Stix Brings Coffee And Kebabs Together | Gramercy, NYC

Coffee and kebabs? This unlikely combination can be found at Stix, a new Mediterranean restaurant-slash-coffee bar in Gramercy.

Pause before you caffeinate, and let head barista Stefanos Domatiotis guide you through the menu. Trust him: He is Greece's 2012 barista champion, and has teamed up with Stone Street Coffee to create an exclusive bean blend.

Espresso at Stix is served five different ways, but make sure to try Stix's big-brother version: the espresso piccolino ($4.25). This cappuccino-size drink combines espresso, steamed milk, melted caramel and chocolate. Other uplifting combinations include the freddo cappuccino ($4.50), made with a blend of cold foam milk and espresso, and the freddo espresso ($4,) which combines ice, sugar and espresso.

Kebabs, as Stix's name intimates, are the menu's lynchpin. But skip them for such spreads as smoky roasted eggplant, tzatziki and hummus ($13), all served with grilled pita. If you succumb to the allure of food on a skewer, make it the corn ($5.50). It's coated with sea salt, olive oil and paprika, then grilled for an intensely smoky edge.

Soon, Stix will have a third focus: Inspired by the head chef's stint at Noma, an array of fresh juices ($3.75 to $4.75) is forthcoming. Combinations will include apple and pine, woodruff and beet, and carrot and sea buckthorn.

Stix, 112 E. 23rd St. (between Park Ave. S. & Lexington Ave.); 212-673-6666 or stixny.com