Benno, Proudly Out of Step With the Age

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“Dated was the word one friend used after going to Benno, and if you’ve eaten there, too, you’ll know why. It’s as if the past 15 years in food never happened. The menu seems to be stuck in some time between 1994, when Thomas Keller bought the French Laundry, and 2004, when he opened Per Se with a young Jonathan Benno leading the kitchen.

The restaurant will probably be a tough sell to those diners who expect all restaurants to fall on a continuum between Noma and the Salt Bae place. But I prefer it to any number of newer, self-consciously modern restaurants, some of which are so determined to be of the moment that they might as well have a time stamp. Benno is not trying to be contemporary. It’s trying to be delicious. And it is, from start to finish, almost without exception.”

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Restaurant Boasting New York City Flair Coming to the Castro

“When it opens this spring, Gramercy Park will serve Californian cuisine in the evenings, New York City-style sandwiches in the afternoons, and all-American brunch on the weekends. Owner Mark White hopes to open the restaurant by mid-April at 216 Church Street, formerly Crepevine in the Castro.

White is fairly secretive about his background. He says he graduated from the Culinary Institute of America 20 years ago, and went on to own four restaurants in New York. But he sold off his stakes in those restaurants — which he did not name — and now has his eyes on San Francisco. He’s starting a new restaurant group, Madison Avenue Hospitality Group, and plans to open five restaurants within five years here. Gramercy Park is the first.”

“Gramercy Park will also occupy a smaller, 480-square-foot space next door — dubbed Gramercy Park To-Go — to serve commuters in the morning with coffee and grab-and-go items. It’ll also provide a streamlined area for delivery services like Caviar and Postmates to pick up orders without clogging up the main dining room. Between the two spaces, White hopes Gramercy Park will be the sort of neighborhood spot folks visit multiple times a month.”

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Emeril Lagasse opens NYC restaurant

Emeril Lagasse in his new Greek restaurant, Rodos, at 39 W 24th street in Midtown

World renowned chef Emeril Lagasse has secretly opened his very first New York City restaurant — completely under the radar. For now, Rodos feels like your own private Greek island oasis, though it won’t stay that way for long.

Think healthy Greek fare with a splash of New Orleans decadence. The stealth chef launched Rodos in the lobby of Chelsea’s Hotel Henri with restaurateur Yiannis Chatiris on January 8.

“Yiannis and I have known each other professionally for years and became friends,” Lagasse said. “I’ve had more than 75 offers to open in New York but nothing was right until now.”

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The Best Restaurant Meals of 2018

Roasted eggplant with Calabrian chile

Kat Kinsman, Extra Crispy Senior Food & Drinks Editor and Food & Wine Contributor: Eating out is often tough for me because I have so many dietary restrictions, so the vegetable courses at Misi were an absolute godsend. I texted a friend on the way home freaking out about how each of them was excellent in a violently different way, and that I could partake of just about everything with glee. Also, I must mention the hospitality at Temple Court. Even during an overwhelmed Restaurant Week, every single person was gracious, informed, efficient, and warm. I know I’m an easily identifiable food world professional, but I also take care to look around and see how other tables are being treated. All smiles. It was a joy.”

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The Absolute Best Rugelach in New York

Orwashers Bakery

“Amidst the many delights at this iconic New York bakery — sour-cherry-jelly doughnuts, sticky-bun babka, black-and-whites — the rugelach more than hold their own. The twisted nuggets of shortbread pastry glisten with mouth-puckering raspberry or apricot jam — arguably the preeminent jam in the rugelach oeuvre. And they come packed with chewy bites of raisins, a scattering of sunflower seeds, and, if you’re making your rugelach run at the original Upper East Side location, a sultry dip into melted baking chocolate.”

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Israeli Chef Re-Opens Flagship New York Restaurant

“Chef Einat Admony is familiar with the stress of opening a new restaurant, having opened 13 restaurants throughout her career. But the days leading up to the reopening of her latest eatery, Balaboosta, felt more intense than usual.”

”We have all-time favorites such as the cauliflower with lemon, currants, pine nuts, parsley and crushed Bamba (an Israeli peanut butter-flavored snack), and fried olives with labane and harissa oil.”

New creations include the short rib zabzi with hand-rolled couscous, herbs and almonds; and red snapper with pickled okra tempura and sour Fresno chili in okra chraime sauce.

Customers can also choose from an extensive wine list including Israeli wines. The dessert section features malabi and halva creme brulee.”

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Pearl Found In Restaurant Oyster For Second Time In Month

Pearl Found In Restaurant Oyster For Second Time In Month: Report

“The latest treasure was discovered at the Williamsburg eatery Maison Premiere on Bedford Ave., the New York Post reported. Kristin Pulaski, 29, told the newspaper she felt something hard in an oyster that she bit into on Dec. 15.

Earlier this month, Rick Antosh, 66, chewed an oyster in the Grand Central Oyster Bar and bit down on a pearl thought to be worth $4,000.

An appraiser told Pulaski her the pearl was lumpy and wouldn’t be worth a fortune, but she intends to have some statement jewelry made out of it, she told the Post. The restaurant’s owner told the paper this was the first pearl he knew of that had been found there in eight years.”

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Path Coffee Roasters Leads the Way for Specialty with Westchester County Training Facility

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“Five-year-old specialty coffee wholesale roasting company Path Coffee Roasters has unveiled a new specialty coffee destination at its home base in Port Chester, New York.

Working with Dianne Eaton of Mamaroneck-based Keller/Eaton Architects, Path has created a new cupping lab and training space adjacent to its roastery that is designed to give advanced training, skills development and cupping opportunities to wholesale clients and home baristas alike.

Despite the brand being just five years old, it also constitutes the specialty division of Empire Coffee Roasters, which has been producing wholesale, mostly private-label coffees for clients throughout New York for more than three decades.”

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Starbucks Roastery opens in New York City

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“The design of each Starbucks Roastery— with locations in Seattle, Shanghai, and Milan — is inspired by its home city. Architect Rafael Vinoly’s designed the three-story New York City location in the city’s Meatpacking District. The design was inspired by the geometry of New York City’s buildings and will feature systems of “symphony pipe” tubes where beans will be transported, as a nod to the city’s subway system.

Exclusive to the New York City Roastery will be a cellar-level terrarium featuring vegetation inspired by the Starbucks coffee farm in Costa Rica.

The Roastery will also feature a 10-foot copper sculpture of the Starbucks siren, which has become a design staple at each Roastery location. This statue, designed by Brooklyn artist Max Steiner, is New York City-inspired.”

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New York City Restaurants That Are Open on Christmas Day

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“Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, you may be in the market for a festive meal on December 25. While plenty of kitchens will be closed so employees can take well-deserved breaks, many restaurants across New York City will be running service. From festive brunch and prix-fixe dinners to good ol’ à la carte dining, you can find the Christmas Day meal that suits your needs.

DaDong

Beijing import famous for its roast duck open for Christmas lunch and dinner with its à la carte menu, as well as three prix-fixe menus for groups of two to six guests. All three menus feature Champagne-glazed vine tomatoes and DaDong’s “SuBuNi” roast duck served with sugar, pancakes, crispy sesame buns, and special sauce.”

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