Tiny Tartine: Yummy food, tight space

If you haven't yet, try the little BYO in the West Village known as Tartine (W4th & W11th, New York). But be prepared for a cramped space and a few plates bumping your arms as you try to lever a mussel to your mouth.

A tiny little hole in the wall, with maybe 30 seats and a handful of two-tops on the sidewalk, this place produced some seriously taste-good food for really reasonable prices. And my taste buds weren't even poisoned with alcohol, being that I forgot to bring a bottle in my haste to get there! Incidentally, I think there's a wine shop across the street, but we just didn't, for once, want to drink. Still recovering from Camp (see previous post).

I went with my frequent dining pal, Vanessa. With the amount of time I spend with this chick, it's no wonder I'm single!! But hey, what's a best friend for. Anyway, we decided to hit Tartine after delightful manis and pedis this warm Friday afternoon. Suffice to say, now we are both stuffed after dining at this delightful West Village French Bistro.

To start, we had a plate of three "goat cheese croutons", three slices of toasted baguette with herbed goat cheese melted across the top, served with ample fresh basil and some sweet, tangy roasted red peppers. Really great stuff. I could have stopped there and been happy, but where's the fun in that.

For main courses, we shared - yes what is a best friend for - two of them. The Indian curry mussels and the chicken pot pie-like puff pastry, whose name escapes me at the moment. Both were great. The mussels in particular tasted fresh and the broth was a good balance of clinging to the seafood and leaving plenty for dipping the crispy fries or bread in at the bottom. The puff pastry was light and flaky and oozed gravy, chicken and mushrooms, in that order. It was missing some sort of spice...maybe salt?...but since I can't pinpoint what, I'll just tell you that it was good regardless.

Dessert? As if we could fit it. Instead we brought a piece of cake back to take the the movies later. I'll let you guys know what dessert was like later.

Anyway, my only complaint, if I had one, is that the place is just too damn small. The tables are literally on top of each other, so if someone smells, you're screwed. The waitresses seemed harried and weren't super cheery, but also a little unaware of their surroundings. When one of the girls was chatting with a guy at the next table, the plates she was holding kept bumping into my friend's arms. Unnecessary contact and annoying.

So that's a wrap. Try it, but maybe consider sitting outside. Or losing a few pounds first so you're not bigger than a twig :)

Happy weekend!!!