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You know who you are. You puzzle over everything on the menu. Debate the minutest detail. Ask your companion to choose for you. And then follow the server into the kitchen and change your mind – to only wish later that you went with the sole instead. Give yourself (and your companions) a break and head to one of these fickle-friendly establishments.

UPPER EAST SIDE
Park Avenue Winter
[100 E. 63rd St.] [212.644.1900]

What could be more fitting than a restaurant that changes its name, décor, and menu – as frequently as the seasons? The filet mignon sandwich at lunch is fantastic – and fish dishes are first rate. Plus, it’s a good thing your fickle nature doesn’t lend itself to getting too attached to things because it’ll be entirely different next season.

CHELSEA
Tia Pol
[205 Tenth Ave.] [212.675.8805]

Although we certainly miss Chef Alex Raij, her former kitchen is still turning out flawless Basque tapas. Order whatever is on the chalkboard and then supplement it with chorizo, head-on shrimp, croquettes, and several cod dishes. And as these are snacking sizes – your appetite will be able to keep up with your fickleness.

CHINATOWN
Ping’s Seafood
[22 Mott St.] [212.602.9988]

Try out this concept – carts of food roll by and you point at what you want. Before you even have time to change your mind another cart will be along with a whole slew of new options. At Ping’s the room is smaller – and food better than at some of the larger Chinatown Dim Sum halls. Come on the weekend when the selection is better – and be prepared to approach the steam cart yourself when it’s too crowded to wield it through the aisles.

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN
Zenkichi
[77 N. 6th St.] [718.388.8985]

Slip into a curtained booth and order the seasonal omakasi menu for two ($96) and sit back as each carefully constructed course is delivered. The only choice you’ll make is between the Pork Belly Kakuni (magically simmered for three days) or Yellowtail and Daikon – but really, is there actually a choice when pork belly is involved?

Six hours of dancing and god knows how many cocktails find you at someone else’s apartment with a piercing headache and pretty foggy recollection of the last 12 hours. Before embarking on your walk of shame- share some grub and awkward conversation at one of these brunch spots.

WEST VILLAGE
Good
[89 Greenwich Ave.] [212.691.8080]

After a night of behaving badly, you are certainly going to need something good. Cheddar cornbread, buttermilk biscuits, and orange sour-cream donuts make it hard to even get past the bread menu. If you do the country frittata, lemon ricotta pancakes, or the goodegg sandwhich will be your reward. And as there is no real chance of you ever making it in before eleven- you can enjoy the brilliant green chili mac and cheese from the lunch menu.

LOWER EAST SIDE
Essex
[120 Essex St.] [212.533.9616]

Hair of the dog. Start right back up with this booze brunch. $16 buys you one of their brunch entrees and three drinks (although when you add in mid-glass fillings it is often even more.) Try the crispy potato pancakes, bannas foster French toast, or Mexican Matzo Brei. And don’t worry; even the few people that made it home- are still liable to be wearing their outfit from the night before.

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN
Egg
[135 N. 5th St.] [718.302.5151]

Biscuits and gravy, cheese grits, and hash browns will help soak up the alcohol from the night before. And the fact that everything is from local producers will make you feel better about the massive amounts you will consume. Try the Eggs Rothko (a soft cooked egg tucked in brioche and topped with melted cheddar) happily broiled tomatoes make the menu as well.

CHELSEA
Cookshop
[156 Tenth Ave.] [212.924.4440]

Don’t even bother trying to remember how you made it to Chelsea. Simply indulge in beignets, skillet eggs, cornmeal pancakes, twice-smoked bacon and even a jelly donut. The Chilaquilles (baked eggs Huevos Rancho style) are top notch. And if you are feeling revitalized head to a nearby gallery for a proper date.

So your parents – regardless of how many times you insist that Little Italy has been eaten by Chinatown and is nothing but a tourist trap – manage to drag you there on their twice yearly visits. Lure them away from Mulberry St. with these choice restaurants. And while they may not see chicken parm on the menu they will find charm, delicious food, and yes, even a little of grandma’s sauce. They won’t be mentioning Little Italy again.

LOWER EAST SIDE
Frankies Spuntino
[17 Clinton St.] [212.253.2303]

Squeeze into this tiny Clinton St. restaurant early and be greeted by crusty bread and absolutely lovely olive oil (if you’re so tempted, it is $25.00 to bring a litter of it home.) Start with a sampling of cheeses, cured meets, and vegetable antipastos. You’ll love the home made cavatelli with hot sausage (or lamb ragu if available) and your parents will be thrilled to see that the old-fashioned meatball made the menu.

WEST VILLAGE
OTTO Enoteca Pizzeria
[1 Fifth Ave.] [212.995.9559]

Use Mario Batali’s Food Network stardom to get out of Little Italy and into his delightfully casual Italian venture. The room is warm and noisy with a buzzing wine bar and patrons passing their dishes around the table. Join in and order everything family style and enjoy fantastic selections of vegetables, pastas, and thin-crust pizzas. Finish the night off with creative gelato (including: olive oil, strawberry balsamic, and sweet corn.)

CHELSEA
Scarpetta
[355 W. 14th St.] [212.691.0555]

You cannot get any simpler than spaghetti with tomato and basil; and you certainly would be hard pressed to find a more delicious version. Indulge in excellently prepared food and a surprisingly reasonable wine list under the retractable glass roof. And be sure not to miss the delightful raviolini and crispy frito misto.

CLINTON HILL, BROOKLYN
Locanda Vini e Olli
[129 Gates Ave.] [718.622.9202]

This pharmacy turned Tuscan eatery (picture: apothecary drawers not your neighborhood Duane Reade) is one of the most charming rooms in town. Your parents will feel right at home as they order “for the table” to begin. Enjoy inventive antipasti, main dishes and a wide range of toothsome and well sauced pastas. You will find plenty of reasons to return, with or without your parents (or a prescription.)

Your mother always said to eat your greens. Show her one better at these eco-friendly eateries where solar power, reclaimed wood, and rickshaw delivery systems share the menu with (mostly) organic eats.

FORT GREENE, BROOKLYN
Habana Outpost
[757 Fulton St.] [718.858.9500]

The corn and frozen mojitos would have been enough to create a following. But Sean Meenan’s unwavering commitment to the community and environment raises boozing and snacking to a civic duty. The Brooklyn offshoot of Soho’s Café Habana was designed entirely with conservation in mind. The furniture is recycled plastic and aluminum, the door salvaged from a church, even the rainwater is collected and reused to water the plants. Add in solar panels and the post office truck turned kitchen and you have New York’s first eco-eatery.

EAST VILLAGE
Birdbath Bakery
[223 First Ave.] [646.722.6565]

At this bakery everything from the floors to the ingredients to their delivery system is totally green. Rickshaws are used to transport their organic baked goods to their other locations (West Village, and soon-to-be-opened Battery Park.) The store itself pays homage with walls made from wheat and sunflower seed, cork floors, and a discount for anyone who shows up via bike. And their croissants are good too.

MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS
Community Food & Juice Bar
[2893 Broadway] [212.665.2800]

The founders of the Lower East Side’s Clinton St. Baking Co. bring their energy and some new energy saving tactics uptown. Greener kitchen equipment, local produce, composting, and tables made of reclaimed wood make indulging in their delightful comfort food even more satisfying. Plus: grass-fed burgers have no calories, right?

CHELSEA
Del Posto
[85 Tenth Ave.] [212.497.8090]

This fine-dining mammoth of a restaurant in no way implies conservation but does practice some impressive eco-friendly moves.  Biodiesel trucks run off used cooking oil and transport compost to an upstate farm and produce back, while bottled water is replaced in favor of filtering and carbonating their own. Definitely makes an expensive (albeit delicious) meal even easier to swallow.