I’m usually pretty impervious to cute. Puppies–enh. Babies–hate ’em. But I stopped by Mimi’s Closet, a new boutique up by Ditmars and I was totally bowled over by its adorableness. I know these kinds of places, where the plucky owner sits in an easy chair sewing the very things that are for sale on the racks, are a dime a dozen in Nolita and Brooklyn. But they’re novel here in Astoria, where acid-wash denim is still in style.

Anyway, said plucky owner is a lovely Japanese woman, and her clothes are cute and functional, and she says she can also take your measurements and tailor her designs to fit. And she’s got a nice selection of locally made jewelry as well. Prices are not outrageous.

Despite my regular freelance employment at In Style, I am so not a fashion plate, so I can understand if you don’t trust my judgment on this recommendation. But with Mimi in the neighborhood, I might just be a clotheshound yet…

Foolishly, though, I forgot to wear my fetching new lace-trimmed, gathered-bodice tank top to Sunday Night Dinner (Now on Saturday!) last night, which was not officially my birthday dinner, but turned out to be quite a nice celebration nonetheless. So I’m wearing the shirt now (cool–the straps are elastic, so they don’t fall down!) while reminiscing about the army of beer-can chickens that crowded the grill, the slurpy-spicy boiled peanuts and the buttery braised vidalias, as well as the super-garlicky caesar salad, which was even better when pared down to just croutons and dressing. But man, that chicken was good. I ate about four wings, and then a big morsel of breast meat–Dapper was lookin’ out for me.

And even though I get lazier with every dinner, and barely move from the first seat I happen to plop down in, my heart is still so full when I look down the long line of haphazard tables and chairs. Everyone’s chatting and eating and drinking and smoking, all under the golden glow of the anti-bug lights, and it looks like some Italian film. (Here’s a photo, from the ribs event, two weeks ago.) I wish I had a time-lapse video of the seats filling up and then emptying over the course of the night.

I stayed till the wee hours, which is why I can’t write so well today. Words escape me. But trust me, it was a very tasty time.