When Janet and Barry come to town (my sister-in-law and brother), we go somewhere good to eat. In fact, they usually introduce us great new places, living as they do in the hinterlands of Encino, searching out and hungering for the bright lights of NYC.Hidden within Le Parker Meridien Hotel on West 57th Street, notable for its pass through to 56th Street where the real entrance is, are its two restaurants, Norma’s and the long-lines hamburger joint.

From 57th Street, you enter a lovely lobbly cafe where you can enjoy coffees, sandwiches and other light fare,

but go further and you will find Norma’s, the 24-Zagat rated mostly breakfast restaurant, to the left.

New Yorkers rarely find their way there because of a slightly snobbish attitude toward hotel restaurants that exists in this town and also because it’s kind of expensive, with almost everything being in the $20s. That being said, you should go there because it’s very very good. Consider it lunch as you will get a ton of food.

We started with a free little glass of exquisite strawberry something that I scarfed down. Then, Barry had the real tuna tuna burger with salad instead of fries (what can I say, he’s from LA)

Janet, the egg white omelet

Rory had the cobb salad with tuna steak

and I had the veggie frittata with delicious tiny new potatoes and really well done sour dough toast made the way I like it, light black.

If you ordered coffee or decaf, you got the full huge pot of cafe presse.

Others around us (and in past visits to the restaurant, us, too) ordered some crunchy caramel French Toast

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chocolate banana waffle

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and of course plain old smoked salmon.

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This is a destination restaurant where the service is attentive and leisurely. Plan on spending two hours if you’re with people you like. It’s worth it.