Bunches of Biscotti

I absolutely love finding new establishment gems in New York.  Now that this blog has helped me take my I’m-too-cool-to-enjoy-the-view New Yorker blinders off, I’m realizing I’m finding more and more fun and interesting hidden treasures during my daily travels around the city.  Last week, on my way to visit my friends Kimberly, I ran into an adorable little place called Bis.Co.Latte.  Located on 47^th and 10^th, this teeny little establishment had a sign outside advertising homemade biscotti.  Cute!  I checked that I had time and then headed in for a quick biscotti and a cappuccino (which, incidentally, always makes me miss Florence).

Um . . . where do I start?  First of all, it was quiet and cute and downtown-y.  Coffee shop criteria 1?  Check.  Second, and most impressively, I have never seen so much biscotti in my life.  Seriously.  Glass containers full of baked yumminess lined the entire wall from top to bottom.  And they didn’t just have vanilla almond and chocolate chip.  They had green tea spearmint, coconut almond chocolate chip, ginger peach, gluten-free, wheat-free, sugar free, and vegan.  Mixed berry, citrus . . . really?  I was genuinely overwhelmed.  And that’s pretty hard to do.  It was, essentially, the Char No. 4 of biscotti (see past blog).  I chose the coconut dark chocolate and a wheat-free ginger peach and sat down to wait for the mild-mannered young tattooed lad to bring me my frothy beverage.

By the time I was seated, I had already decided to blog about the joint, so I took a mental inventory of my surroundings.  There was lively harmonica music lightly blanketing the subdued seemingly intellectual conversation and I spotted a bookshelf full of fun, kooky vintage novels.  Amongst the titles were “1000 Record Covers”, “A Book of Cowboy Boots”, and “How to Idle”.  AND amazing, fabulous, fun biscotti.  I dipped and crunched, dipped and crunched.  Even the wheat-free flavor was ba-rilliant.  I checked the rest of the menu and made a mental note to come back for lunch.  The soup and sandwich at the table next to me looked delish. 

Whilst enjoying my quick treat, I noticed a prominent sign on the wall that read, “Our Philosophy: We want you to find respite from a busy day in NYC in a place where friends, neighbors, and colleagues can meet for a coffee break or a light meal and conversation”.  Above the “philosophy” was a NO COMPUTERS sign.  What?  A coffee shop with no WiFi?  How un-American of them.  Hmm . . . I looked around.  It WAS kind of peaceful.  And slightly European.  Maybe it wasn’t the cappuccino that reminded me of Italy.  Maybe it was the fact that people were actually communicating with each other via methods that didn’t involve a keyboard.  The philosophy creators were right, I thought.  The lack of an electronic presence was pretty liberating.  And peaceful.  Yet another reason to come back and have some more biscotti.  I checked my watch, chugged the remainder of my perfect cup of caffeine, and headed out to see Kimberly.  Now I know where to get my biscotti AND my peace and quiet.  A half hour well spent.