FashionsWeek: Beauty, Fashion, Travel, Tech & Dining By Maya Litovsky

Lively Spanish restaurants with great ambience and food are hard to come by in Manhattan where mixing cocktails, food, and fun is equally important so I’m happy to see that Marcha Cocina has opened it’s second outpost on the trendy lower east side at 111 Avenue C.

The restaurant has 38 seats and is focused on moderately priced meals with sharing in mind. The tapas menu is quite good and priced from $7 to $12 a plate. Our favorites were the very tasty baby chorizo, a savory spanish sausage sautéed in garlic, white whine and olive oil and the the Patatas Bravas, crispy potatoes topped with brava aioli.

The restaurant is known for their variety of flatbreads called “Cocas”. They offer wild mushroom, chorizo, and skirt steak ($13) which happened to be our favorites and are actually pretty substantial and very filling.

If your party is still hungry the entrees not to be missed are the Paella Con Langosta ($28), served with lobster, saffron valencia rice, shrimp, clams, mussels, and tomato escabeche and the Churasco (Skirt Steak)($24) served with demi, fondu, roasted potato and chimichuri sauce.

The cocktail menu is extensive and the waitstaff was very knowledgeable about mixing drinks to our liking. They even recommended a special hard to find Brugal rum, which quickly became a favorite.

Marcha Cocina is open 7 days a week from 3pm until 11pm Sunday through Thursday and until midnight on Saturday nights. They are launching a new brunch menu shortly so stay tuned!

For more info visit www.marchanyc.com

Last year a brand new casual eatery arrived in NYC all the way from Belgium. Exki was founded by three friends in 2001 and has since opened 78 restaurants across Europe, and in 2014 arrived on our shores and most recently opened the 76 Madison and 28th st. location, with 20 more planned in the metro area.

The premise is very simple at Exki, and that is to deliver fresh, seasonal, vegetable driven recipes, at great prices, while using green energy and reinforcing the importance of sustainability and giving back.

For Spring/Summer 2015 Exki added 11 new dishes , highlighting five that utilize Exki ‘s signature low fat yet tasty Vegetable Emulsions. Some of the favorite dishes include Tofu Thai, an entrée salad of roasted local organic tofu, ginger miso emulsion, rice vermicelli, spinach, romaine, carrots, daikon, cilantro, basil and peanuts and for meat lovers the B.F.T, roast beef, tomato fennel horseradish emulsion, arugula, radish and parmesan on a baguette.

New this spring is the variety of beverage options including five variations of green tea smoothies, each combined with seasonal fruits and blended to maximize flavor and freshness. My favorite was the Passion Tea with strawberries, mint, and green tea.

Exki 257 Park Avenue South (212) 533-2011

Exki 76 Madison Ave (212) 447-1874

For more info and full menu visit www.exkinyc.com

   Juniper Bar is located in the heart of midtown, a block away from Macys Herald Square and Madison Square Garden, making it a perfect for cocktails and a meal after a day of shopping or an event at the Garden.

The large space is sleek and modern with flat screen TV’s, a dj booth, and a private space downstairs that can be rented out for private parties.

This casual restaurant has a wide variety of cocktails, many focused on gin. My favorite was the Strawberry Collins and my dining companion loved the Mango Margarita which used Patron Tequila, Mango Puree, and Cointreau.

    The Asian American fusion menu was inventive and tasty. We had the seafood spring rolls, which were crispy fried rolls filled with lobster, shrimp and scallops served with a citrus dipping sauce. Next we had the Vietnamese Chicken Wings. They were sweet and spicy and  a nicely spiced alternative to traditional wings served in a bar. The steak tacos were favorites as far as appetizers go. We love skirt steak and are picky about it’s preparation. The tacos are filled with steak, peppers, onions, guacamole, and chimichuri sauce.

   Juniper serves wonderful entrees in addition to their small plates with a focus on a large variety of burgers, wraps, and sandwiches. The Lobster Club is delicious with fresh Maine lobster, Applewood smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato, lemon aioli, served on toasted multi grain bread. Burger favorites are the Fire Breathing Burger filled with ghost peppers, pepper jack cheese and sriracha aioli. This burger is for the lover of a spicy addition to a meal! The Big Blue is the ultimate burger served with cheddar cheese, bacon, homemade blue cheese dressing, and topped with tempura onion rings.

   Our dining neighbors raved about the Pan Roasted Chicken with Fingerling potatoes and The Bourbon Steak with sweet potato mash and sautéed green beans. We will make sure to try them next time.

Juniper Bar
237 west 35th St.
212-967-2511
www.juniperbarnyc.com