Maybe that “This Is Not a Plastic Bag” bag did wonders for your look a couple of summers ago, but carrying that thing around doesn’t make you any greener that the Grinch. OK, so three-minute showers and fueling up on fast food grease instead of petroleum isn't your thing, but still interested in helping the earth get healthy? Don’t worry. It’s easy being green at these eco-friendly restaurants and bars. Whether or not you pollute yourself with alcohol while you’re there is up to you.
Habana Outpost
757 Fulton St. (@ S. Portland Ave.)
Ft. Greene 718.858.9500
You’d expect to find one too many hairy tree huggers at NYC’s first solar powered restaurant, Habana Outpost. But it’s actually crawling with freshly showered peeps in search of fun and Spanish food. Just look for owner Sean Meenan’s biodiesel 1965 Lincoln convertible (that runs on Habana’s used plantain and french fry oil) parked out front—recently delivered especially for Earth Day! Even drinking is green here—cocktails are served in biodegradable cornstarch cups, and active imbibers can mix their own drinks by peddling a bicycle-powered blender.
Gusto Grilled Organics
519 Ave. of the Americas (13th & 14th Sts.)
West Village 212.242.5800
Gusto Grilled Organics, a company dedicated to being a completely sustainable business, deserves a standing O for their efforts to be a leader in serving healthy, natural food. Certified organic by the Northeast Organic Farming Association, the place serves up a range of organic Latin-inspired food, from flatbread pizzas and sandwiches to sustainable steak. While Gusto's waiting for their liquor license, guests can bring their own bottles of wine—as long as it’s certified organic.
Del Posto
85 10th Ave. (15th & 16th Sts.)
Chelsea 212.497.8090
Even a gourmet can be green. Mario Batali’s piazza-like dining mecca Del Posto uses biodiesel trucks fueled by its used cooking oil to pick up ingredients from an upstate farm and return with the restaurant’s compost (if you didn’t clean your plate!) so nothing is lost. And bottled water is strictly off the menu.
Counter
105 1st Ave. (6th & 7th Sts.)
East Village 212.982.5870
This vegetarian and vegan restaurant and wine bar is thinking outside the bottle. Certified by the Green Restaurant Association, Counter is Styrofoam-free, uses non-toxic cleaning agents and energy-efficient lighting (including occupancy sensors). If you’re looking to fuel your own buzz, grab a seat at the circular bar for their selection of biodynamic wines, organic infused martinis and organic beer.
Elettaria
33 w. 8th St. (5th & 6th Aves.)
West Village 212.677.3833
Chef du jour Akhtar Nawab’s hot spot Elettaria has opened to much fanfare, including accolades by the Green Restaurant Association. Praised for recycling, being tree-free, using organic products, and composting, the place is praised by the rest of us for its crispy pigs’ feet, wild boar, and a list of classic cocktails. Oh Elettaria, you had us at the Electric Ladyland (lime, rose jam, and bubbly).
Blue Hill
75 Washington Pl. (6th & MacDougal)
Greenwich Village 212.539.1776
Romance isn’t the only thing in the air at the intimate Greenwich Village restaurant Blue Hill. Owner/chef Dan Barber devised a menu of seasonal American cuisine that celebrates the farmers of the Hudson Valley, including himself. Only local farmers are used for all of the restaurant’s ingredients, from veggies to meat, most of which Barber grows and raises at his Stone Barns Farm in Pocantico Hills, N.Y.
Broadway East
171 E. Broadway (Jefferson & Rutgers Sts.)
Chinatown 212.228.3100
Fresh air at the mostly-vegan Broadway East comes courtesy of a wall of living greenery lining the dining room. In addition to composting food scraps and donating cooking oil, this upscale ode to eco-friendliness filters and carbonates its own water and serves their signature sake cocktails sans plastic straws.
