Beauty & Essex

I've only gone and got myself a new job working on Google Places for my beloved old London. Last week, I went over to New York to meet my new team and, as you'd expect from types who make their living knowing all the best places, the NY community ladies showed us a fine time. My favourite, helped along by a heartbreakingly blue sky, was brunch at Beauty and Essex on the Lower East Side.

From the outside, it's a shifty spot and you hustle into a pawn shop full of gaudy brilliance all for sale; a magpie's dream of vintage bling and faded memorabilia.

All very dazzlesome and then you see that there's a door...

...going into a huge, high-ceilinged room of grey velvet drapes, mirrored furniture and Art Deco goodness. It's like a twenties tart's boudoir ie. amazing.

This is the champagne bar in the ladies bathroom - I was heartily disappointed that this is only in action during the eveningtimes. That might be why we decided, in true Noo Yawk style, to order champagne at brunch.

And the food! Lobster tacos, mac'n'cheese, mini cornbread waffles, chicken meatballs. So good.

All this, and you get a classic crowd of stylish gays, glossy, fur-coated ladies who push their arugula salad around the plate, and large, talkative families of Woody Allen types. What a place, what a city.