the wide-ranging menu choices.

DinerDiva1's settled on the feta cheeseburger deluxe, well done. DinerDiva2's choice was spaghetti and meatballs and a mixed green salad to start with. A breadbasket of rolls arrived with the salad, which looked fresh and crisp if not particularly inspired, and DinerDiva2 allowed as how she was happy to have her veggies for the day. Then it was on to the main event:

While DinerDiva1 was munching happily away on her burger, DinerDiva2 declared her spaghetti and meatballs delicious and nicely prepared, topped with cheese freshly grated by the waiter at the table. She was also pleased that the sauce was not at all watery. DinerDiva1 rhapsodized about the cole slaw, which was not the usual tasteless diner variety, and noted that next time she'll ask for a larger portion of slaw in lieu of the fries and uninspired, though certainly fresh and crisp, lettuce and slice of tomato served with the deluxe plate. Portions were large: DinerDiva2 cleaned her plate, except for the french fries, and DinerDiva1 reluctantly couldn't finish all the spaghetti--it was just too much.

For dessert, DinerDiva1 treated herself to the so-advertised homemade rice pudding, which was cool and creamy, served with nutmeg and a small dollop of whipped cream. DinerDiva2 dove into a slice of carrot cake, nicely plated, and which she said was delicious with a slightly nutty flavor. Again, portions were large, so some got left on each plate, alas.

The waiter was attentive, no one hurried us out, the restroom, down a flight of stairs, was clean and bright, the bill for the 2 of us was $46 including tip. We've enjoyed 3 Guys at this location before; we will no doubt enjoy it again. It truly is a pleasant eating experience -- enough for one of us, at least, to happily do it twice in one day.

Diva2's latest adventures

Diva2 had way too much time on her hands and an itch she couldn't scratch, so it was off for a long walk down Austin Street in Forest Hills. Destination: the Forest Hills Diner. Diva2 had spotted this place one day last year as she went roaring by on the Q23 bus, but today was the first opportunity to get there.

Forest Hills Diner is small and unprepossessing, but the vibe was very right. First plus: a very pleasant, but not overly obtrusive, waitress. Diva2 ordered the chicken salad triple-decker; Diva2 likes to order a diner classic the first time she visits a place, the better to see how the joint stacks up against similar spots. Second plus: the fries were really hot, obviously just out of the fryer, and while the chicken itself was not so chunky as Diva2 likes it in her chicken salad, it tasted fine and the bacon was perfectly cooked and had a great smoky taste. Even the cole slaw was decent - not too watery and with good crunch. This place will definitely get a return visit.

Diva2 then headed down to the Cinemart on Metropolitan Avenue to see An Education. Was disappointed in it and not sure why.

To help Diva2 get over her disappointment with the movie, there was Eddie's Sweet Shop beckoning on the next corner. Diva2 loves the idea of Eddie's, but she's not sure she actually likes Eddie's itself. It's an old-fashioned ice cream parlor that specializes in sundaes and milkshakes and the like. The place needs a bit of an overhaul; it's just too frowzy and down at the heels and dusty at the moment. The big problem, however, is the ice cream. Diva2 had a hot fudge sundae with coffee ice cream and if she had closed her eyes and just taken a bite of the ice cream, she wouldn't have known what the flavor was supposed to be. Hello, Eddie's, coffee ice cream should taste like coffee. This has happened there before and Diva2 is inclined not to offer Eddie's another chance for quite some time.

If you think Diva2 only eats in Queens, think again; there is a Manhattan diner in her future for tomorrow - report to follow.