Mia Dona

Thursday, Noon

The plan was to walk from our office near Grand Central to Two Little Red Hens on 86th and 2nd Ave. A long walk, but that's what nice days were meant for. I started on 42nd, and went up Madison, battling an internal debate over blueberry pie or chocolate blackout cake. Maybe I should have both. After all, this was going to be lunch. Turned out all the thoughts over pie or cake was of no matter, for the turns I made and the streets I crossed led me to pause at the steps leading down to Mia Dona.

Roasted Garlic, Focaccia, Peasant Bread

Why not. Why not take yourself to a nice lunch. After all if you don't, who will?

So I stepped down, in new black heels and requested a table for one. Service is significantly better when dining alone, or at least in my experience. Water is constantly refilled, waiters stop by (perhaps more so than necessary), and you can eat all the garlic you want. Which is important, very important at Mia Dona, where little focaccia squares and sliced peasant bread are delivered alongside a whole roasted garlic head. I had one focaccia, none of the peasant bread, and two heads of garlic. The waiter was glad to bring another.

Baked Tubetti, Smoked Mozzarella, Tomatoes, Basil

Garlic made yet another appearance in a appetizer of baked house made tubetti. Tucked between smoked mozzarella, tomatoes and fresh basil were a surprisingly high number of garlic cloves, soft and melty. Garlic makes me go all dreamy, all za za zoooooy, the way some girls fall for Jimmy Choos and others for black Balenciaga dresses.

Hanger Steak, Broccoli Rabe, Herbed Ricotta

I moved onto the hanger steak, paired with herbed ricotta and broccoli. I've never had steak and ricotta in the same dish before, so this was something new for me. That is a good thing. I make a point to try one thing new everyday, however big or little. It's truly a bad day when you go to sleep at night and realize, boy, what have I learned today? Nothing.

I could only finish a solid 60% of the dish, which is unusual because I find myself typically finishing everything even when not hungry. Upon removing the dish, the server asked what was wrong, and "may we bring you a new one?" And no, I didn't need a new one, the original was perfectly fine. I found myself without explanation, and so simply hugged my belly and say, "it was delicious, but I'm far too full." (These are the times you wish you did have a dining companion).

Gianduja Semifreddo

However, my appetite quickly dashed back with dessert (when does it not? ;). It was a debate between tiramisu or semifreddo and I went with the latter; a triangular cut of gianduja semifreddo, crushed hazelnut brittle, almonds and a pour of dark chocolate. It was a bit luscious, a lot rich, and made me smile on the inside. I had no problems finishing this. None at all.

Hope everyone has a great weekend ^_^

Mia Dona
206 E 58th Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 750-8170