East Village: Christina Tosi is working on a Milk Bar cookbook. [NYO via Eater NY]
Gowanus: Tomorrow night at 6 p.m., there’s a Soup and Bread Cookbook Party at the Bell House to benefit the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. [Brooklyn Based]
Midtown East: Frozen custard shop Spoon City now sells “Custard Hot Chocolate.” [Midtown Lunch]
Upper East Side: Daniel Boulud will host his annual Burgundy, Blue Jeans, and Blues fund-raiser for Citymeals-on-Wheels at Daniel on Sunday, April 18. Individual tickets are $1,000, and $25,000 gets you a “gourmand” table for ten. E-mail Heather Gere for more information. [Grub Street]
Staten Island: Chris Cheung is now cooking at Fushimi. [SI Live]
Williamsburg: Zenkichi is serving a special winter prix fixe: four courses and a carafe of warm sake for $35. [Grub Street]

Read more posts by Alexandra Vallis

Filed Under: neighborhood watch, christina tosi, daniel boulud, east village, foodievents, gowanus, milk bar, milk bar cookbook, upper east side, williamsburg, zenkichi

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Why was Thomas Keller himself catering the announcement of a new art project by Jeff Koons at the artist’s studio last night? “BMW,” Keller said. “That’s my only connection here. It’s the ultimate driving machine.” The announcement was that Koons would follow in the steps of Alexander Calder, Roy Lichtenstein, and Andy Warhol in painting the seventeenth BMW Art Car. Keller is in town to work with Per Se and head up the team of judges narrowing down sixteen chef teams to the single American representative to the Bocuse d’Or in Paris next year. But really, he said, he’d come to serve mini-BLTs with truffle, frozen foie gras, and cones filled with crème fraîche and topped with raw salmon that night simply because he loves his car (and, well, we’re sure he got some sort of compensation).

The second car the chef ever bought, in 1977, was a 1978 BMW 320i. He restored it three years ago and says “it stays in the garage.” His “everyday car” is a BMW five-series station wagon. Sadly, he has never gone drag racing on the West Side Highway, and as a Californian, doesn’t want to weigh in on Mayor Bloomberg’s proposed salt regulation. But he did say that Per Se chef de cuisine, Jonathan Benno, left the building on Friday to start work on his new Lincoln Center restaurant with the Patina Restaurant Group. His replacement is Eli Kaimeh, formerly an executive sous-chef, and Keller seemed completely calm about the change: “Eli has been there since day one. Jonathan has been grooming Eli for the last eighteen months.” Any changes expected? “No, it’s going to be the same exquisite food we’ve always done.”

Read more posts by Jada Yuan

Filed Under: personalities, bmw, eli kaimeh, jeff koons, jonathan benno, per se, thomas keller

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Hill Country has issued a Man Vs. Food–style challenge. Consume the following $65 worth of items in under an hour (no bathroom breaks), and you’ll get them for free: half-pound moist brisket, half-pound lean brisket, half-pound beef shoulder, half-pound prime rib, one small hot side, one small cold side, 32-ounce soft drink.

[Feed Your Face [PDF] [Hill Country via Gothamist]

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: freebies, all-you-can-eat, barbecue, challenges, hill country, man v. food

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Hill Country has issued a Man Vs. Food–style challenge. Consume the following $65 worth of items in under an hour (no bathroom breaks), and you’ll get them for free: half-pound moist brisket, half-pound lean brisket, half-pound beef shoulder, half-pound prime rib, one small hot side, one small cold side, 32-ounce soft drink.

[Feed Your Face [PDF] [Hill Country via Gothamist]

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: freebies, all-you-can-eat, barbecue, challenges, hill country, man v. food

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If you’re too busy putting war paint on to make Joaquin Baca’s Seven-Layer Dip for your Super Bowl party, know that his alma mater, Momofuku, is offering the bo ssam to go again this year, and it’s far from your only option. Till February 5, Bark Hot Dogs is offering catering for 10 and 25 people, priced at $175 and $420 and containing suitable quantities of hot dogs, wings (half buffalo-style and the other half in a bacon-and-sweet-chili sauce), crispy pork nuggets (miniature versions of their crispy pork sandwich), and growlers of beer. Check out our roundup of other takeout options (as well as some bar parties, if you aren’t the stay-at-home type), straight ahead. Included is Resto’s large-format feast, which (as you can see in the video here) was just featured in “The Best Thing I Ever Ate.”

Sunday Funday

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: now delivering, catering, super bowl

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If you’re too busy putting war paint on to make Joaquin Baca’s Seven-Layer Dip for your Super Bowl party, know that his alma mater, Momofuku, is offering the bo ssam to go again this year, and it’s far from your only option. Till February 5, Bark Hot Dogs is offering catering for 10 and 25 people, priced at $175 and $420 and containing suitable quantities of hot dogs, wings (half buffalo-style and the other half in a bacon-and-sweet-chili sauce), crispy pork nuggets (miniature versions of their crispy pork sandwich), and growlers of beer. Check out our roundup of other takeout options (as well as some bar parties, if you aren’t the stay-at-home type), straight ahead. Included is Resto’s large-format feast, which (as you can see in the video here) was just featured in “The Best Thing I Ever Ate.”

Sunday Funday

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: now delivering, catering, super bowl

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from Grub Street Chicago

Today, the UK Independent reports that Grant Achatz “has announced his latest venture is a new bar, Boom,” referring to the news that the Alinea chef is enamored with the molecular possibilities of cocktails. Except for the simple fact that, for the time being, there is no bar. And even if there were one, it most certainly isn’t called “Boom.” The whole misunderstanding is easily traced:

1. It all began with the Wall Street Journal article, where Achatz indulged in the hypothetical of opening a molecular mixology lounge (the article says he is “envisioning” a bar).

2. Eater National picked up the story, running the hypothetical as a sure thing (despite our fact-check debunkery), as follows: “However, the most intriguing parts of the article are the details of Grant Achatz’s new project: a bar. Boom.” (Emphasis theirs.)

3. Missing that “Boom” was used rhetorically (Eater likes its “boom,” having deployed it on other occasions), other blogs, including Slashfood, report “Boom” as the bar’s name.

4. Based these sources, the Independent solidifies it in print, dropping the fake bar’s name four times in the 159-word article: “[Achatz's] latest venture is a new bar, Boom.” “Achatz told the Wall Street Journal, Boom is ‘opening up new possibilities.’” “That is exactly what Achatz has planned for Boom.” “Boom will be the first molecular bar in the world.”

In conclusion: There is no such thing as Boom. If there is an Alinea bar in the works, it’s far in the distance, and it’s going to have a way better name. As Alinea managing partner Nick Kokonas told us via email: “For the record, we will never, ever open a place called ‘Boom.’”

Earlier: Grant Achatz’s Bar is a Long Time Coming

Read more posts by Helen Rosner

Filed Under: rumors, alinea, boom, booze news, eater, grant achatz, independent, molecular mixology, nick kokonas, slashfood

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from Grub Street Chicago

Today, the UK Independent reports that Grant Achatz “has announced his latest venture is a new bar, Boom,” referring to the news that the Alinea chef is enamored with the molecular possibilities of cocktails. Except for the simple fact that, for the time being, there is no bar. And even if there were one, it most certainly isn’t called “Boom.” The whole misunderstanding is easily traced:

1. It all began with the Wall Street Journal article, where Achatz indulged in the hypothetical of opening a molecular mixology lounge (the article says he is “envisioning” a bar).

2. Eater National picked up the story, running the hypothetical as a sure thing (despite our fact-check debunkery), as follows: “However, the most intriguing parts of the article are the details of Grant Achatz’s new project: a bar. Boom.” (Emphasis theirs.)

3. Missing that “Boom” was used rhetorically (Eater likes its “boom,” having deployed it on other occasions), other blogs, including Slashfood, report “Boom” as the bar’s name.

4. Based these sources, the Independent solidifies it in print, dropping the fake bar’s name four times in the 159-word article: “[Achatz's] latest venture is a new bar, Boom.” “Achatz told the Wall Street Journal, Boom is ‘opening up new possibilities.’” “That is exactly what Achatz has planned for Boom.” “Boom will be the first molecular bar in the world.”

In conclusion: There is no such thing as Boom. If there is an Alinea bar in the works, it’s far in the distance, and it’s going to have a way better name. As Alinea managing partner Nick Kokonas told us via email: “For the record, we will never, ever open a place called ‘Boom.’”

Earlier: Grant Achatz’s Bar is a Long Time Coming

Read more posts by Helen Rosner

Filed Under: rumors, alinea, boom, booze news, eater, grant achatz, independent, molecular mixology, nick kokonas, slashfood

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It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they could squeeze in a couple for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Platt’s Best New Restaurants.

Minetta Tavern (Menu)
212-475-3850
Two for eight? No
Best available: 11 p.m.

Aldea (Menu)
212-675-7223
Two for eight? No
Best available: Fully booked

Maialino (Menu)
212-777-2410
Two for eight? No
Best available: Fully booked

SHO Shaun Hergatt (Menu)
212-809-3993
Two for eight? Yes

A Voce Columbus (Menu)
212-823-2523
Two for eight? No
Best available: 9:15 p.m.

Seasonal Restaurant & Weinbar (Menu)
212-957-5550
Two for eight? No
Best available: 9:15 p.m.

Marea (Menu)
212-582-5100
Two for eight? No
Best available: 9:45 p.m.

Filed Under: two for eight, A Voce Columbus, Aldea, Maialino, Marea, Minetta Tavern, Seasonal Restaurant & Weinbar, SHO Shaun Hergatt

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It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they could squeeze in a couple for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Platt’s Best New Restaurants.

Minetta Tavern (Menu)
212-475-3850
Two for eight? No
Best available: 11 p.m.

Aldea (Menu)
212-675-7223
Two for eight? No
Best available: Fully booked

Maialino (Menu)
212-777-2410
Two for eight? No
Best available: Fully booked

SHO Shaun Hergatt (Menu)
212-809-3993
Two for eight? Yes

A Voce Columbus (Menu)
212-823-2523
Two for eight? No
Best available: 9:15 p.m.

Seasonal Restaurant & Weinbar (Menu)
212-957-5550
Two for eight? No
Best available: 9:15 p.m.

Marea (Menu)
212-582-5100
Two for eight? No
Best available: 9:45 p.m.

Filed Under: two for eight, A Voce Columbus, Aldea, Maialino, Marea, Minetta Tavern, Seasonal Restaurant & Weinbar, SHO Shaun Hergatt

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No restaurant has quite encapsulated the general Upper East Side vibe for me like Park Avenue Winter, executive chef…

Park Avenue… (Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn)

100 E 63rd St, New York

(212) 644-1900

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Finally, some good news coming out of the troubled Ray’s Candy Store: Ray has paid his January rent and may just be able to pay his February rent, too, thanks to a “Day of Ray” fund-raiser. [Neither More Nor Less]

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: endangered, east village, ray’s candy store

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