Mercat
45 Bond Street (between Lafayette and Bowery)

On a Friday me and a friend chose to chance the new Catalan-flavoured Mercat -- sans reservations, so it was risky. We were given 2 spaces at the bar, which worked out very well. Once they get their reservation system worked out, this will be a great place. It was already darn good, and we had a wonderful time.

I felt good from the first moments I saw the menu -- written in Catalan. How authentic, and that made me smile. We had a wondeful bottle of rioja and ordered an assortment of tapas -- ranging from cargols (snails grilled on a skewer) to grilled padrones peppers (nice!), from bacallá (salt cod) fritters to fideuà negra (short noodles in ink).

After that wonderful round, we chose to enjoy some cheese and jamón serrano -- lamenting the fact that we still can't get the amazing jamón iberico in the US (it's illegal?!). I dream of that meal in London's Barrafina... With another bottle of excellent wine, we wound down the evening in style.

I like this place, from the balance of trendy and traditional, to the Catalan flag near the kitchen. If it had iberico it would be nearly perfect. What an awesome addition to the New York dining scene!

Food: A-
Atmosphere: B
For Lone Diners: B (*)