Destination New York: La Mercerie, brunch and shopping with a French flair

If I ask you for a place to celebrate Christmas, one of the cities that first comes to mind is New York. Its atmosphere is breath-taking, bathed in countless lights and unique, even magical, decorations. The city is dressed festively during these days as it is a date Americans live with intensity and brings back to mind the Christmas spirit of when you were a child.  

If you're lucky enough to be there over the long weekend in December or on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I will tell you about a special place you can stop and visit. You can also return at any time of the year.

Viewed in Petite Passport

First of all, this location, where I recommend you stop for brunch, is found within the decoration shop Roman & Williams Guild, a famous design studio known for its projects in restaurants, hotels and nightclubs. This beautiful café is located at 53 Howard St, right on the border of Soho and Chinatown.

Viewed in Eater New York

You feel overwhelmed by the atmosphere as soon as you walk in, typical of an original space with unique details. The proof of this is the difficulty of booking a table. This French-style café-restaurant has two protagonists: its decoration and its chef, Marie-Aude Rose. She has managed to reinvent the simplest and most everyday dishes of French cuisine, especially her crepes.

Viewed in Eater New York

Image on the left as viewed in  Oliver Peoples, the one on the right in  La Mercerie

You can also buy all the crockery, tableware and even the flowers for the table and take them home with you. Its decoration is in harmony with its cuisine, simple but refined. It is inspired by a curious mix of objects of different origins and a curious tension. To show its variety of styles, at La Mercerie you can find everything from a teapot made by a Danish ceramist to a classic French coffee glass. Likewise, the velvet of the entrance curtains and the beige wooden plinth contrast with the cool-toned tiles, the industrial ceiling and the two columns framing the bar. 

Viewed in The Infatuation, foto de Teddy Wolff

The space is divided into two areas, the border of which is defined by a large classical arch, which divides this beautiful café. One is more outward facing, characterised by neutral, bright colours and plenty of natural light, provided by large windows. And a more intimate one that leads to The Guild, the decoration shop. In this gallery the colour palette is dominated by dark woods and cobalt blue, a colour that is already introduced in the restaurant with the velvet of its eye-catching benches and which predominates the entire façade.

Viewed in The New York Times

Viewed in Le Banana

Another remarkable element of the shopping area is the mural, which, in the same chromatic range, covers the walls and immerses you in a forest. The plants and flowers are another constant feature of the place, not only on the tables and sideboards, but also at the entrance, where there is a beautiful stall where you can buy all kinds of floral arrangements.

Image on the left as viewed in  The New York Times, the one on the right in Petite Passport

Viewed in The New York Times

The ground floor is divided into three lines between the bar, benches, and sideboards, which allows them to establish corridors to allow easy transit from one place to another.  

Viewed in Eater New York

And that's not the end of it. La Mercerie has two more very exclusive venues. For a unique experience, the Franc table, in the centre of the shop, gives you the opportunity to dine in the middle of The Guild while smelling the delicious aromas of French cuisine coming from the adjoining café..

Viewed in La Mercerie

If you're looking for more exclusivity, the ground floor is home to an impressive and luxurious private dining room. Named The house of the bowls for the extraordinary collection of bowls that adorn the walls, this room is a dream come true for celebrations. Birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and business meetings could not have a better setting. There is also an adjoining library perfect for cocktails and pre-dinner conversation.

Viewed in La Mercerie

As you can see, I'm not exaggerating when I say that its atmosphere is totally magical, and not just because of its  croissants. 

If you have the same opinion as I have, and you think that elegance and simplicity are not opposed, you will like these examples which you can use to bring it into your home. You will see how the details make a big difference in a room.

1. Our Drop ceramic tableware with its different  bowls and plates brings naturalness to your table thanks to its irregular-coloured rims and mottled white. Its simplicity does not compete with its originality that manages to combine rustic and even Nordic touches in the same piece.  2. Bass cup and saucer, perfect for coffee at breakfast and snacks with clean shapes and organic materials. You can combine its two colours grey and black, both mottled.  3. Elder glasses,its double width and its lower base with veined relief stand out. You can mix its two shades to create a beautiful and delicate dynamism in your meals. 4. Vung decorative bowl,its elaboration from wallpaper makes it an exclusive piece as each bowl is unique. The contrast between its robust appearance and the lightness of its material is surprising. 5. Large picture White, its framing and its fastening with retro metal clips give character to your wall. It also comes with a vintage botanical print. Add other sizes and illustrations and create a beautiful gallery wall. 6. Ink jug, its shape and dimensions make it perfect as a vase. Its matt grey, its irregular handmade handmade finish and its subtle illustration of spikes distinguish it as a very special decorative object. 7. Lumiere metal teapot, its stylised cut and brown tone with stone-effect mottling will seduce you so much that you won't stop using it.