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In more than two decades as a New York pastry chef, George McKirdy has baked birthday cakes for Robert De Niro at Tribeca Grill, dabbled in Asian and pan-Latino confections at Nobu and Patria, and, in his most recent position at Blue Fin, churned out thousands of cupcakes for W Hotel banquets. All that disparate experience coalesces at his new bakery-café, a source for red-velvet cake, tres leches con piña, and herbed buttermilk biscuits — not to mention a light menu of breakfast and lunch fare.

Egg sandwiches come on Portuguese rolls, and the house burger, a six-ounce brisket-and-short-rib blend from Pat LaFrieda, is garnished with a chile-infused mayo. “I’m big into sauces and sloppy sandwiches,” says McKirdy. He’s also especially proud of his house blend, roasted in Gowanus by Stone Street Coffee Co. Other drinks include a green-anise-scented riff on McKirdy’s grandma’s gingerade and a lightly salted lemonade, which tastes, he says, “like natural Gatorade.” — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

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