February's Gowanus Nite Market has been cancelled due to problems with the venue (I'm learning just how hard it is to get events running smoothly in NYC!) but will resume in March. In the meantime, I'm still going to post drawings to keep the buzz going for the month of February with the theme of "Gowanus Love." Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and I went around Gowanus interviewing places that would be perfect for a romantic date. First up: Runner & Stone!

Runner & Stone is a chic cafe by day and a classy wine bar when the lights dim (although you could have wine anytime I guess!). It recently opened last December and is a very welcome addition to Gowanus. Service is great - everyone was so friendly to me! I went in the afternoon and had a delicious poppy seed cake with Earl Grey tea - yum! Be quick though, the pastries are gone by like 3 or 4pm. The layout of the space is divided into cozy little pockets of a few tables near the window, main room, downstairs, and in the hall - great for privacy on a date. They have really fancy food too, like Moroccan braised lamb breast, short rib tortolloni with lobster, and duck pastrami.

The name "Runner & Stone" refers to stones used in a traditional mill - the runner stone and base stone used to grind grain. The restaurant is a few blocks away from the site of the first tide water grist mill in NYC. The mill (as symbolized in their logo - you can see it imprinted on the bread at the bottom of my drawing) is a symbol of when food was produced locally and continues today in Runner & Stones hand-crafted food.

Runner & Stone 285 3rd Ave, Brooklyn NY 11215

Open M-Th 7:30A-10P, F 7A-11P, Sat 8A-11P, Sun 9A-4P