Corosh doesn't just double as a bar and a restaurant, it quadruples as a bar, restaurant, outdoor garden cafe and upscale substitute to a late-night diner. Surprisingly it excels at all four facets, providing diners with a dimly lit, brick loft setting, drinkers with an immense bar and outdoor guests with an intimate, wooded backdrop that hardly fits into its urban surroundings.

Owners Corosh and Hoda Haidari opened Corosh on a whim in 1991, turning the studio below their former apartment into a restaurant that offers an assortment of their favorite dishes. The menu shows a strong Italian influence, with staples such as fettuccini alfredo and pollo alla vesuvio. Pass those up for the Fusili Corosh, spiral pasta with sausage, peppers, escarole and cannelini beans in a light tomato sauce ($12). If you're looking for something heavier, check out the tonno alla griglia, a grilled-to-perfection tuna steak served with spinach risotto over a spiced garlic wine and tomato sauce ($17). The bar menu, featuring Haidari's self-proclaimed "best burgers in the city," offers standard fare (burgers, buffalo wings, quesadillas…) from lunchtime through the wee hours of the morn.' Stop by Corosh on Sundays from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for a brunch buffet that will put you back a mere $12. On top of meats, pastas, fruit and salads, you can special order as many eggs, pancakes and French toast as your little heart desires.

The bar doesn't have a drink menu, but with an extremely wide variety of alcohol (including some top-shelf labels), the chatty bartenders will probably be able to make anything you'd want.

Average cost: $10-$20

Centerstage Reviewer: Laura Brown