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Wedged into a quiet South Slope block that’s teeming with high-quality dining options both time-tested and recently opened, Parco manages to carve a tiny niche for its savory pastries and sweet confections despite a seriously cramped physical space. With two graceful marble-topped tables in its front window and a diminutive outdoor seating area, the shop is a miniature oasis, complete with golden damask curtains and gilt-edged mirrors. As such, it’s an easy place (assuming you can snag a seat) to enjoy the very fine coffee and American and European specialties, like double chocolate-chip cookies and linzer torte, and meander through the day’s news. Sustenance both savory (salato) and sweet (dolce) tends toward the handheld and highly portable, like basic, satisfying spinach-and-goat-cheese croissants and pleasing sweet-corn-and-bacon quiche. — Helen Zelon

You can order quiches, pastries, and sweets a few days in advance, either choosing from the standard menu or concocting something new during a consultation with the chef.

Nutella, banana and walnut crepe, $4.50; spinach-and-goat-cheese quiche (slice), $3.25