As a native New Yorker and daughter of Union Square Hospitality Group’s founder Danny Meyer, it’s only natural that Hallie Meyer feels at home in restaurants and loves to eat. In fact, she’s often thinking about where to have lunch even after she just finished breakfast.
This manner of thinking helps, since, as an ice cream entrepreneur, inspiration for new flavors can come from anywhere and a recent craving or food fixation can lead to a new collab or sundae at Caffè Panna. She oversees two of these flourishing ice cream and coffee shops; one in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, and one in Manhattan’s Gramercy Park area.
With lines and sold-out signs just as much as a fixture as the unique creations, Hallie is hoping for even more satisfied customers as the upcoming busy season approaches. The Greenpoint resident and mom is equally as enthusiastic about her S&P sandwich order and where to get the best tacos and breakfast burritos in the city, as she is about ice cream flavors and the components to an excellent sundae.
We caught up with Hallie recently to hear about all the places she likes to dine, her trick to healthy eating, and where to get the best meatball in the city.
Caffè Panna
“Usually after lunch, I’ll have a shot of espresso and whatever the daily soft serve is; this week it’s coconut. As we approach the summer months, we’re now able to make more ice cream than ever, and we continue to work towards that. And we’ll hopefully have less sold-out signs in the windows all summer-long.
Besides the Brooklyn store and the Manhattan store, [pints] are available at Butterfield Market and Union Market. Part of why we are able to make more ice cream this year is because we’re actually going to bring down the selling to a lot of other places. We have to keep our store stocked! [While] there are no new Caffè Panna locations in the pipeline, [we] definitely have new flavors every single week and day.” 77 Irving Place, Gramercy Park, caffepanna.com
Ssere Meal Delivery Service
“I’ll tell you one thing that’s maybe not as indulgent, but we get this weekly meal delivery that comprises like 80% of the meals that I eat at home. It’s called Ssere and it’s just really delicious, healthy [food]. I highly recommend.”
S&P Luncheonette
“My day starts at 6:45; I get up before the kids and make breakfast—usually oats, fruits, eggs, breakfast sausage, that kind of thing. Then I usually get to the Brooklyn store, which is our headquarters, by 10:30. And somehow I’m already thinking about lunch by that point. During the week, my director of operations and I will find some place to have our daily rundown of everything that’s going on in the business and what we need to do.
Today, we’re going to S&P and I’ll probably have the Tuna Melt or the Corned Beef and Chopped Chicken Liver sandwich with Dr. Brown’s diet cherry soda. I think that the pancakes there are grossly underrated; those I usually share with the table. The other thing I like there is the patty melt.” 175 5th Ave., Flatiron, sandwich.place
Three Decker Diner, KRU, and Laab Bar
“We go to Three Decker Diner a lot; it’s right by our Brooklyn location of Caffè Panna so it’s super convenient for us.” 695 Manhattan Ave., Greenpoint, Brookkyn, threedeckerdiner.com
“KRU, which is also a block down, is a really awesome Thai place. They just started this more casual concept in the front of the restaurant called Laab Bar where they’re doing these insane $29 lime butter lobsters. Like for an early dinner, what more could you want? We’re actually doing a collab with them next week: we’re doing a mango sticky rice sundae. I’m having a mango sticky rice moment!
I’ve done plenty of mango sticky rice flavors before, plenty of iterations. But the way that we’re going to do it with KRU is Chef Ohm is going to make coconut sticky rice arancini balls, freshly fried every day, and we made alphonso mango ice cream. We’re going to top the mango ice cream with chopped mango, freshly whipped panna, toasted coconut, coconut caramel, and the sticky rice aranici on top. It’s a really, really fun one. We did it last year too—people went crazy [for it] so we’re bringing it back!” KRU Brooklyn and Laab Bar by KRU, 190 N. 14th St., Greenpoint, Brooklyn, krubrooklyn.com
Hug Esan
“I was in Elmhurst recently. After taking my daughter to the Queen’s Zoo, we got mango sticky rice—one at Hug Esan and one at Khao Kang—and they were amazing. I don’t know what it is, but I can’t get mangoes like that when I go to the grocery store. Only in Elmhurst! That’s how [ice cream] flavors get created. I have a craving or I’m just interested in something, and then I ice-cream-ify it.” Hug Esan: 77-16 Woodside Ave, Elmhurst, Queens, hugesannyc.net; and Khao Kang: 76-20 Woodside Ave, Elmhurst, Queens, no website
Paloma Bakery
“Every Saturday and Sunday morning, after family breakfast, we go to Paloma Bakery, which is, I think, the best bakery in New York right now. They turn out a different menu every day, kind of similar to what we do [at Caffè Panna] where it’s rotating specials.
We’ll spend about an hour there with the kids; they just give us endless coffees and the kids eat croissants and we eat people-watch. Another place we’ve been going after the park for early dinners is Bordertown—they just opened. It was a tortilla pop-up, but now it’s a sit-down.” 772 Manhattan Ave., Greenpoint, Brooklyn, palomacoffeebakery.com
Chrissy’s Pizza
“Chrissy’s Pizza, that’s something where you kind of have to plan ahead a little bit, but it’s just super satisfying. Crispy, thin New York style pizza, and it’s also in Greenpoint.” 142 Nassau Ave., Greenpoint, Brooklyn, chrissys-pizza.square.site
Favorite Spot for Tacos and Burritos
“When I’m in Manhattan, I go to Los Tacos numero uno for my taco craving. Believe it or not, Tacombi just started doing breakfast burritos and they’re excellent and not too big. If I’m extra hungry, and want a breakfast burrito, Ceremonia Bakeshop (743 Driggs Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn) is the best. They also deliver [on certain days], so if I’m just in my office in Greenpoint and I really want a burrito, I usually get delivery from there because it’s a little bit too far to walk. That is, I think, the best breakfast burrito in New York.”
Taqueria Ramirez
“Oh, Taqueria Ramirez. Sometimes it’s not even lunchtimes and sometimes you need one or two tacos there. They’re not too big, so it’s a nice snack. I usually get the Suadero and on Tuesdays, they have the Gringa al Pastor— I try not to take it too personally that it’s called that. It’s like a quesadilla al pastor. Pretty darn good!” 94 Franklin St., Greenpoint, Brooklyn, taqueriaramirezbk.com
The Esters
“Dinners on weeknights are usually with my kids. If we’re not eating at home, we are at one of the local restaurants close to where we live in Greenpoint. One of our favorites is The Esters. It’s right by McGolrick Park, and they have these awesome personal pan pizzas. They have an asparagus and ricotta one on the menu right now because it’s springtime, and that was awesome.
Yesterday we were there for Meatball Monday. They secretly have some of the best meatballs and focaccia in the city. It’s just such a great neighborhood spot. I hope that no one finds out about [laughs] but I want to shout them out!” 192 Nassau Ave., Greenpoint, Brooklyn, theesters.com
Union Square Cafe
“Union Square Cafe is a go-to; my director of operations and I will go there sometimes because it’s a block down from the Manhattan store. Sometimes we’ll sneak in a weekday lunch burger, but the pastas on the dinner menu are equally special.
We had dinner with my parents last week at this place called the Flyfish Club—[we had] really good sushi and seafood. I think it might be a members-only thing. My rotating spots are pretty tight these days. I do love Manahatta for a special occasion.” 101 East 19th St., Union Square, unionsquarecafe.com
Manhatto
“The last place I had a date night was close to the theater we were going to, called Manhatto, it’s a sushi and ramen spot in the west 40s. It’s very solid if you want that kind of food before theater. But I’m in the kid’s dinner phase of life. I’m just craving casual food in life right now, like ice cream: the kind of food that speaks to people’s hearts.” 783 9th Ave., Hell’s Kitchen, manhatto.com
