Just browsing
Kidilum, subscribers’ favorite specialty bookstores, Leroy’s Place, Commonwealth Running Club, mochi, MORE
ASK FOUND
First, a Nines’ worth of responses to our call for favorite NYC specialty bookstores:
Sweet Pickle Books (Lower East Side), used books (and pickles)
Wild Sorrel Cookbooks (East Village, above), organized by cuisine, food type, and much more
Bonnie Slotnick (East Village), endless supply of used cookbooks
Book Club Bar (East Village), cocktails & books
Mysterious Bookshop (Tribeca), in the literal sense: a big mystery selection
The Drama Book Shop (Midtown), where every actor, playwright, director worth their salt shops
Twisted Spine (Williamsburg), horror, of course
Love & Legends Books (Prospect Heights), sci-fi/fantasy and romance
BEM (Stuyvesant Heights), for Black food literature
BONUS: Three Lives & Co. (Greenwich Village), ‘an anachronism’
And for our friend looking for a furniture refinisher on the UES, here you go:
Paul Koppenheffer: His workroom is in the basement of NY Design Center at 200 Lexington Ave., used by interior designers and showrooms. Amazing work and attention to detail. profurniture200@gmail.com.
Two more PROMPTS for which we continue to seek your intelligence:
I need a caterer for a casual summer party in Manhattan. Who you got?
We’re looking for a new management company for our building. Can you recommend any that are good for boutique co-ops?
If we publish your Ask FOUND response, we’ll comp you a 90-day paid subscription. Hit reply or email found@foundny.com with your genius (and your questions). And don’t forget to check out Ask FOUND, our new recommendations chat engine powered exclusively by our on-the-ground coverage of this great city.
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Sponsor
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RESTAURANTS • First Word
Spice-forward
The Skinny: A roomy, tropical-feeling Flatiron restaurant that opened in February, Kidilum serves exceptional, punch-you-in-the-face South Indian cooking rooted in the bold, spice-forward flavors of Kerala’s coast.
NYC RESTAURANT LINKS: At Bowery Hotel, Gemma to shutter, Raf’s team tapped to open new French-Italian spot Lio’s in its place • Hart’s team readies Zig Zag Oyster Bar to open next Tuesday in Crown Heights • Popina owner planning new wine bar at Williamsburg Wharf next year • The NYC restaurants with house accounts.
WORK • Tuesday Routine
Unscripted moments
JONATHAN ZELINGER • matchmaker and podcast host • Paired Down
Neighborhood you work in: All five boroughs
Neighborhood you live in: Park Slope
It’s Tuesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
I’m probably on a video call with someone who recently filled out our compatibility survey, trying to get past the surface stuff, and into who they really are: Their perspective, what they need, what gets them excited. Or I’m out walking around Brooklyn, talking to anyone who’ll chat. Matchmaking doesn’t stay indoors. It happens on Zoom, on sidewalks, in coffee shops. A casual conversation turns into a lead more often than you’d think.
What’s on the agenda for today?
Next up is designing a date for a match happening next week. At Paired Down, we’re not just offering introductions. Alongside my sister-in-law Sophia, we curate dates to your preferences and needs: informal activities, conversation prompts, the occasional small challenge meant to get people out of their heads and into the room. A good first date needs a little architecture. Left to their own devices, people often follow a script that doesn’t necessarily work for them.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
La Taq on 7th Avenue in Park Slope works every time. Unfussy, consistent, and home to the best burrito in New York. And it’s owned and run by really solid people, to boot.
JuJu Cafe in Cobble Hill is one of the best cheap eats in the city. You can’t go wrong with any of their onigiri, but the shrimp tempura version is worth the trip alone. They also do boba that seems to attract every middle schooler in the area.
If you can stomach the wait, Vato on 7th Avenue in Park Slope has a brisket and egg burrito with a smoky softness to it that works for breakfast, works for lunch (and if they were open for dinner, would work for that too). The pastries are delicious, and just filling enough to feel like a big decision.
How about a little leisure or culture this week?
I just organized the Blue Moon 5 Miler, a race the Commonwealth Running and Walking Club hosted in Prospect Park under an actual blue moon, sponsored by Blue Moon Brewing. A blue moon only comes around every three years, so the whole thing felt a little like our Olympics.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
As both a runner and loyal neighborhood shoveler, I can’t recommend enough the Prodigio running boot by La Sportiva. It is the single most comfortable, versatile shoe that’s ever housed my foot.
What NYC store or service do you love to recommend?
Leroy’s Place on 7th Avenue. Tchotchkes that feel distinct and high quality. I used to live in New Orleans, and occasionally miss the city’s particular brand of eccentricity. Walking into Leroy’s gets me close. We once bought my father-in-law a puppet there. I anticipate it’ll become a family heirloom. I also have to shout out Variety Coffee in Park Slope. Their manager, Colby, makes everyone there feel like it’s their living room.
Where are you donating your time or money?
CHiPS, right on the border of Gowanus and Park Slope, reliably feeding a high volume of people every day. I also founded the Commonwealth Running Club. You’ll find me at Grand Army Plaza twice a week with that crew, gearing up for a run or walk.
WORK LINKS: LA-based United Talent Agency takes 100K SF at Empire State Building • Airbnb buys landmarked Gramercy building for $81.5M, plans to convert to office space • How the Pfizer building scare could shake up vertical conversion plans • What co-op and condo boards need to know about new pied-à-terre tax.
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Shop
Splash of pink
This spring, a raspberry-hued temple of mochi opened in the East Village.