Lower East Side eateries serve up big flavors to even bigger crowds

It’s a full house at Cafe Katja. “I can’t tell you how long it’ll be before I can seat you. These people may be here all night long,” the waiter frantically whispered. One look around and it’s obvious why—the soft lighting, tiny tables, and Rolling Stones music set an intimate tone for the evening. Opposite the rustic brick wall, a long mirror lines a thin wooden counter filled with candles and couples sharing Austrian fare, at 79 Orchard Street between Grand and Broome streets.

But with just a whiff of that bratwurst, passersby will be seduced. It doesn’t matter how long it takes to be seated, because Andrew Chase and Erwin Schröttner, former executive chef and executive sous-chef at the uptown giant Monkey Bar, have created an old-world haven that demands that visitors unwind with a glass of German beer.

Pork, cheese, and sausages make up the bulk of this cheap menu, but prices don’t correspond with the kitchen’s execution. Though salads rarely shine at any restaurant, Cafe Katja ventures into adventurous territory. There’s a roasted beets salad ($8), served in a generous heap, with chunks of goat cheese and hints of caraway and pumpkin seed oil, or marinated herring with cucumber-potato salad and mustard sour cream ($8). The entrees range from the familiar bratwurst and sauerkraut to beef goulash with spaetzle—a type of Austrian egg noodles. Thoroughly juicy and oozing with chunks of Swiss cheese, the Emmentaler sausage ($13) sits kingly on a bed of warm, tender cabbage with fantastic quark dumplings.

Four blocks north, on Rivington Street between Ludlow and Orchard streets, lies Bruschetteria, a tiny Italian bistro whipping up delicious food in possibly the tiniest commercial kitchen in the city. The clean-cut interior with white and yellow walls and lime green seats provides the perfect spot for a daytime rendezvous.

On Saturday, grab a seat by the window and enjoy the $12.50 brunch, which includes an appetizer and an entree—pancetta, scrambled egg, mozzarella, and tomato Panini, anyone?—along with coffee or tea, and a glass of wine. The hot artichoke dip ($4.50) is a scrumptious mess of mild and sharp Italian cheeses, begging to be devoured with the thick slices of baguette on the side. Somehow, even the deviled eggs ($4.50) are a masterpiece topped with velvety basil pesto and prosciutto crisp. And though the restaurant is known for its long list of creative paninis, the Bolognese lasagna ($11), or the bowl of pork meatballs with tomato ragu over soft polenta ($9.50), should not be missed.

Meanwhile, dessert waits two blocks east in a most inviting cupcake shop, started by two former Magnolia Bakery employees, Peggie and Debbie, who have clearly stepped up the game. Sugar Sweet Sunshine (Rivington Street between Essex and Norfolk streets) sells cupcakes with names like “ooey gooey”, “sassy red velvet,” or “lemon yummy,” each one carefully crafted with just the right amount of icing over moist cake. The walls are splashed with lively colors, while an antique rocking chair, tea tables, and plush love seats decorate this romantic shop. The banana pudding easily rivals Magnolia’s, and the Chocolate Bomb is, well, a marvelous explosion of chocolate cake and brownie chunks mixed with chocolate pudding. But it is autumn, and times call for some sweet pumpkin trifle pudding—a concoction of pumpkin cake, whipped cream, and eggnog pudding (any 12 oz. pudding is $4).

Cafe Katja is located on 79 Orchard Street (between Grand and Broom Streets) and Sugar Sweet Sunshine is located on 126 Rivington Street.