Haircutters of Paris

Ashraf, the owner of Le Salon, insists that she puts more thought into the products she uses than most hair stylists. Everything is organic, from the shampoos to the dyes. Ashraf told Manhattan Sideways team member Jon that she does this very deliberately. In an age when everyone is constantly using chemicals in their hair, she believes that it is causing harm, killing hair and hurting everyone’s general health. In order to fight against this trend, “organic is the way to go with both your health and the environment, ” Ashraf said. Ashraf has been a hairstylist for over forty years, working in almost every facet of the hairstyling industry. She emigrated to the United States from Iran in the 1970s, eventually landing in Henri Bendel’s hair salon. After working as a stylist for several years, she was hired by Bendel to travel the world, designing, managing, and running several hair salons. After learning as much as she possibly could, she made the decision in 1990 to come back to Manhattan and open up her own salon on 57th Street, which she later sold. Throughout this journey, Ashraf realized the importance of organic products, taking note to use them exclusively in her next salon. She opened Le Salon in 2007, catering towards people with health issues including alopecia, severe allergies and cancer. She believes that using gentle and organic products on their hair is the best treatment for these clients. Ashraf maintains that her products, all purchased exclusively from England, are of the highest quality.

Opened in 1992 and originally located on the Upper East Side, Oceana moved to 49th Street in 2009. The Livanos family sowed the seeds for the glorious Oceana long ago when they ran a diner and realized their ambitions to develop it into something more. Having worked hard to make their dreams a reality, Oceana continues to pride itself on the freshness of its food and makes a point to have direct relationships with the fish mongers and farmers. Although some have called Oceana the Mecca of seafood, the restaurant's menu is notably diverse. The executive chef, Ben Pollinger, takes to the broad reaches of American cuisine and mixes elements of different dishes together, often in an unexpected way. The Manhattan Sideways team eagerly sampled a few of the marvelous dishes, including the Copper River Sockeye Salmon Crudo, featuring pickled ramps, parsley oil, and Amagansett sea salt, and the Sea Scallops Ceviche that is topped with peaches, ginger, and cinnamon basil. I was pleasantly surprised by the incredible vegetarian dish that the chef also prepared - Summer Squash & Cranberry Bean Salad, consisting of zucchini, gold bar and pattypan squash, pignoli, purslane and drizzled in lemon vinaigrette. Absolutely delicious. The last member of the Oceana team that we were introduced to was their wine director, Pedro Goncalves. Pedro, who began working at Oceana in 2001, makes a concerted effort to develop drink pairings to accompany the delectable food menu. Standing near the white marble bar, he proudly told us that Oceana has 1100 wine listings and 600 spirits. He went on to report that with forty-seven different gins, Oceana has one of the largest selections of in the city. "There is something to fit every personality, " Pedro said.

If the sight of a regular lunch rush doesn’t convince you to try La Bellezza Pizzeria, then their pitch-perfect, classic New York slices will. After a trip in to try their signature pepperoni and tomato slices (a well-seasoned combination of cheesy, crunchy and savory, the Bellezza team has mastered the elusive sauce-to-cheese ratio), we got a chance to check in with the Dedvukaj family who have operated the East Midtown pizza joint for the past 23 years. Founded by Bronx-based Marko Dedvukaj, son Frank Dedvukaj — who started slinging slices in the shop at just 20 years old — took over the business so that, as Marko put it, “I can focus on the most important job of all — spoiling my grandkids, ” he told us, surrounded by visiting family members, some of whom also used to work at La Bellezza. As groups of grateful office workers filed in and out of the intimate storefront for a slice of pizza or La Bellezza’s famous chicken parmigiano hero — “at one point we were voted the #1 Chicken Parm on Yelp” Frank told us, he added that the biggest change he’s seen in business is a post-COVID slowdown of daytime visitors to the block. “The area is quieter, ” said Frank, noting that they still maintain a set of loyal regulars. “We’re still here! ”