Feature

Fall Preview: Restaurants

Midtown West

Alfredo of Rome (4 West 49th Street; 212-397-0100; mid-October) In 1914, the legend goes, an Italian guy named Alfredo invented the pasta dish that would become his claim to fame. Sixty-three years later, he passes the highly guarded secret recipe (butter, Parmigiano-Reggiano, egg noodles) along to a buddy of his who opens his own restaurant in New York's Citicorp Center and names it Alfredo. Alas, the Manhattan branch closes after an eighteen-year run. Come next month, New Yorkers will once again have access to "authentic" fettuccine Alfredo, not to mention Roman-banquet menus and rolled antipasti called "piccolo tesori," at a new Rockefeller Center location outfitted with black marble, red leather, and a display case full of boutique olive oils for sale.

Citarella (1240 Sixth Avenue, at 49th Street; 212-332-1515; early November) In the past few years, everybody's favorite fish store has grown up, spawning East Side and Long Island outposts and beefing up its extrapiscatory departments. So chef Bryan Young (Le Bernardin, Pop) is just as likely to serve up a steak as he is a fillet o' fish -- or a sushi platter, for that matter. And who knows what awesome flights of confectionery fancy will be perpetrated by Bill Yosses, formerly of Bouley Bakery? Next door, a more casual takeout annex will offer prepared foods like sandwiches, salads, rotisserie chicken, and fish.

District (130 West 46th Street; 212-485-2999; mid-October) As in "Theater," the neighborhood where this American brasserie in the ground floor of the Muse boutique hotel is situated -- a location that accounts for architect David Rockwell's stage set of proscenium arches, banks of spotlights, and a drawn stainless-steel open-weave "curtain" at the entrance. Chef-partner Sam DeMarco (of the East Village's First) has an all-inclusive idea of what constitutes "American": crispy oysters with seaweed salad and wasabi mayo, for example, or warm goat-cheese souffle.

Ilo (40 West 40th Street; 212-642-2255; mid-October) Rick Laakkonen, longtime chef at the River Café, relinquishes his cinematic views for a permanent residency at Philip Pilevsky's new Bryant Park Hotel. Ilo means "a place of joy and good spirits" in Finnish, but that's the extent of the Scandinavian connection; Laakkonen's ragout of grilled octopus and Manila clams with saffron pastina, and pan-roasted guinea hen with buckwheat groats, speak a more universal culinary language.

Nick & Stef's Steakhouse (9 Penn Plaza; 212-563-4444; September 28) Of all the groundbreaking ways you'd expect L.A. celebrity chef Joachim Splichal to make his New York debut, opening a steakhouse above Penn Station isn't one of them. But where better to sell red meat than outside a sports arena? The formula has already succeeded on Splichal's home turf, where he and his wife, Christine, opened the original Nick & Stef's last fall, minutes from the Staples Center. Now Knicks season-ticket-holders and L.I.R.R. monthly-pass-holders alike can experience Splichal's celebrated take on strip loin, lobster, lamb, potatoes every which way, and signature sauces like field mushroom and Napa red wine. Where's the beef? Front and center, hung out to dry in a stainless-steel-and-glass aging chamber.

ONEcps (1 Central Park South; 212-583-1111; September 15) Alan Stillman, ambassador of the steak, the chop, and other he-man victuals, as purveyed throughout his national kingdom of Smith & Wollenskys, Park Avenue Cafes, and Maloney and Porcellis, is remaking the Edwardian Room of the Plaza in his own (and executive chef David Burke's) image, with significant help from Adam Tihany, who knows a little something about building contemporary dining rooms in stately old hotels. We envision red meat, a stellar wine list, and a terrific view of Central Park.

Red Square (68 West 58th Street; 212-751-2323; November) China Grill honcho Jeffrey Chodorow debuted this bolshie bar and restaurant in Miami Beach, where the signature ice-covered bar is as much a climatic necessity as a cool design feature. But he might find himself waging a cold war of his own if he's intent on selling frozen vodkas, caviar, and Musco-bites like smothered blinis with beurre blanc, and goat-cheese potato piroshki, right around the corner from the Russian Tea Room.

Town (13 West 56th Street; 212-582-4445; late October) A few years ago, chef Geoffrey Zakarian left a comfortable berth at "44" in the Royalton for Patroon, and now he's checking back into a hip midtown hotel, Chambers, developed by the same people who brought us the Mercer. His opening menu includes things like tomato-watermelon salad, escargot risotto, and cod pot roast but will change quarterly with the seasons -- as will David Rockwell's design.

Upper East Side

Lentini (1564 Second Avenue, at 81st Street; no phone yet; early October) After feeding the in crowd at Elio's for the past sixteen years, chef Giuseppe Lentini finally strikes out on his own . . . three blocks south, where he and his partner, Ralph Schaller of the venerable Schaller and Weber meat market, have taken over the old Mazzei space. Pasta, antipasto, and -- if only they can find the right purveyor -- maybe some sausage and game.

Upper West Side

(2315 Broadway, at 84th Street; no phone yet; early December) Devotees of chef Tom Valenti have stalked him (and his signature slow-cooked lamb shanks) from Alison on Dominick to Cascabel, and uptown to Butterfield 81. Come fall, they'll find him across town, where he's opening what he calls a "really simple, straightforward American restaurant" -- primarily because he hasn't thought of a name yet. In his endearingly low-key way, Valenti wants to make his new neighbors feel instantly comfortable in the dark, cozy quasi-tavern, whether they crave a burger at the roomy bar or something more along the luxurious lines of foie gras ravioli or salmon gravlax drizzled with caviar.

Sushi a Go-Go (1900 Broadway, near 64th Street; no phone yet; mid-October) Partners David Ruggerio and Gerard Renny enlisted architect Jack Baum to create a whimsical swinging-sixties interior, with a shimmering Mylar wall and a maître d' stand modeled after a go-go dancer's cage -- the sort of place where Austin Powers would be a regular. Since Ruggerio is better known for his way with Italian and French cuisines, he's entrusting the kitchen to a Japanese chef, who will incorporate hard-to-find, exotic shellfish and global seafood into traditional sushi and sashimi, just the thing to satisfy the discerning appetite of an international man of mystery.

Brooklyn

Kino (1 Main Street, Brooklyn; 718-243-9815; September 21) The dumbo community might rail against the impending gentrification of its hotly contested stretch of waterfront, but we suspect that it will put up no resistance to this satellite of Raoul's and its tartar bar, fondues, roasted pheasant, and steak au poivre. Floor-to-ceiling windows provide killer views of Manhattan, a spectacle that will have to compete against indoor movies, live music, and art exhibits. Plus the film footage of customers making an entrance, a nifty way to bring out the narcissist in all of us.