Opening
Cafe Commerce
Though closed for nearly a decade, Commerce in the West Village has been reconfigured on the Upper East Side by Harold Moore, its former executive chef and co-owner. Warmly lit, the 55-seat bistro now leans Art Deco without insisting; an oblong mural by David Joel from the downtown spot, hangs over the bar. Mr. Moore, steeped in the French idiom after working with Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Daniel Boulud, serves roast chicken with foie gras stuffing, stretching the budget at $99, one of several dishes for two. Farther afield are chicken schnitzel, steak Diane and a towering coconut cake. Regulars at Charlie Palmer restaurants might recognize the general manager, Charles Pouchot.
Mango Bay
Not on a beach but filling two floors of a brownstone with exuberant décor, this restaurant puts warm sunshine and gentle breezes on its menu. It’s a collaboration between the owners Shamah Levy and David Berkowitsch, who are making their New York restaurant debut, and the chef London Chase. Take a winter break with stuffed guava wings, ackee and saltfish egg rolls, mango curry with king prawns, a jerk burger, and braised oxtail with rice and peas, all representing the Caribbean by way of Africa, the chef’s salute to his native French Guinea and his Nigerian heritage. Outdoor seating, lounge chairs not provided, depends on the weather. (Opens Wednesday)
Annam Cafe
At this compact spot, beef brisket and raw strips of steak bathe in a 16-hour broth; chicken broth takes eight hours. Steaming bowls of pho come seasoned with onion and ginger, optionally spiked with chile and lime. Noodle or rice bowls with barbecued pork, hanger steak, lemongrass chicken or fish infused with turmeric and dill in the mode of Cha Ca la Vong, a Hanoi restaurant, are also served. Those same toppings can be tucked into banh mi baguettes. Spring rolls are another option, all by the chef and owner, Thinh Nguyen.
Bananas
Chris Ng and Kyaw Lwin, both chefs and the owners of this new East Village spot, showcase their take on Asian American dishes, purposeful encounters like miso Caesar salad, mussels steamed in sake, shrimp wonton étouffée in Cajun broth, and chopped cheese phat kaphrao with pork. A 70-seat room with multiple banana accents welcomes a clientele that might or might not be ready for the PB&J cocktail: banana makgeolli, spiced soju, peanut butter and grape syrup. Consider it for dessert since there’s no banana split. (Thursday)
Schnipper’s Quality Soups
Soup to go is so 1980s and ’90s, from the window of Al Yeganeh’s West 55th Street (the “Soup Nazi” of Seinfeld fame), then with Andrew and Jonathan Schnipper’s Hale & Hearty chain. Eventually Marco Canora’s Brodo joined in. Now with a new name but in the original East Side location of Hale & Hearty Soups, the company that went on without them until 2022, the Schnippers are back in the game. They’re serving soups (five standard including chicken vegetable and tomato Cheddar, plus daily specials), salads, sandwiches and juices.
Tramezzini NYC
Venice meets Le Marche at this long-term pop-up. Filippo Paccagnella, who closed the Lower East Side home for tramezzini (Venetian finger sandwiches) last year, has entered a partnership with Cremini’s, a Brooklyn restaurant serving the food of Le Marche, to include the sandwiches and other items on the menu and for catering. Wine samplings, art displays and tasting events are planned.
Looking Ahead
‘Finding Edna Lewis’
This documentary about the chef and author, the legendary master of Southern and Soul cooking who died at 89 in 2006, will have its premiere at Platform by the James Beard Foundation on Feb. 2 at 4 p.m. The event will start with a reception, including small bites by Gage & Tollner in Brooklyn, where Ms. Lewis was the chef from 1988 to 1992. Debra Freeman, the executive producer, will attend and discuss the film, as will the chef Adrienne Cheatham and the chef Sohui Kim, now of Gage & Tollner.
Chefs on the Move
Marjorie Meek-Bradley
Union Square Hospitality Group has named this chef, who is from Northern California and recently worked with Starr Restaurants in Washington, D.C., and New York, as the executive chef for the View, the revolving restaurant to open next month in the Marriott Marquis in Times Square. She will be in charge of the bar and lounge on the 48th floor, which will feature raw bar specialties, and the dining room on the floor below for American classics.
On the Menu
Busiate
Has your pantry welcomed busiate? This traditional Sicilian pasta is made by wrapping flat strands of dough around thin dowels (like knitting needles, “busa” in Sicilian dialect) so they dry and retain coils, no hairspray required. The pasta is showing up at Santi, Michael White’s latest, and also at Forsythia, Leon’s, Sicily Osteria, Norma and F&F Pizzeria, and Tortello in Chicago. What is notable is that it’s often made from ancient grains. From Gustiamo, the Italian importer in the Bronx, it’s produced with stone-milled nutty-tasting whole grain tumminia flour by Filippo Drago, who cultivates heritage varieties of wheat in southern Sicily.
Remembering
Sandro Fioriti
The gregarious Italian chef whose cooking was as generous as his personality died in November of what his wife, Anna, said were complications from myasthenia gravis. He was 77. He arrived in New York in 1984 and opened a namesake restaurant the following year in partnership with the restaurateur Tony May. Then, after running a place in the Caribbean, he opened Sandro’s restaurants in Chelsea and on the Upper East Side, finally settling at 322 East 86th Street in 2022. His specialty was the cuisine of Rome, not far from Umbria where he was born in 1947. His wife and his son, Sandro Jr., will continue to run the restaurant known for pasta and an exceptional, reasonably priced Italian wine list.
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