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Now that I'm on my way to becoming a full-fledged "Golden Girls" queen -- thanks, Hulu! -- it may be time for me to head uptown for a bite at Rue de la Rue Cafe! Review HERE.

BEC's All Breakfast Sandwiches, and a Little Bit of a Ripoff -- UPDATE

UPDATE: With all credit to the owner, the iced coffee was fixed to have an actual large size and the price was lowered by a dollar. I have been back several times.

Tried the highly anticipated all-egg-sandwich joint -- BEC (bacon, egg and cheese) -- that just opened in the former home of Cola's on Eighth Avenue in Chelsea twice this past week. The place is incredibly charming -- check out the milk bottles that line the front counter and the country accents throughout -- and the food is good. 

Went for the BEC Classic the first time -- to me a classic New York breakfast sandwich is ham, egg and cheese (HEC), but OK -- and then had the Godmother with all of its Italian meat goodness on trip two. Both were tasty, if not spectacular, but $32.12 for two small egg sandwiches and two coffees (I had a date) might not be a regular thing. At that price, it might be nice to accompany them with mixed greens or something to make it more of a meal. I was still hungry and the iced coffee -- not latte -- was a whopping $5.50. It's called a "large," but it's served in a plastic cup that is a "regular" or "medium" at every other store in the city. And while I'm sure they'd argue it's "cold brew," I found it to be borderline offensive. (Five-fifty for an iced coffee???) Note to owner Jessica Bologna: Drop the price a buck and I'll be back. Otherwise, I can have an egg scramble and a bottomless hot coffee at Westville around the corner for the same price.

Ham, Egg and Tease

ALL-BREAKFAST-SANDWICH RESTAURANT COMING TO NYC. GET. READY.

Oh, my god. As if this couldn't be more perfect, BEC is going in the old Cola's in Chelsea -- which is a stone's throw away from my apartment! 

Sign Language

Michael and I only frequent a handful of restaurants and now we've lost another.

Rain Hat Recommended

Noticed this new establishment near the intersection of 18th and 8th in Chelsea over the weekend. Hilarious name aside, something about a combination "sex" shop, cafe and bar/lounge sounds a bit amitious -- not to mention unsanitary -- to me. But the venue has been a dozen things in the past decade, so why not be a dozen more now?

Boast?

Has anyone been to this new Roast Kitchen place on Seventh Avenue near Times Square? It was so crowded I couldn't really see what they had, but it struck me as kind of a Boston Market, if Boston Market weren't completely disgusting. (OK. The ones in the city are. Suburban ones are fine.)  I don't get a dinner break at work. so not sure when I'm gonna get to go here. But the Yelp reviews are encouraging, with the meats and vegetables getting raves. 

Sushi No-Mora

In the never-ending revolving door of Chelsea businesses, I noticed that Sushi Mora -- which took the home of Cuban Cafe, which took the home of Cuba Libre -- appears to be out of business. Anyone know anything mora? It wasn't even open more than a couple years.

RIP, Pastis

The turnover of businesses near my house has been shocking lately, with my corner liquor store and a piping company near the other corner being the latest to announce moves. Even more shocking is the demise of Pastis, long considered a New York City dining landmark.

The popular meatpacking district establishment said it will be laying off all 200 of its employees on Jan. 1. The restaurant's owner is said to be negotiating to reopen under a new lease at the renovated property in 2015. 

 Read HERE.

Remembering the Empire Diner

It looks like someone is making a video documentary about the unfortunate changes Chelsea has been going through -- especially looking to talk to former regulars of the Empire Diner, which was run out of business, re-opened as something else, and closed up again. If you'd like to be involved, write to empiredinerstories@gmail.com.

I Wanna Get Porked

Was having lunch with Michael at the ever-reliable Bottino on 10th Avenue yesterday when I was introduced to the nearby Rocket Pig, famous for its smoked, spice-rubbed pork sandwich, served on a ciabatta roll with red onion jam and mustard sauce. Michael's not a big fan of pork, but I am. Who's comin' with?

Official site HERE.

La Cucaracha, La Cucaracha

Popular Mexican Restaurant Shut Down by Health Inspectors for Fourth Time 

 For the last 15 years I have been telling friends that there was just something about Mary Ann's that I did not like -- well, namely the food. But it seems I was onto something even more problematic. Read HERE.

Low Point

Another non-chain bites the dust in Chelsea. Bring on the nail salon replacement.

But We Wound Up at HoJo's for Hamburgers to Go ...

  Fun piece on David Mixner's blog about disappearing restaurant chains in America including Sambo's, which I was just talking about at work. Loved Howard John's growing up -- and was particularly tickled when I moved to New York and there was still the location in Times Square, just down the way from the Paramount Hotel. Fried clams and baked macaroni and cheese (that burned the roof of your mouth) were my faves! Read HERE.

Ben There, Done That

Anderson Cooper’s Lover Inked Deal for a Restaurant and Bar in Hell’s Kitchen

Was just at Antoine “Benjamin” Maisini's Eastern Bloc on my birthday. Sounds like he's tired of bars and is ready to try something new now. Read HERE.

Curtain Comes Down on Stage Deli

  Sad to read that the famed Stage Deli -- a staple in Midtown Manhattan since 1937 -- shut down for good last night, citing the recession and rising rents.. I used to work two doors down from it in the late '90s and early '00s and while I was more of a regular at Hello Deli -- hi to Rupert and May if you're reading! -- the times I was able to have a sit-down meal at Stage were always a delight. Read HERE.

Garden Party

I get a lot of e-mails from out-of-towners looking for uniquely New York experiences to sample when visiting here, so I thought I would mention Rosemary's, a somewhat new restaurant in the West Village where Michael and I had the most charming early dinner the other weekend. (If you're a local and haven't heard about it, you're in for a treat, too.) The space -- which used to be my favorite paper/party/card store at the corner of 10th and Greenwich Avenue before it burned to the ground -- is roomy and inviting, like you would imagine Martha Stewart's summer home to be. But it's the state-of-the-art rooftop garden -- where much of the menu's produce is produced -- that will blow your mind. (Everyone's welcome to take the tour.) Something about seeing zucchini, dandelion greens and fresh tomatoes growing as a yellow cab whizzes by below just makes me smile, as did (most of) the food we ordered. My tuna appetizer didn't quite agree with my mouth -- perhaps it was the parsley or the cece fritti (whatever that is),  but Michael's heirloom tomato salad and the linguini with clams I had were as fresh and simple as they were utterly delicious. Rosemary's doesn't take reservations, and has become enormously popular (celebrity sightings are common), but I highly recommend it. Neither one of us was that hungry when we went, but saw an opening by slipping it right at 5 o'clock before the rush. Will definitely be going back to sample more. Visit HERE.

Tell 'Em Wilford Sent Ya

I'm not sure how I feel about "pesto, covered in mascarpone cheese" or transforming my bowl of mush into a "French croque monsieur with diced ham and nutmeg" -- I'm more of a "pat of butter, pound of sugar with whole milk poured on top" kind of guy -- but with shops catering to just macaroni and cheese, just peanut butter, just cookies, just Pop-Tars and now just oatmeal, Manhattan has pretty much covered "the Kenny diet," as my brother Terence used to call it when I was a kid. The only thing missing is a joint that only sells lima beans.

 My life pretty much revolves around oatmeal -- it's the only food I keep in the house: healthy enough to eat but requires just enough effort so I don't just eat it out of boredom -- so you can imagine how tickled I was when I saw this article in the Wall Street Journal about a gourmet oatmeal restaurant. It's called Oat Meals and is located at 120 W. 3rd Street -- yet the writer inexplicably insists it's in the East Village -- and has a plethroa of sweet and savory options. By the way, this article was only brought to my attention because of comment that my coworker thought I would enjoyed. It's since been deleted, but it said (and I quote): 

"how many creepy men at the WSJ did this woman have to bend over for to get this review in the paper?"