This past weekend, the Mister and I were in the Union Square area of Manhattan when the hankering for some pasta and pizza hit. As luck would have it, we happened to walk by Mandolino Ristorante & Pizzeria, a fairly new Italian addition to the neighborhood - we heard good things already about this place through the grapevine, so we decided to stop on in.

The interior of Mandolino can be described as "chill hipster cool" with artwork by local up and coming artists adorning its walls (this is near the East Village after all).  As we were their for brunch, the crowd was pretty subdued (mostly local NYU students on a study break), but I can imagine it getting real creative during the evenings, especially as the spot is right across the street from the Classic Stage Company theater.