Sometimes I can feel how starved my body is for fresh vegetables, usually in the form of a lurking headache in the back of my skull. On such occasions, Souen is like a trip to the fountain of nutrition. Last night I sat at the table next to the open front windows. Through a curtain of plants I saw people strolling towards Union Square, hurried cars, deep slanting shadows.

By the end of the meal I felt the internal haze lifting.