Open twenty four hours, Cafeteria, located on 17th and 7th in Chelsea, offers traditional comfort food at reasonable prices, served by a competent and decidedly hip staff.
Cafeteria caters to the trendy. From the solid white interior to the hipster waiters and customers, everything is fashionable…except me of course. Usually I avoid any place that takes itself too seriously or is favored by the ‘in’ crowd. But being from the South, I consider myself a connoisseur of all things fried, drowning in cheese and or floating in butter and Cafeteria does have some delicious options for my refined palate so I made an exception.
Because I was the first to arrive and you cannot be seated until the whole party is present, I decided to sit at the bar and have a drink. As I sipped my diet coke, the attractive bartender and his sexy accent of indeterminate origin was engaged in a playful conversation with a waiter. However, when the waiter mentioned being from Indiana, he suddenly acquired a southern accent. I had no idea Indiana was an honorary Dixie state. I nearly said so, but refrained so as not to tempt them to spit in my food.
I felt better (and less judged) when my posse arrived. We didn’t have a reservation but since it was only 6:15 on a Wednesday, it wasn’t a problem. After being seated outside, the waiter, who looked like the youngest Jonas brother, approached us and was so friendly! He asked about our drink orders then sprinted off to fill them. Warm biscuits with honey butter materialized on our table and I immediately dove in. These were very tasty biscuits. We requested tap water which was ushered right away, but the sky started to turn and after feeling a few raindrops we asked to be moved inside. Only a handful of tables were occupied but for some reason our waiter was put out and no longer so friendly.
After much internal debate, I decided to order the mac n’ cheese and it is totally worth an extra 3 hours at the gym. Slightly browned on top, puncturing the shell with my fork caused smooth, hot cheddar and fontina cheese to ooze out, accompanied by al dente macaroni; a perfect complement to the cheese. Despite being an appetizer, the size was perfect for a dinner portion and at $13, well worth the price. The entree size Caesar salad my friend ordered was huge and she really enjoyed the parmesan crisps. A steal at only $10. The last member of our party went with the fish tacos. Also an appetizer but the three tacos were more than enough to fill her. Considering how quickly she ate them, I assume they were delectable. It only took 10 minutes to get our food and despite the appetizing options for dessert, we were too stuffed to indulge and got the check.
Cafeteria takes all major credit cards and gets you in and out quickly. I would recommend making a reservation if you plan on eating after 7:30 pm., even on a weekday. Despite the almost painfully hip atmosphere, the food makes the hour spent there worth it.
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