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Ottimo
Follonico closed last summer, but pasta partisans who mourned its demise
will be happy to discover a new cucina italiana inhabiting its cozy
Flatiron premises. Ottimo ("the best") is a none-too-humble
collaboration between local winery owner Silvio Galterio (pictured, left)
and Neapolitan chef Salvatore Esposito (right), who cooked most recently at
La Pizza Fresca. He'll continue to ply his buffalo mozzarella-and-San
Marzano tomato pizza trade, supplementing it with a full menu of mostly
southern-Italian specialties like sautéed spinach with raisins and pine
nuts, orecchiette with anchovies and broccoli rabe, and enough seafood to
make one consider — momentarily, at least — forgoing the fried calzone
stuffed with ricotta and bits of braised pork.
6 West 24th Street
212-337-0074
· Cuisine: Italian
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Smith
It's been eleven years since Brian McNally opened '44,' his last restaurant
in New York, but every one he's helmed since the Odeon in 1980 (with brother
Keith) has been a smash. At Smith, his newest place, the menu in the
85-seat back room is full of hearty bistro food, like roast duck breast with
artichoke spaetzle and mustard greens — chef Kenny Addington, who's worked
at '44' and Patroon, seems to scatter truffles everywhere, from the duxelles
to the mashed potatoes — and the smaller café up front has its own
extensive plat, ranging from oyster pie with salsify and leeks to
steak-frites. In true French style, the roast chicken is carved at
tableside. But McNally's still trying for something casual: "You can just
come into the front room for a drink if you want," he assures, and alcohol
prices are relatively friendly. As for the name, it's a nod to McNally's
roots, a reference to the working-class hero of the sixties British film
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner — and "the most ordinary
name I could think of."
—BETH LANDMAN KEIL
64 East 1st Street
212-260-3189
· Cuisine: French Bistro
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Looking
Ahead... |
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Late December
Blue
Fin,
Set-up: Situated in the highly-anticipated
W Times Square Hotel, this 400-seater will have
a floating staircase connecting its two levels and a
view of the Great White Way.
Cuisine: Seafood
Chef: Paul Sale (Icon at W Court Hotel)
Owner: Stephen "BR Guest" Hanson (Isabella's,
Atlantic Grill)
January, 2002
Suba,
109 Ludlow St., 212-982-5714
Set-up: Subterreanean, multi-level grotto with
moat, underwater lamps, and floor-to-ceiling glass-paneled
doors. Designed by Andre Kikoski.
Cuisine:Pan-Latin
Chef: Stephane Bucholzer (L'Actuel)
Owners: Yann De Rochefort and Phillip Morgan
Fiamma,
206 Spring St., 212-653-0100
Set-up:
Tri-level space in SoHo with exterior glass elevator
and 130 seats
Cuisine: Italian
Chef: Michael White
(formerly at the four-star Spiaggia in Chicago and chef
di cucina at Ristorante San Domenico in Imola, Italy)
Owner: Stephen "BR
Guest" Hanson (Blue Water Grill, Park Avalon, Ruby
Foo's)
April, 2002
Blue
Smoke, 116 East 27th
St.
Set-up: Jazz joint with a built-in barbecue pit
at former 27 Standard space.
Cuisine: Barbecue
Chef: Pitmaster Kenny Callaghan (Sous Chef, Union
Square Cafe)
Owners: Danny Meyer (Gramercy
Tavern, Union
Square Cafe, Eleven
Madison Park)
--
TISA COEN
Hear about a restaurant opening? Post an announcement
- even a rumor - in the
Food Forum.
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Openings Archive
Week
of December 3
Marseille, Fauchon
Week
of November 26
Tuk Tuk
Week of
November 19
Café Sabarsky, Market 17, Thias, Better Burger, Nipotino
and
more ...
Photos: Patrik Rytikangas.
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