Craving: Mac 'n Cheese

I have been seriously craving for Cafeteria's Mac Attack since last night. What I wouldn't give to have Cafeteria near my apartment. When Avery and I were both still studying at FIT, we would slosh through rain, sludge and snow just to get a mac 'n cheese (and martini) fix. But the Upper East-Chelsea trek is a tad more complicated so I can't get my fix that easily. Sigh.

Thanks to Sonu's visit (and its proximity to the Barney's Warehouse Sale), we had an excuse to hit up Cafeteria for brunch. Cafeteria is that familiar all-white restaurant where Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha had their brunch powows, so it is imperative to take SATC addicts there. Thankfully, the food is something to keep coming back to. Mika and I shared sliders and the aformentioned Mac Attack—a sampler of Cafeteria's 3 scrumptious versions of Mac 'n Cheese: with cheddar and fontina, with smoked gouda and bacon, and with truffle oil. This is an amazing way to spend $13, I tell you. Yum. Our sliders were unfortunately overdone. The first waiter we called over said, "Our burgers usually come medium to well done." Whaaaaat? That's like telling customers, "Our meat is crap so we usually cook it beyond recognition." Thankfully , that was just a blip in the radar and we were made new, perfectly medium well sliders. The rest of our party had zero complaints with their burgers and fish & chips. Sonu enjoyed it so much, in fact, that she wanted to come back a few days later. Next time, dearie, we'll go back and stuff our faces!

Mika and I dropped in on a late night jaunt last Sunday due to an insufferable craving for steak after drinking in the Meatpacking District. Thank God this place is open 24/7. We ordered Mac 'n Cheese Spring Rolls ($9) to start. It sounds better than it actually is. Mac 'n cheese is just not as good when there's no crusty oven baked cheese to savor. But Cafeteria quickly redeemed itself with the Chimichurri Grilled Hanger Steak ($20) served with blistered corn salsa and yuca fries. Mika still talks about it. The steak was so tender, and bursting with flavors of cilantro, paprika and garlic. Slurp. I don't have a picture of it because we demolished it as soon as the plate landed in front of us.

Can't wait to come back here ... I'm so addicted to the stuff, I should rename it Smack Attack.

Where: 119 7th Avenue at 17th Street. Tel. 212.414.1717