Every time we walked by this spot, they always caught my eyes with beautifully decorated outdoor seating areas. But yet, we never went in to see what they were all about. One weekend, we finally had the opportunity to have a brunch here. The outdoor seating pods didn’t have much of any elaborate decorations at this time of the season, but when the spring comes back, I am sure they will decorated them again with beautiful flowers and greens… Why? Well, Il Fiorista is not just a restaurant, bar, and a café, but also a florist, boutique, and community education space!

But then, I thought I was not allowed in since the door didn’t open… Guess what, it was just seriously heavy door! LOL. A staff saw me struggling with the door, and he came to open it. Thank you! The space opens up as soon as you walk in with the super high ceiling.

The inside was bigger than I expected, long and a bit narrow. They had a nice counter seat at the front, looking at the outdoor seating pods. The interior was bright and vibrant, fun and modern. I loved how they had greeneries everywhere, it made the space to come alive even more.

They had an impressive bar to the side, goes all the way from the front to the back wall! And yes, they do offer wine and cocktails. They have a Happy Hour as well, that would be interesting to try for sure!

We started off with Coffee ($5) with milk. There was a real-deal espresso machine at the end of the bar, and bartender was making the coffee. So, you know the coffee would be good. And it was, but what really surprised me was that the milk came out hot!!! How awesome is that! With hot milk, the coffee stays hot, and it was really amazing to me! They do NOT offer free refill, but when the coffee is this good, and made fresh per cup, I can understand…

For food, I ordered Shakshuka ($19), which is made with two baked eggs, scallion fritter, and hibiscus harissa. I was imagining it to be similar to the one from Maman Nomad, or Tatte Bakery & Café @ Back Bay. When it came out, I was a bit surprised with how it looked…

First of all, it was small… and I mean, tiny. But hey, I always say quality over portion. So, how was it? The eggs were completely cooked, which was disappointing. Fritter were nice, but it did not wow me. Most of all, it didn’t have much of the sauce, making this dish to be more on the dry side. Didn’t get any hibiscus, but harissa has a strong flavor, so maybe it was overpowered by the harissa and other flavor. Overall, it was a disappointing dish.

My husband ordered Il Fiorista BLT ($17), made with fried egg, bacon marmalade, and chamomile. The side salad was super fresh, very high quality. I liked how it had a light dressing on the salad.

The BLT was more like a burger, with bacon marmalade similar to ground meat texture. Like a fancy Sloppy Joe. Eggs was done perfectly here, with a bit of egg porn. It was very flavorful, each bite was a delight! At the end, somehow, my hubby and I switched side with the ordering here. He usually gets Shakshuka or something similar, and I usually get some kind of breakfast sandwich. This time, we did the opposite, and his order came out the winner!

Since the food portion was rather small, especially the Shakshuka, we decided to get some desserts. We got Cappuccino ($5) and two desserts. I saw the bartender making the cappuccino on the espresso machine, got them all ready with saucers, spoons, and sugars. Our server decided to just to pick up the coffee mugs, without the saucer or the sugar… LOL. Good thing we don’t take sugar with coffee.

The first dessert was Lemon Meringue Tart ($12), made with spruce lemon curd and brioche crust. Lemon was perfectly tart, that went great with sweet, fluffy merengue. It was an excellent dessert!

The second one was more unique and interesting. It was Black Cardamom Semifredo ($12), made with dark chocolate, hazelnut, and orange blossom. It was super creamy and velvety, with chunks of high quality chocolate pieces. It also came with large chunks of honeycomb, which were almost fluffy and crispy at the same time. I really enjoyed this one, it was amazing!

They have three gender-neutral bathrooms, located at the back to the right. Having three bathrooms are so much better than two (or one!). For a restaurant of this size, it is very helpful!

The bathroom I used was really nice. Spacious, clean, modern. Elegant design that extends from the dining area into the bathroom. It had a very pleasant scent with aromatic sticks. Nicely done!

The staffs were very friendly and polite, and the food came out super fast! Although the Shakshuka was a bit of disappointment, everything else was great. At least now I know what NOT to order in the future. It was a pleasant brunch, I would like to go back and try some other food offering!

Il Fiorista – 17 W 26th St, New York, NY 10010