For the first time in Manhattan we lived on 14th street – this nice and cozy café around the corner (on 16th) still is our favorite place for delicious breakfast or brunch... Think they have tons of meals on their menu, quite affordable for huge portions.. Plus, good music.

I'm a huge Japanophile: if there's one other place I'd like to live, it's Tokyo. I must have been there seven or eight times, most recently just after the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. Anyway, EN is a gem on Hudson Street, serving real Japanese cuisine. It turns out that EN is a chain in Japan; there are a lot of branches making lovely bosky food in cosy neighbourhood locations. But their New York incarnation is grand in scale and ambition, with solid, warm interiors (not unlike if the Whitney were a Japanese restaurant, oddly) - a remarkable hybrid of this city, and the other one that I'd love to live in.

Going here feels like traveling. I usually go for lunch or brunch and never leave hungry. Finish with a Cuban Cortadito.

Death & Co is my favorite place for delicious cocktails and small bites. Their truffle mac and cheese and lobster rolls are delicious and love just about every drink on their whisky menu.

Lovely Italian restaurant with a beautiful backyard. I usually have the Orecchiette Salsiccia Broccoli or the spaghetti Vongole.