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“Crema”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Latin/Mexican	Chelsea	Moderate	Good

Crema is the newest incarnation of the narrow 17th Street space that has been Snack, an American small plates restaurant, and then Sandia, a Mexican spot with a juicy watermelon theme. One has to wonder about troubled locations like these—whether it is the space that is cursed, or rather, the concept, the chef, or the restaurateur in particular that inhabits that space that ushers in a premature death. Crema, however, feels like it has the legs to stick around for more than the typical yearlong lifespan. The place has a cheery, unassuming vibe, with walls washed in coral tones, a sweet little curtained lounge up front, and a lean bar topped with vases of Birds of Paradise and oversized oblong bowls-as-trophs of crunchy tortilla chips. What mostly adds to its viability though, is the chef and owner, the lovely Julieta Ballesteros, well known for her cooking at her popular cantina, Mexicana Mama. Jamie, Alison, and I had dinner at Crema on Saturday night after seeing Friends With Money, Nicole Holofcener’s follow up to Lovely and Amazing. The movie tells the story of the intertwined lives of three married couples (with money), and one stray single friend (without money). I am not going to get into movie reviews here, but for the record, Alison and I liked it, but Jamie found it boring and predictable. To me it showed the best and worst of people in relationships—both marriage and friendships. At times the picture is quite bleak, almost suffocatingly depressing, but at others, it is comical, compelling, and, especially in the case of Francis McDormand’s character—who finds herself angry at the world—quite real. Anyway, after a recap of the movie and a stop in at J. Crew where I discovered a pair of flip flops for $250—sorry, but when did J. Crew become Sigerson Morrison?-—we made our way over to Crema and settled into a table for four opposite the bar, a nice table in a slightly cramped area, but at least it was far enough from Frank Bruni that I didn’t feel awkward not saying hello. I have met him before but I have no idea if he remembers me, and while I would have liked to have said hello, I didn’t want to do anything to give away his cover to the owners. So I stayed put and sipped my margarita, discussing the movie with Alison and Jamie, while looking over Julieta’s menu of modern Mexican fare.

Since guacamole may be one of my favorite foods (behind cheese which is my most favorite ... [more, click below]

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Posted: April 9, 2006

Other restaurants in Chelsea :
+ Matsuri   + La Bottega   + Tia Pol   + Bombay Talkie   + Cookshop   + D'Or Ahn: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED   + Buddakan   + Crema   + InTent: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED   + Trestle on Tenth   + Klee   + El Quinto Pino   + Socarrat   + Txikito   + Co. (Company)   

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