Our outing with our ex.expat group started at The Merchant House, a home built in 1832 and purchased in 1835 by Seabury Tredwell, a prosperous New York City hardware merchant. The Tredwell family lived in the now-landmark late-Federal and Greek revival-style row house for nearly 100 years.  They offer both self-guided and guided tours.

After our visit, we headed to Veselka, an East Village restaurant that’s been serving traditional Ukrainian food since 1954. Veselka earned a James Beard Outstanding Restaurant nomination this year based on its “food, atmosphere and hospitality while contributing positively to its broader community.”

Our group sampled lots of their fare, including their homemade Ukrainian meat or vegetable borscht and chicken noodle soups ($6 a cup; $11 a bowl), their pierogi, handmade and served either boiled or fried with various fillings (four $9 – $10; eight $16 – $18, depending on the filling); homemade potato pancakes (latkes) served with sour cream & apple sauce ($6) and their award-winning blintzes, Ukrainian-style crepes filled with lightly sweetened farmer’s cheese (single $9; plate $16).

One at our table ordered the entree of chicken paprikash — boneless braised chicken with red peppers in an herb-cream sauce over egg noodles — served with a salad ($22).

I’d recommend a visit to both The Merchant House and Veselka.

Veselka
East Village
144 2nd Ave
New York, NY 10003
(212) 228-9682
veselka.com