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What Restaurants Would Get the ‘SATC’ Blessing?
The cavernous MePa temple is still reaping the rewards of its cameo, but where else would the ladies have gone?
Posted 09/26/08 in Grub Street : Exposure
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Taavo Somer Reveals the Secret of Freemans’ Artichoke Dip
It came from Minnesota!
Posted 08/18/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Freemans Closing Briefly for Renovations; Burritos No Longer
A Wondee Siam will soon service Columbia students, and so many fries to try, so little time, in today's neighborhood food news.
Posted 08/11/08 in Grub Street : Neighborhood Watch
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‘Top Chef’ Filming in New York Right Now?; 50 Cent Sues Taco Bell
Plus Lindsay Lohan takes over a Palace Fried Chicken and critics try out Restaurant Week, in our daily news roundup.
Posted 07/24/08 in Grub Street : Mediavore
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Michael Citarella Taking Over at Freemans
The artichoke dip is not in danger.
Posted 07/22/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Late-Night July 4 Party in Clinton Hill; Knitting Factory Building Sold for Millions
Gavin Kaysen's start as a sandwich artist and Artichoke Pizza's earlier hours, in today's neighborhood food news.
Posted 07/02/08 in Grub Street : Neighborhood Watch
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Frank Bruni’s Zero-Star Greatest Hits
Slam-dancing with the chief restaurant critic of the 'Times.'
Posted 06/12/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Confirmed: Jean Adamson Leaving Freemans, May Go Solo
A rep confirms that the chef will leave the restaurant's kitchen at the end of the summer.
Posted 05/28/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Taavo Somer Is Cheesier Than We Thought
In a Q&A with the rich-diculous 'Times' blog the Moment, he tells us all about his fantasy travel companion.
Posted 05/20/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Taavo Somer, the Man Behind the Music at the Rusty Knot
David Amsden steps into the world of downtown’s most-sought-after tastemaker and learns that he’s the one behind the jukebox at the Rusty Knot.
Posted 05/05/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Shack Shack Now Open Late; Pies Partner Cooking Lunch at Marlow & Sons
Check out the new menu at Freemans, Park Slope's high-end, and discounted Mexican in today's neighborhood food news.
Posted 04/23/08 in Grub Street : Neighborhood Watch
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The Lower East Side's Latest Sustainable Restaurant; Plus, Rayuela's New Takeaway Outlet
Clinton Hill: Don’t be fooled by Met Foods window painting claiming the supermarket has the “[l]argest fresh organic products in the area.” You’ll be “hard-pressed to find any (just the usual half-rotten produce they usually carry). It’s clearly a reaction to the threat of all the discerning customers shopping at Green Planet.” [Clinton Hill Blog] Greenwich Village: The Starbucks on 8th Street between Fifth and University is closing and has posted in its window a bizarre, farewell letter of sorts, which begins, "This thing we have together, it’s bigger than this place." And in a weird way, the epistle is spot-on. [Gothamist] Harlem: Where can a gal just get a beer and a burger in this gentrifying area? [Uptown Flavor] Lower East Side: Rayuela is expanding with a Latin takeout spot set to open at the end of March in the former LoSide space. [Eater] Lee Gross’s organic eatery Broadway East opens March 7, and like this week’s ecofriendly thirst quenchers, "filters and carbonates its own water." [Strong Buzz] Freemans will totally let you order artichoke dip before you place your entrée order; they changed their policy two years ago after Bruni’s "Satisfactory" review. [Diner’s Journal/NYT]
Posted 02/26/08 in Grub Street : Neighborhood Watch
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Friedman Reveals a Little Bit (Just a Little Bit) About John Dory, Rusty Knot
Deodorant-eschewing Spotted Pig honcho Ken Friedman sits down with Bruni to say not much of anything about what he’s planning for the Rusty Knot, his “East Village–style dive bar” in the old West space. Despite the fact that he was last heard talking about the bar in a series of Belvedere ads, he says he doesn’t want the sort of exposure Sam Mason enjoyed on this very blog (“I was sick of [Tailor] before it even opened”) and reveals that his first choice for partner was Amy Sacco of Bungalow 8 rather than Taavo Somer of Freemans — a restaurant that’s one of his faves despite the fact that “the food’s never really that good.” Ouch! A Chat with Ken Friedman [Diner’s Journal/NYT] Earlier: Daniel Boulud and Ken Friedman Reveal New Projects in Belvedere Ads
Posted 02/20/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Momofuku, Freemans, Spotted Pig Honchos Break Bread With Stephen Starr
Our favorite celebrity sighting of the week was, of course, Lindsay Lohan at Peter Luger on Tuesday night — that’s because we saw her with our own eyes. Of course, we can’t be everywhere and see everyone, so as usual we’ve combed the gossip columns for other stop-ins. We’re sorry we missed Tracy Morgan at the Plumm, shirtless and offering to father babies as usual, and boy do we wish we were a fly on the wall when partners Ken Friedman and Taavo Somer, along with David Chang, dined with Stephen Starr at Buddakan. Is there a Spotted Buddafuku in the works?
Posted 01/31/08 in Grub Street : Celebrity Settings
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Julia Jaksic, Now Head Chef at Employees Only, Shows Off New Menu
Julia Jaksic, underground-dinner-club hostess and consulting chef at Smith and Mills, has been named head chef at Employees Only (where she was previously a sous-chef) and has completely revamped the menu. Look for nods to her Croatian heritage: A hamburger that’s served on a fluffy pita with pepper paste and carmac, and (on the brunch menu) polenta with smoked bacon and sauerkraut and brown butter. A hamburger that’s served on a fluffy pita with pepper paste, and (on the brunch menu) polenta with smoked bacon and sauerkraut and brown butter. Berkshire bacon makes another appearance wrapped around New Zealand lamb chops — an appetizer that’s fast becoming the Employees Only equivalent of Freemans’ devils on horseback. The late-night menu has also been jazzed up, surely good news for industry types still reeling from the loss of wee hours eating at Mas (farmhouse). Employees Only dinner menu Related: Sign Up for Secret Dinner Club's Weekend Time Warp
Posted 01/22/08 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Singer-Songwriter Vanessa Carlton Indeed Loves Ruby's in the Afternoon
In her single “Nolita Fairytale,” Vanessa Carlton sings about her love of “Ruby's in the afternoon”— a reference to her favorite neighborhood hang. “It’s the best people-watching,” she says of Ruby’s. “Everyone looks like they’re out of an editorial shoot for some hip magazine. But it’s not posey.” Other favorites near the “Nolita flat on rent control” she famously exalts? La Esquina (“I love to get takeout or to just sit at the front taco bar”), Freemans (“I think it wins the devils-on-horseback competition with the Spotted Pig”), and N (“the best chorizo I’ve ever had”). We asked her whether this week found her at any of the above.
Posted 11/30/07 in Grub Street : The New York Diet
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Chefs Bored With Food, Move to Clothes; Pricey Plates and Polygamy Just Go Together
Wondering who actually orders $1,000 bagel or a $28,000 bejeweled sundae? Serendipity 3 owner Stephen Bruce “wouldn’t be surprised if soon we get a call from a Middle Eastern prince or Shah willing to give something sweet to his many wives on his next trip to the city.” [News.Com.Au] Related: Have White Truffles Finally Gone Too Far? Breaking: Serendipity 3 Closed by DOH Since chefs, mixologists, and their restaurants are the newest breed of celebrity, it's about time they started designing clothes. Get dressed at Freemans, Death & Co., and PDT. [Mouthing Off/Food&Wine] Restaurateur Jimmy Bradley on the source of his managing prowess: “The Art of War by Sun Tzu taught me many leadership and organizational lessons.” [Diner’s Journal/NYT]
Posted 11/19/07 in Grub Street : Mediavore
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Freemans Fall Menu Is Heavy on the Meat
When we talked to Freemans server Cass Buggé a little over a month ago, the barbecue ribs were all the rage there. Bad news is summer’s kaput. Good news is the place’s fall menu, which we offer you here exclusively, includes enticing things like venison stew, Estonian meat pies, roasted pork loin, and so on. Will the cauliflower cream hold a candle to the ever-popular artichoke dip? We don’t know, but you’ll definitely find us here rather than attempting to find a seat for Oktoberfest at Loreley across the street. Freemans fall menu
Posted 10/03/07 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Kingswood Is a Respectable Hipstaurant, Except for That Infernal Song
We’ve heard more than one person refer to Kingswood as the new Freemans, and there are similarities: A greeter in an anachronistic hat, a bucolic vibe care of the butterflies on the ceiling, and drinks in which Glenfiddich is “massaged” by figs. There’s even some clothier-restaurateur synchronicity, à la Freemans, since it shares ownership with Ksubi clothing store. But if Kingswood is going to be a true hipstaurant, it’s going to have to put an end to one thing.
Posted 10/01/07 in Grub Street : NewsFeed
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Chris Stein at Smith and Mills Is Proud to Be a Luddite
Chris Stein was a server at La Esquina before he started work at the equally atmospheric — if much smaller — Smith and Mills, where he’s the only man on the floor. Does he miss working at a larger spot? “Other jobs there have been managers saying the same shit to you over and over, and trying to get you to sell certain things,” he says. “Here, there aren’t any of the gross vibes. A lot of the times the owner is having a drink also, or we’re all having a drink.” Sadly we weren’t having a drink when we chatted with Stein, but that didn’t make our conversation any less spirited.
Posted 09/04/07 in Grub Street : Ask a Waiter
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