This is a good note upon which to close out 2007.

My son and I were in Chelsea to check out Banksy over at the Vanina Holasek Gallery and all of a sudden we were waiting at a light, standing in front of a very cool looking café.

La Bergamote was a pleasant surprise.

Comfortable atmosphere. Inviting décor. Fitting music. Mouth-watering pastries. Good layout of seating for conversation or people watching out the window. And a good espresso.

Plus, at least some of the staff speaks French, which came in handy for a couple of the customers while we were there.

Excellent touch, La Bergamote.

Address

La Bergamote – 169 9th Avenue, New York at the corner of West 20th. CE Trains at 23rd Street.

Music

Edith Piaf – La foule

We are thrilled to announce the release of SohoKind’s seventh baby & children’s T shirt design, Beauty of Diversity, which was conceived by SohoKind and designed by Carolina Rocco.

Now available in our boutique!

Beauty of Diversity is the companion concept to Carolina’s Stand Out design released earlier.

The beauty of diversity is all around us. Ideas, people and more.

Dynamic, colorful and invigorating!

Enjoy it!

About the Artist 

Carolina is a graphic artist in Buenos Aires; she’s part of a team called 8ojos. This freelance design team works in corporate identity, illustrations, web design and programming for clients across the world. For a deeper look into their work, please check out their website at www.8ojos.com.

SohoKind Café has been a lot of fun so far.

I do realize the café posts have slowed down a bit.

My son and I are still venturing into the NYC cafés many times a week.

And there are still a few on our list and probably many other great spots that we have not yet discovered, in order to put them on the list.

The thing is that we have been experiencing an increasing rate of disappointments. Such as yesterday.

Really charming store-window as seen from the street. Mouth-watering pastry display. But then the music changed to I-do-not-know-what and it seemed to match my ‘macchiato’ in that department.

The macchiato was almost the size of a coke can, served in a paper cup even though we were staying in the café and instead of a crèma, there was a layer of water.

To get back on track, as well as just have an enjoyable time, we ventured over to La Colombe.

In general, we have been re-visiting a bunch of our favorites. Within the last couple of weeks, we have had really enjoyable times at Zibetto, Café Grumpy, Fika and La Colombe.

Seeing that 2007 is winding out now, this is what we will do.

There are a couple more cafés to visit before the New Year.

And then the first week of the New Year, SohoKind Café will release our Favorite Café Guide 2008.

Also, our 7^th baby & kid T-Shirt design is being released next week right before the New Year.

Hope everyone is enjoying the Holiday Season!

All the Best,

Spencer

We spent last week revisiting some favorites in prep for our release of the SohoKind Café Guide to NYC in early January.

My son and I hit a wonderful surprise of a spot.

La Boulangerie on the Upper East Side.

Really charming place. Inviting and comfortable setting right on the corner of 79th Street and 3rd Avenue. Traces of Europe in the air. And on a beautifully overcast day, it hit the café spot.

Somehow I had walked by numerous times, and finally noticed it today.

Too bad that it was not until now, as they will be closing next week and heading back to Israel.

The staff was very friendly, to match the ambience. The music was a fit. The espresso was pretty good. Being served in an espresso glass and with a Hershey kiss were memorable touches.

Plus, they had a light and buttery croissant.

Do they really have to close?!

Visit La Boulangerie this week!

Address

La Boulangerie – 1389 3rd Avenue, New York on the corner of East 79th Street. 6 train at East 77th Street.

Music

Edith Piaf – La vie en rose

We are pleased to announce the release of SohoKind’s sixth children’s T shirt design, Nos amis, les légumes, which was conceived by SohoKind and designed by Zou in Buenos Aires.

Now available in our boutique!

Veggies are friendly.

Thus, veggies are tasty!

Seems logical enough.

Hopefully, this t-shirt will help our little ones love and enjoy veggies from their first experiences as little babies. My little guy is loving everything but broccoli so far.

Maybe I should have him wear this shirt on broccoli day.

And, since often we seem to have something visceral against veggies that just says ‘no’, then you can try a bit of René Magritte-esque reverse logic as a tactic :

‘These are not vegetables’

Maybe then your kids will eat them.

About the Artist

Zou is a freelance designer and illustrator from Argentine, working with 8ojos team. This freelance design team works in corporate identity, illustrations, web design and programming for clients across the world. For a deeper look into their work, please check out their website at www.8ojos.com.

5th Ave packs a pleasant surprise within the Henri Bendel store.

Chocolate Bar has a rather discrete presence within the atrium of the luxury store.

And I’m not sure my son and I would have ever known it was there if we had not visited the West Village Chocolate Bar a couple of weeks ago and then checked out their website.

It is tucked away in the store, but the real treat is the single table they have in a huge mezzanine bay window that almost hangs over 5th Avenue from above.

There was no one at all on the mezzanine, so I had to ask if it was a part of Chocolate Bar.

Definitely a treat. Since I had already tried their espresso at the West Village location, the hot chocolate was the choice for the afternoon.

The hot chocolate (prepped with milk, not water) and that view make Chocolate Bar on 5th Ave worth a visit. Just check out the video for yourself.

Address

Chocolate Bar – 712 5th Avenue, New York between West 55th and 56th Streets. EV Trains at 5th Ave - 53rd Street. F Train at 57th Street. 456 Trains at 59th Street.

Music

Edith Piaf – Les flonflons du bal