New York City Summer 2025 Travel Log: Day 1 — Julienne Salad, Mac & Cheese, and B.L.A.T. Sandwich with Rosemary Fries at Festivál Cafe

Greetings from NYC! This time, I am not here for a concert or anything BTS-related. (Shocking, I know.) I'm actually here with my mom for the weekend to visit my brother and his family before my sis-in-law gives birth to my soon-to-be niece. Of course, any visit with my brother means good food, and we started off with a bang at Festivál Cafe, which is apparently NYC's "only farm-to-bar cafe." I don't really know what that means, but we had a fabulous time.

Julienne Salad: Shredded kale, apple, pecan praline, roasted squash, pomegranate, herb goat cheese, and red wine vinaigrette
Festivál Mac & Cheese
Festivál focuses on seasonal farm-to-table menus, so they're still serving their summer offerings right now. We started off with the Julienne Salad and the Festivál Mac & Cheese to share. The salad was phenomenal, super-fresh with the most incredible flavours and textures: crisp kale with tart apples and pomegranate seeds, sweet caramelized pecans, earthy roasted squash, and tangy goat cheese, all tossed with red wine vinaigrette. It's the type of salad where every bite is different but totally delicious, and I could honestly eat this everyday. The Mac & Cheese was decent with perfectly cooked noodles, a creamy cheese sauce, and a breadcrumb topping, but it is pretty one-note and could benefit from more salt and seasoning to keep it interesting. As it is, it's nothing to write home about.

Festivál B.L.A.T.: North Country bacon, local lettuce, beefsteak tomato, red onion, avocado, and herb aioli on a toasted baguette served with rosemary fries

For our mains, my mom, sis-in-law, and I all ordered the Festivál B.L.A.T. — basically, a BLT with avocado. It just sounded too good to resist, especially on a hot day like today, and I was right. It was excellent. The bacon was thick, crunchy, and beautifully cured, the lettuce and tomato were ultra-fresh and crisp, the red onion added a nice sharp bite, and the avocado added the perfect amount of creaminess to balance out all the crunch. The sandwich was served with the some of the most amazing fries, too — seasoned perfectly with rosemary sea salt, and had the most exquisite crispy exterior while keeping really soft and fluffy on the inside. I suspect that they're double-fried, maybe even triple-fried, because regular fries just don't retain this kind of texture. Simply put, they are noteworthy fries.

Anyway, this was an amazing lunch. Would highly recommend visiting if you're in the Upper East Side, especially around 2:00PM on a weekday, when it's not busy and you can truly enjoy the calm, cozy atmosphere and lovely service.

Festivál Cafe

1155 2nd Ave.

New York, NY 10065

(646) 398-9686