In Vacanza...

I can't wait for the New York opening of Eataly anymore. Not one more second. So, this week I'm flying to Turin, Italy to experience this giant organic market/foodie theme park for myself.

At Eataly, you can learn to cook like an Italian chef, try over 100 different dishes made with artisanal products at eight themed restaurants, taste numerous wines, and gorge yourself on pasta, salumi, cheese, focaccia, pizza made with fior di latte mozzarella, meat bred from Piemontese cows, and fresh fish. The Website proclaims excitedly: "At Eataly you can eat whenever you want!"

After all of this, there might not be room in your belly, but your mind might still have room for food for thought. The Eataly library contains thousands of food-related magazines and 10 computers to satisfy any craving for culinary information.

You might be wondering, when is this marvel going to set up shop in the United States? I hope I'm about to find out, and I'll report back whatever I hear.

(On the flight over, I plan to whet my palate by reading the brand new Around The World In 80 Dinners: The Ultimate Culinary Adventure. In this gastronomic world tour, authors Cheryl and Bill Jamison visit Indonesia, Australia, Thailand, India, China, South Africa, Brazil, France, Singapore and New Caledonia!)

Sakae Sushi

Have you ever wished your waiter would materialize at the click of a mouse? Well, your dream has come true with the opening of Sakae Sushi; every table sports a computer screen, and you can click "Request Bill." However, if you like to escape the pull of computers on your lunch break, this Singaporean-based Japanese chain might not be your cup of green tea.

I found the system a bit buggy today, even though I'm pretty computer-literate. It took me a little while to adjust to the mouse, and I found myself forgetting the extra step of clicking "Add To Order." Halfway through ordering my meal, the application unexpectedly quit, erasing all of my chosen dishes. (I thought to myself, I've enough laptop problems at home!) However, the staff was extremely accommodating, and I have the feeling that even if I'd never seen a computer before, they would've made me feel at home.

Although Sakae Sushi serves pages of cooked dishes, its main draw is the conveyor-belt sushi. At most kaitenzushi, everyone sits around a bar and tries to grab the most desired items before their neighbor. But Sakae Sushi, there are separate booths, and you look over your shoulder to see what's coming around.

"I can't take it!" exclaimed a girl who couldn't have been more than seven. "What?" asked her mother. "All this food going 'round and 'round!"

Unfortunately, I found some selections on the varied menu strangely unappealing (sweet tofu skin stuffed with tuna mayo or egg salad? someone in the kitchen really likes mayonnaise). In an eel hand roll, the eel tasted off, and the nori was tough. But my saba shioyaki bento included a nice portion of tasty salted mackerel fillet. The agedashi tofu cubes were the size of the giant marshmallows at City Bakery, and they were too heavily battered, but there was a nice furikake sprinkling on the white rice. The menu at Sakae is so extensive that I'm willing to give the place a few more tries, because the concept is so fun, and the service so efficient.

(In the meantime, I'll continue my unlikely fantasy about sushi fusion master Hidekazu Tojo making an appearance in New York someday. This Vancouverite created the original inside-out roll for seaweed-phobic Westerners. He also invented the California roll; his version is loaded with sweet crabmeat, egg, spinach and avocado.)

Sakae Sushi, 405 Lexington Ave., 877-SAKAE-USA. Note: the entrance is on 43rd St.

Teodora

There are more food issues in my family than an entire year of Gourmet Magazine. One relative is allergic to onions and peas, another to shrimp, and another can't eat anything spicy. The most challenging relative suffers from an extreme allergy to pepper ("No white pepper. No black pepper. No red pepper. No green pepper. I'll die," is the litany she recites at every restaurant we visit). But not only is this relative unable to eat pepper, she also has an ever-growing set of rules about things she absolutely will not consume. No warm or hot desserts. No fish (but canned tuna is OK). No broccoli rabe or greens more bitter than iceberg lettuce. American coffee, not cappuccino. You get the drift.

Fortunately, the folks at 10-year-old Teodora are veterans who treat all their clientele with grace. So when my relative sent back her filet mignon this past weekend ("This isn't rare!") they obliged and brought out another. ("Bloody rare! That's how I like it.")

Teodora is a cousin of Luciano, a seafood restaurant in Rome. It inspires passion - the walls of the women's bathroom are covered with lipstick kisses - and all the tables in the homey duplex are usually full. And there's a lot more than seafood on the menu, to the delight of my relatives. There's balsamic-glazed rack of lamb, and radicchio salad with bacon and eggs, and crisp fried artichokes, and homemade pasta hats stuffed with spinach and ricotta in butter sage sauce, and gnocchi in cheese fondue. For those of you who miss the San Gennaro parade (or for that matter, any other NYC parade), you can get your sausage and peppers in an inventive pasta dish made with strozzapreti (did you know that means "priest choker" in Italian?). I love whole fish, so I devoured the orata stuffed with garlic cloves and herbs.

With my relatives in tow, a warm dessert (apple tart, chocolate cake) was out of the question, so we split a tiramisu. Teodora's chocolate-chip-filled version was rather like a mascarpone mousse - not much ladyfinger in there, and no cocoa dusting - but still wonderful. My relatives were thrilled, and all was right with the world!

Teodora: 141 East 57th St., (212) 826-7101.

Barrio Chino

I was craving one of the chewy German pretzels at Cafe Katja, but the place was closed for a private party (I really should've called ahead). "Where should we go?" I asked my disappointed friend.

We wandered around a bit, and ended up around the corner at Barrio Chino, a jam-packed Mexican joint. The name of the restaurant means "Chinese Neighborhood" - it's located at the edge of Chinatown. (Interestingly, in Spain, the term barrio chino can mean something completely different.) The guacamole was promising; fresh and spicy with lots of chopped onion, it came with thick hot corn chips.

My friend was spot on with her choice of main course, but I miscalculated. I ordered the guajilla-marinated red snapper, which was strangely cinnamony and desperately needed some kind of sauce. The accompanying small pile of green rice was dry. But my friend's two tostadas were excellent; the corn tortillas were layered with plenty of queso fresco, sour cream, lettuce, avocado, tasty marinated shrimp and tender shredded beef.

Feeling vaguely unsatisfied (and envious of my friend), I recommended that we order dessert. Three hot sugared churros with a pot of hot melted chocolate is definitely reason enough for me to return to Barrio Chino... but next time I'll order the tostadas.

Barrio Chino: 253 Broome St., (212) 228-6710.

Chocolate, Champagne and Oysters

It's almost Valentine's Day, which is a great excuse to consume (or exhort others to consume) more chocolate, champagne and oysters:

In the chocolate category, I recommend the new heart-shaped brownies at Kyotofu (705 9th Ave., 212-974-6012). They're even better than the little "miso chokos," if that is possible. And who can resist that adorable pink box?

Moving on to champagne (but not leaving chocolate behind), Bacchus Wine Made Simple (2056 Broadway, 212-875-1200), an Upper West Side wine shop, will be holding a "Champagne and Chocolates" tasting event on February 12. Come Valentine's Day, your sweetheart will find your talent for pairing chocolate and champagne irresistible. But if you prefer your champagne to be pure, unadorned, and unlimited, head over to Tre (173 Ludlow St., 212-353-3353), which will be holding a one-hour all-you-can-drink champagne pour for all couples dining on Valentine's Day. (This could get interesting!)

Now for oysters! Danny Brown Wine Bar & Kitchen (104-02 Metropolitan Ave., Forest Hills, 718-261-2144) will include roasted oysters with butternut squash puree in a special Valentine's Day dinner from 5-9:30 p.m. Savoy (70 Prince St., 212-219-8570) will be a veritable oasis of oysters; February 11 begins a week-long celebration of the mollusk with an eight-oyster taste-off and white wine pairing. The most appealing duo will be featured at Savoy's four-course Valentine's Day dinner.

Whatever your pleasure, I hope you have a delicious Valentine's Day.