Tag Archives: Pellegrino’s

A Mother and a Daughter

Posted on by

My mother’s first breath after crossing the Williamsburg Bridge into Brooklyn today was a sigh. She wishes I lived in Manhattan, I know. She tells me every chance she gets.

As Mom drove north on Havemeyer toward my apartment, I saw Williamsburg through her eyes: graffiti, old unpretty buildings, men with weird facial hair weaving in and out of traffic on bikes, more graffiti. I get it. She doesn’t see what I see and I have stopped trying to persuade her of my neighborhood’s charms.

williamsburg bridge

Mom’s favorite past apartment of mine was probably the one at 72nd and 3rd on the Upper East Side where I lived starting when I was 23 years old. Now she would gladly accept even the Cornelia Street walk-up in Greenwich Village that I called home on September 11. In spite of my current place being modern and comfortable, in Mom’s eyes, everything is better in Manhattan. Continue reading →

About these ads

Birthday treats

Posted on by

My birthday, as you already know, was last week. I may not dance on table tops to celebrate [anymore] but I still like to have a good time.

This year, I was showered with treats by family, friends and colleagues. It was…sweet!

I’ll be posting about one of the meals soon. Bottega in Yountville deserves its own entry (and then some).

 

It’s a family tradition

Posted on by

My parents visit me in NYC from the Scranton area every so often. In theory, they enjoy visiting. In theory.

Sometimes they come to Brooklyn and then complain about the graffiti, the parking, the traffic and/or the “distance” from ‘New York.’

My retort that Brooklyn IS New York gets ignored.

More often than not, my parents ask me to meet them in Manhattan at their favorite restaurant–and then complain about the availability of parking, the cost of parking, the crowds and/or my hair/outfit/weight/lack of boyfriend or husband (that last bit is all Mom).

At Pellegrino’s in Little Italy, our small family’s every idiosyncrasy is known, accepted, embraced and even fawned over because, you see, we started going there in 1995 or 1996.

Even though I went through times where I didn’t want to go there, preferring new! and! exciting! sceney! places! and bitchfaced through meals, I still have my own antipasto that isn’t on the menu. They make it for me without me asking.

Continue reading →