Jeff Zalaznick — April 13, 2009
Just Smile
Stepping down from the cobblestones of Bond Street into the warm, worn, wood and stone confines of The Smile, initially transports you to an older New York. Then, you notice rabbit ear light bulbs on the ceiling, knitting kits, and the affectionately culled and kept décor and you feel fortunate to have stumbled into a postmodern hipster time warp. Once you see the tattoo parlor downstairs and hear the Beach Boys playing in the dining room you know that whoever the next Bob Dylan is, he’ll be comfortable here.
From pussywillow-filled fireplaces to unfinished wood ceilings, there are fun things and fantastic textures to look at in this mixed-use concept, new age café. Co-owners Matt Kliegman and Carlos Quirarte filled their space with things that make you nostalgic for a time you’ve never known. A screen door separates the kitchen and coffee bar and a bank-teller window stenciled with “Information” acts as the kitchen pass. There’s an old soap box in the bathroom, elegant lists of pomades and balms from Officina Profumo on high quality card stock and a depiction of the “Great Conemaugh Valley Disaster of 1889” on the wall.
The Smile is a great place to stop in for a cup of strong coffee made using the antique Faema coffee machine, and for salads and sandwiches constructed with locally-sourced, well-chosen ingredients. Sandwiches are at a low price point ($8-$13), but everything has been given the proper amount of care: meats are from Schaller and Webber, Nova is from Russ & Daughters, cheese is from Murray’s, milk is from Ronnybrook and the bread is from Sullivan St. Bakery. Chef Melia Marden makes good use of her small kitchen and regularly scours the farmer’s market for great side dishes (she treated us to minted sugar snap peas with sea salt on one visit).
You can’t go wrong with any of the sandwiches (each accompanied by a generous piles of excellent North Fork potato chips and neatly thin-shaved house-cured pickles), but the Harissa Honey Roasted Chicken Breast with Manchego and Lemon Mayonnaise and the open-faced Smoked Salmon with Lemon Caper Cream Cheese on toasted multi-grain starred. Manouri Cheese with Fig on Toasted Sourdough and the warm Chocolate and Brie Baguette sandwiches doubled as delicious desserts and the tart basil-infused lemonade had the perfect not-too sweet pitch.
Though at first glance there seems to be a lot of moving parts, it all functions together, as a relaxed, cool atmosphere where neither model nor lumberjack would seem out of place. Right now, they serve lunch all day from 11-5, and they plan to launch a dinner menu in June.
