In April, chef Dante de Magistris, who co-owns Dante (Boston) with brothers Damian (Dante's gm) and Filippo (Dante's wine director), spawned a second Italian concept, il Casale, in their hometown of Belmont (a Beantown suburb) at 50 Leonard St.
Chef/owner Andy Husbands installed a new kitchen team at Tremont 647 (Boston). Isadora "Izzy" Sarto (who cut her teeth working under Daniel Boulud in NYC) is exec chef and Katherine "Kat" Craddock (an Excelsior alum) is pastry chef. She replaced Anne Taylor in February.
What can easily be described as the choicest piece of restaurant real estate in the city is up for grabs! The lease for Tavern on the Green, which has been run continuously by the LeRoy family since 1974, expires December 31, 2009. (When its legendary ringmaster, Warner LeRoy, passed away in 2001, he willed control of the restaurant to his daughter Jennifer, who in 2008 took in $34.2 million, making Tavern the second highest grossing restaurant in the U.S.) Now the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation is putting the icon on the auction block. Parks issued a request for proposals from operators in February, with formal bids due this month, and hopes to announce who will be awarded a new 20 year license in July. The LeRoy family (who owns the rights to the name Tavern on the Green and is opening an outpost in San Francisco in late 2009) is definitely in the game, but competition should be fierce. At press time we confirmed that interested parties include Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group and Alan Stillman (of Smith & Wollensky fame). Stillman believes his group is "uniquely qualified through our experience of running one of the top five grossing restaurants in the United States with several others in the top 50. Very few operators have an understanding of how to run a restaurant of Tavern's size and scope." Ti Adelaide Martin, co-owner of New Orleans' Commander's Palace, is also throwing her hat in the ring. "What a thrill and an honor it would be to be in a food town we worship and in such an iconic location," muses Martin. "We'd like to be the new kids on the block in the Big Apple—we'd bring a little New Orleans joie de vivre and haute Creole cuisine with us." Whoever is awarded the contract will need deep pockets; the department expects a larger chunk of the profits and significant renovations to bring the property in line with 21st century style and comfort standards.
The Pierre hotel will reopen next month after a yummy $100 million redo. Along with updated guest rooms and public areas, look for a new restaurant (replacing Café Pierre), Le Caprice at The Pierre, an American sibling to London's famed celeb haunt owned by London tycoon/restaurateur Richard Caring. Also new is a lobby lounge, 2 East.
In March Eugene Remm, Mark Birnbaum, and Michael Hirtenstein, principals at the NYC-based EMM Group (the hospitality company behind Tenjune), opened The Chandelier Room, a lounge with jaw-dropping views, at the sparkling new W Hoboken Hotel & Residences (the New Jersey property is also home to Zylo, a Tuscan steakhouse). And across the Hudson River in Manhattan, EMM took over the defunct Lotus space and will transform it in July into Abe & Arthur's, an American bistro, Franklin Becker, late of Trinity, Brasserie, and Capitale, is exec chef. Directly below Abe & Arthur's find a nightclub, Simyone, also slated to open in July.
Former chairman of NYMEX holdings Richard Schaeffer teamed up with chef Joe Isidori (who returns to NYC after a stint in Las Vegas as exec chef at DJT) to open Harbour in March at 290 Hudson St. Nautical themes abound, from the yacht-like interior to a seafood-driven menu (including crudo, natch).
Make way for another gentrified pizza joint: in March owner Bob Giraldi morphed E.U. into Tonda, adding a wood-burning oven tricked out with a rotating stone pivot oven and pizza-centric menu by Luigi Comandatore and Dario Milanin (Giraldi partners at Bread Tribeca). Master pizzaiolo Michele Sceral was flown in from Naples to train the kitchen team.
Pizza may be king, but it better watch out for Asian sandwiches, possibly the next big thing. Baoguette Gourmet Sandwich Café, a popular peddler of Vietnamese sandwiches (61 Lexington Ave.), branched out, with a second location in March at 37 St. Marks Pl. and a third last month at 120 Chistopher St. Num Pang Sandwich Shop, serving Cambodian sandwiches, opened in March at 21 E. 12th St. Also new on the scene is An Choi at 85 Orchard St.
But it's not all cheap eats. Enter Calvisius Caviar Lounge, new in March to the Four Seasons Hotel (57 E. 57th St.), where you can indulge in Italian farm-raised caviars and Champagne.
Fatty Crab took its Malaysian street food uptown in March with the opening of a larger, reservation-taking spin-off at 2170 Broadway.
Kevin Pomplun left Thor to take the helm at 5 Ninth, replacing Daniel Perilla.
Doug Psaltis, previously exec chef at Country, has resurfaced as chef/partner at Smith's. Psaltis takes over from Pablo Romero.
Bobby Hellen, with Resto since it opened, ascended from sous to exec chef.
Another noteworthy rise: Brandon Kida went from sous to chef de cuisine at Asiate, replacing Nori Sugie.
In March Pichet Ong pulled the plug on P*ong and Batch. At press time he told Dish he had new Batches in the oven to open soon.
Last month, Michael Psilakis, known for his new age Greek cuisine at Anthos (NYC), and partner Donatella Arpaia opened a restaurant (still unnamed when we went to press) in the just-opened Viceroy Miami (485 Bricknell Ave.), operated by the NYC-based Kor Hotel Group. Psilakis is also designing menus for the lounge on the 50th floor, the spa, in-room dining, and on-premise catering. This marks Psilakis and Arpaia's first foray outside of NYC.
New in March in the Maison Dupuy Hotel, a boutiquey little number in the French Quarter, is Le Meritage (replacing Dominique's), where exec chef Michael Farrell, who comes by way of Alto in Denver, creates wine-friendly takes on regional dishes.
In February Donald Link, with partners Stephen Stryjewski and Warren Stephens, opened Cochon Butcher at 930 Tchoupitoulas St., next door to the cultishly popular Cochon. Cochon Butcher sells fresh meats, house-made sausages, sandwiches, and addictive treats like bacon pralines. It also doubles as a wine bar serving small plates.
Corey Lee has left The French Laundry (Yountville) to open his own place in San Francisco. Timothy Hollingsworth, U.S. rep at Bocuse d'Or 2009, is moving up from sous chef to chef de cuisine.
Details are scarce, but Traci Des Jardins of Jardinière and Mijita (San Francisco) is taking her act to Tahoe. Des Jardins is slated to create a yet-to-be-named signature restaurant for The Ritz-Carlton Highlands, Lake Tahoe, opening in the fall.
Like many before him, Jocelyn Bulow, owner of Chef Papa Resto, Chef Papa Bistrot, and Chez Mama, has been bit by the haute pizza bug. In March he morphed his Couleur Cafe space (200 de Haro St., San Francisco) into Pizza Nostra. Running the kitchen are exec chef David Bazirgan (also of Chef Papa Resto) and chef de cuisine Chad Huck (a Chef Papa alum). The pizzaiolo, Giovanni Aginolfi, is an Italian import with loads of experience.
Another A-lister chef is setting up shop in Oakland. In March Daniel Olivella, chef/owner of B44 in San Francisco, opened Barlata Tapas Bar at 4901 Telegraph Ave. Olivella's partner (among others) is professional Spanish cyclist Chechu Rubiera.
Remember how Scott Howard closed his self-named place a little over a year ago and then worked briefly as exec chef at Left Bank Brasserie in Larkspur before dropping off the radar? In June he'll resurface at Berkeley's Hotel Shattuck Plaza, which is finishing up a massive overhaul and reopening this summer. Howard is in charge of all foodservice for the property, including the new signature spot, Five. Joining Howard as chef de cuisine is Bob Simontacchi, a colleague from his days at Fork (San Anselmo).
In related news, in February owner (and now chef) Charles Low retooled Fork into Dream Farm, swapping pricy high-end for affordable—nothing is more than 20 bucks—comfort classics. Nathan Lockwood is no longer chef (his kitchen team is executing the down-home menu), having moved to The Allison Inn & Spa in Newberg, OR.
This month, David Machado, chef/owner of Lauro Kitchen and Vindalho, opens Nel Centro, with a convivial vibe and menu riffing on the robust foods of Genoa and Nice, at 1408 SW Sixth Ave., adjacent to the recently spruced up Hotel Modera.
In March Morgan Brownlow, who was chef at Portland's highly praised (and short-lived) clarklewis a few years back, opened the tiny Cafe 401 (401 NE 28th Ave.). It's billed as a breakfast and lunch place, but Brownlow's cooking reveals its high-end roots. Also in the works for Brownlow is Tails and Trotter (in partnership with chicken farmer Aaron Silverman).
The Denver-based Sage Restaurant Group, which owns and operates six different restaurants in four different cities, opened Departure Restaurant & Lounge in March, a rooftop affair at The Nines hotel. Exec chef Bryan Emperor, who earned his kitchen chops at NYC's Nobu and elsewhere, is doing Southeast Asian fare. And this month Sage opened The Original, a retro-chic diner at 300 SW Sixth Ave.
Hank Holliday and his Charleston, SC-based Holliday Companies hired Claire Chapman as exec pastry chef at its Peninsula Grill (Charleston, SC). Chapman, who worked recently at The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, steps in for Chip Plaistowe.
In related news, at Mercato (Charleston), another Holliday property (this one co-owned by Steven Varn), Eddie Moran (who cooked his way through the Monterey peninsula) is now exec chef, replacing Jacques Larson.
The Umstead Hotel and Spa (Cary, NC) lured Scott Crawford away from the Georgian Room at The Cloister at Sea Island (Georgia). He replaces Paul Kellum as exec chef. Crawford takes on the expanded duties of f&b director.
Meanwhile back at the Georgian Room, sous chef and Crawford protégé Daniel Zeal steps up as chef de cuisine.
Last month, chef Joe Cascio and wife Erica Cascio, owners of Joe's Riverside Grille (Pompano Beach, FL), launched a South Florida style seafood joint in Athens, SquareOne Fish Co., at 414 N. Thomas St.
Also Persimmon Creek Vineyards (Clayton) opened a small inn on the property, The Cottages at Persimmon Creek Vineyards, and lured Kristian Holbrook away from Blackberry Farm (Walland, TN), to be gm. A trained chef, Holbrook ran Blackberry's farmstead cheese program. He moved the goat and sheep herd to Persimmon and is making artisanal cheese on-site, overseeing inn operations, handling in-room dining, and offering guests hands-on culinary experiences, from wine making to foraging to cheesemaking.
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