Albertus Swanepoel invited me to join him and Marianne Fassler and her husband Charles Bothner for dinner (see picture above) at the New Leaf Cafe in Fort Tryon Park near the Cloisters. I took the A train from midtown to 190th Street and it took me no more than a half hour to get up there. When I exited the subway station, it was as if I had taken a vacation a million miles away. The area is manicured and peacefully silent. No honking horns or sirens. And very few cars on the road. I walked through the grand gates into Fort Tryon Park which is just beautiful--lush and green. It had just finished raining and the sun was slowly setting as I meandered along the path to the restaurant, a charming 1930s stone structure nestled between the Cloisters and the park's main entrance.
The New York Restoration Project, which is headed up by Bette Midler, bid on and won the contract to operate the concession in Fort Tryon Park in 2001. The New Leaf Café is a for-profit restaurant operated by a not-for-profit, so you can eat with the knowledge that all net proceeds support the restoration and maintenance of Fort Tryon Park. And the food is delicious. I had an artichoke and fresh mozzarella salad to start and a delicious duck as a main. We all dived into the chocolate souffle.
For reservations call 212-568-5323.
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