Fetch"

I made my weekly pilgrimage up to the East 90s. I have been doing it more and more often lately. The bigger Alissa gets, the further north I must go.  "We can meet anywhere," she said reassuringly. But how could I make a 40 week pregnant lady walk more than 50 feet from her front door. "You are out of your mind.  Your feet are so swollen you had to take the laces out of those shoes, I am not making you walk more than a block."

Since I rarely made it that far north, my knowledge of the upper Upper East was limited so I looked to Alissa for guidance.  "What are you craving and what is in gi-normous prego belly safe distance?" I asked. 

She thought about it for a moment and suggested Fetch.  I had heard of this place before and have been wanting to try it for a while.  It is a dog friendly pub on 93rd and 3rd where man's best friend is welcomed with open paws - offering water bowls and dog treats.  Though bringing Chief was out of the question - neither option of a 30-plus block walk or trying to pass Chief off as a seeing eye dog and get him in a cab, seemed unlikely. 

Fetch is an incredible and inspired idea, a mix of neighborhood bar and kitschy concept, it works with a no-kill animal shelter to help get cats and dogs adopted locally.  The walls are covered in pictures of pooches: big dogs, little dogs, ugly dogs, fluffy dogs, spotted dogs.  Patrons are encouraged to bring photos of their own dog to be featured on the wall.  Pretty cool to be able to say that your four-legged best friend has his mug featured on a New York City bar's wall. So if your dream was to have your caricature on the wall of the Palm, this may be a more realistic option and a chance for your pooch to gain some fame.

It's not just the atmosphere which is cool, but the food can withstand a pregnant woman's criticism. "Wow, this burger is juicy," Alissa beamed as she took a big bite and wiped the side of her mouth.  

The menu features everything from mouth-watering burgers to pastas and great salads.  There is a full bar as well where man and man's best friend can chug back a cold beer.  

The decor is part pub part hip Vet office but with every inch of space covered in photos of all different kinds of dogs, you can never get bored of the visual stimuli. 

Parlor Steakhouse

Way way up on the Upper East Side - 90th and 3rd Avenue to be precise is a carnivores Mecca.  Parlor Steakhouse opened this summer to a meat-starved population north of the more notable steakhouses in the city.  

On a recent Friday night, Parlor was jumping. Tables were filled and the bar's flat screen TVs showed the US Open to a steady stream of people.  Serving more than just steak, Parlor offers a variety of seafood options including a tasty looking Lobster Roll as well as a full raw bar.  The modern interior drifts from the heavy standard of many steakhouses with its wall of windows giving diners a view to the bustling street outside.  The atmosphere was casual, flip flops were more commonplace than stilettos and there was a neighborhood comfort to the venue. 

Portions were more than ample, more than generous and required a doggie-bag (or in my case a husband-bag) to tote home my unfinished portion of the meal.  I ordered the hamburger ($15), a juicy succulent creation which came complete with heaping sides of both onion rings and French fries.  Of course those with larger eyes and larger stomachs may opt to try the Porterhouse for two or the sirloin, rib eye or any of the other carnivorous pleasures. 

Alissa (she's 9 mos pregnant) and I decided to share some sides.  Unable to settle on just a "couple" we went overboard - steamed spinach, Mac and Cheese, grilled asparagus.  "Wow," Alissa said, her belly protruding requiring us to push the table out to make room for her, "this is a lot of food." Even for a pregnant woman, the portions were family-size.  

Every now and then, you just need a good piece of meat and now I am glad to say that I can go uptown instead of downtown to find it.