After stints at China Grill and Lucky Cheng’s, Chris Genoversa opened the pan-Asian neighborhood joint O.G. in 1993. He fondly remembers that pre-retro-speakeasy age when East Villagers had less disposable income and more culinary curiosity. “Now,” he says, “all they want is sliders.” After a fifteen-year run, Genoversa, who also experimented with French-Indian fusion at Raga before it became Death & Co., split with his chef-partner and finally closed O.G. in 2008, and has spent the interim leisurely renovating the small spot: replacing kitchen equipment, ripping out beams and floors, and contemplating what New Yorkers are hungry for in 2010. His conclusion, debuting this Wednesday, is 6th St. Kitchen — “very homespun, very simple,” with multi-culti comfort food, beer and wine, and, eventually, all-day service.

Genoversa will launch dinner first, and although the menu has yet to be finalized, he’s considering crowd-pleasers like chicken-noodle soup and a three-for-$15 assortment of small plates, including baba ganoush, housemade chorizo, and two kinds of meatballs (lamb with garlic-yogurt sauce, Calabrese pork and veal). To address slider demand, there’ll most likely be a burger and fries, plus roasted chicken, a French omelette, and lasagne bolognese, and at lunch, fish tacos and a cheesesteak. Ironically, in this era of the Food Network and the celebrity chef, “Nobody I know knows how to cook anymore,” says Genoversa, “which works out well for me.”

Read more posts by Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

Filed Under: openings, 6th street kitchen, chris genoversa, east village

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Mike Malbon isn’t just the owner of Frank’s Chop Shop — he’s also the son of Mike Malbon Sr., founder of longtime Virginia Beach favorite Malbon Bros. BBQ. This Spring he’ll bring his dad’s pulled-pork sandwiches, brisket, and sauces to the big city via the Hester Street Fair. According to the fair’s Facebook page, Luke’s Lobster and An Choi have joined the previously announced vendors, but Malbon’s project may be the most exciting, if only because he tells us he wants to “let the north known what’s going on down south” (he’s convinced, you see, that “there’s no good barbecue from where I’m from up in New York”).

So what are the Malbon Bros. selling points? Well, aside from the fact that it’s located in a gas station (much like Kansas City favorite Oklahoma Joe’s), it’s one of the area’s few barbecue joints that’s more influenced by Memphis barbecue. Mike Sr. tells us his pork isn’t heavily smoked— it’s merely slow-cooked at 200 degrees for ten or twelve hours, until it’s extremely tender. Then it’s topped with either a ketchup-based, Memphis-style sauce (named Billy’s, after Malbon Sr.’s dad) or a vinegar-based, Carolina-style sauce (named Tilly’s, after his mom). To make sure he does his pop proud, Mike Jr. is importing his cousin (who does a good deal of the cooking at the restaurant) to man the cooker, and if everything goes well, he might just consider opening a restaurant here, or at least distributing the sauces locally.

Finger lickin’ starts April 24.

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: openings, barbecue, frank’s chop shop, malbon bros. bbq, mike malbon, virginia beach

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Rarely do I venture further East than 1st Avenue, due to my own West-side-skewed view of Manhattan, yet when imbued…

Lavagna

545 E 5th St, New York

(212) 979-1005

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from Grub Street Los Angeles

Campanaro

Chef Joey Campanaro, co-owner of New York’s Market Table and Little Owl, is heading to Los Angeles, Eater L.A. confirms. Campanaro highlights seasonal cooking and sustainable seafood, making him a natural fit for our shores, and he is apparently cousins with the owner of Salute wine bar in Santa Monica, the same location for his upcoming project, Eater surmises. Currently the chef is working on opening the kitchen at Kenmare in Manhattan’s Nolita neighborhood, but we’ll let you know if and when we see him coming Cali’s way.

Joey Campanaro IS Headed to L.A.! [Eater]

Read more posts by Hadley Tomicki

Filed Under: chef imports, joey campanaro, kenmare, little owl, market table, new york, salute, santa monica

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Bedford-Stuyvesant: The neighborhood Farm Share is looking for applications for the 2010 season. [Bed-StuyBlog]

Financial District: South Street Seaport bar LEI is hosting a free Michael Collins tasting tonight from 7 to 9 p.m; RSVP here. [Feed/TONY]

Flatiron: This Thursday, i Trulli hosts a five-course dinner to fête St. Joseph’s Day, reviving a Medieval tradition where Sicilians held a massive feast to celebrate the end of a particularly hellish drought. The feast starts at 7:30 p.m., costs $75 a head, and is meatless in observance of Lent. Call for reservations. [Grub Street]

Midtown: The Riese Organization hands out 10,000 cups of Tim Horton’s coffee at Grand Central (42nd and Vanderbilt) and Penn Station (34th and Seventh Avenue) today and tomorrow from 7:30 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 5:30 p.m. [Grub Street]

Park Slope: New intel on the Thistle Hill Tavern, whose chef we’d previously heard about: NOFX band member “Fat Mike” is among the owners! [FiPS]

Prospect Heights: A new French-Caribbean restaurant named Kaz An Nou has opened. [Fork in the Road/VV]

Upper West Side: David Ruggiero’s long-delayed Bomboloni finally opens, serving Italian filled donuts, paninis, coffee, soup, and gelati. [Diner's Journal/NYT]

West Village: Big River, an ecofoodie flick tracking big corn’s damage from Iowa to the Mississippi, premieres tonight at the Brecht Forum from 6 to 8:30 p.m. The filmmakers, as well as some environmentally minded Hudson Valley farmers, will hold a panel following the 7 p.m. screening. [Grub Street]

Read more posts by Evan Mulvihill

Filed Under: bedford-stuyvesant, bomboloni, csa, financial district, flatiron, i trulli, kaz an nou, kyochon, lei, mIdtown west, Neighborhood Watch, park slope, thistle hill tavern, tim horton’s

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The brand of tea that Lady Gaga turned to when she wanted to kick ciggies has signed a lease at 1037 Third Avenue near 62nd Street, according to brokers Faith Hope Consolo and Joseph Aquino of Prudential Douglas Elliman’s Retail Group. Despite having grossed $11 million in revenue last year, Kusmi (which grew out of a Russian company founded in 1867 and is now based in Paris) didn’t have a New York flagship till now (though its Russian, Chinese, and Japanese blends have been available at Zabar’s and Dean & Deluca). Time to dust off the samovar.

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: openings, kusmi tea, upper east side

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As if the Village Tart hadn’t tarted Nolita up enough, French café Tartinery has moved in a block away. We snapped this shot of the funky exterior earlier today; though its website, as well as a note on the window, claims it has soft-opened for lunch, there was no one manning it this afternoon. For a look inside and a little bit of background, then, we turn to today’s edition of UrbanDaddy.

Built by three French friends who noted a serious lack of authentic Parisian tartines (a sort of open-face sandwich served on razor-thin slices of French bread) in New York, Tartinery has all the ingredients for a Parisian evening of enchantment — charming, sharable French food, Serge Gainsbourg on the radio and a live tree in the middle of the dining room.

The sourdough tartines are made with bread flown in from Poilâne, a Parisian bakery. See the menu and interior shots over at the ‘dad.

From Paris With Love [UrbanDaddy]

Tarinery, 209 Mulberry St., nr. Spring St.; 212-300-5838

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Filed Under: openings, french, nolita, tartinery, tartines, village tart

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If you were planning on tapas tonight, you might want to hit El Quinto Pino instead of nearby Tía Pol. According to a sign on the door and a phone message, the latter is closed “due to repairs” and plans to reopen tomorrow.

Read more posts by Daniel Maurer

Filed Under: temporary closings, chelsea, el quinto pino, spanish, tapas, tia pol

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Keith McNally isn’t the only Beard-nominated restaurateur who just opened a place. Jean-Georges Vongerichten quietly opened his much-anticipated farm-to-table restaurant ABC Kitchen last week. As Vongo mentions in a blog post, ABC Home and Carpet’s Paulette Cole gave the spot a farmhouse vibe via “local, artisan indigenous, handmade & reclaimed offerings.” The coasters are made from cardboard from shipping boxes, dishes were purchased on eBay, and front-of-house uniforms were scored from thrift stores. And it doesn’t stop there: A “menu of standards / our commitments” posted on the restaurant’s site reveals that the bread baskets are handcrafted by the indigenous Mapuche people of Patagonia and the soy-basted candles are free of pesticides, GMOs, and additives.

As for the kitchen, the mantra is “market-driven dishes made with the freshest organic and local ingredients possible.” To that end, chef Dan Kluger (previously of Tabla and Gramercy Tavern) will prepare a daily changing menu using cruelty-free organic meat from local small farms, complemented by fair-trade coffees, teas, and organic wines. True to rumors of artisanal pizza, Vongerichten’s partner in Co., Jim Lahey, will be offering a monthly pie, the first of which is clam with mint, parsley, and chilies. Check out the menus below, and see several of the dishes in our slideshow.

ABC Kitchen Main Menu
ABC Kitchen Dessert Menu
ABC Kitchen Cocktail Menu
ABC Kitchen Wine List

ABC Kitchen, 35 E. 18th St., near Broadway; 212-475-5829

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Filed Under: openings, abc kitchen, jean-georges vongerichten, phil suarez, slideshow

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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: TV Chefs.

Babbo (Menu)
212-777-0303
Two for eight? No
Best available: 8:30 p.m.

Becco (Menu)
212-397-7597
Two for eight? Yes

Butter (Menu)
212-253-2828
Two for eight? Yes

Daniel (Menu)
212-288-0033
Two for eight? Yes

Felidia (Menu)
212-758-1479
Two for eight? Yes

Jean Georges (Menu)
212-299-3900
Two for eight? Yes

Le Bernardin (Menu)
212-554-1515
Two for eight? No
Best available: 10 p.m.

Mesa Grill (Menu)
212-807-7400
Two for eight? No
Best available: 8:15 p.m.

Morimoto (Menu)
212-989-8883
Two for eight? Yes

wd~50 (Menu)
212-477-2900
Two for eight? No
Best available: Fully booked

Filed Under: two for eight, babbo, becco, butter, daniel, felidia, jean georges, le bernardin, mesa grill, morimoto, wd~50

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We had already seen the Pulino’s menu, but until now we hadn’t seen the restaurant in action. Well, it finally opened today. Take a look at the interior shots (taken before all hell broke loose this very morning) and you’ll agree that even without the McNally crowd, the place is gorgeous. Like a beefed-up Schiller’s? Absolutely, but other than some hater who compares it to an “upscale Olive Garden,” who’s complaining? Already spotted today: the Daily Candy team (per Eater), the Eater team (per Guest of a Guest), and Adam Kuban of Slice (per us). Plus the usual fashion types. Completely muffled by the dining din: Exile on Main St.

One design note that isn’t borrowed from McNally’s previous restaurants: a police-line theme (“Don’t Cross the Line” is stamped on the paper menus and, as you can see in our slideshow, at least one table is made from what looks like wooden police barricades). A cheeky nod to the obsessive plywood blogging? Who knows. Anyway, take a look, and reacquaint yourself with the menu. Again, lunch and breakfast only for now.

Update: Guest of A Guest and Food in Mouth have more snap judgments.

Pulino’s, 282 Bowery, at East Houston Street; 212-226-1966

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Filed Under: slideshow, openings, pulino’s

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from Grub Street Boston

Mixology classes are gaining in popularity in Boston, but a lesson at The Boston Shaker to No. 9 Park is a cheap night out compared to the costs incurred at culinary school.

One consequence of the recession is an uptick in enrollment at for-profit trade schools. Le Cordon Bleu schools had almost a third more students at the end of 2009 than they did in 2008. The tuition is about $41,000 for the entire program, and the school’s own job-placement results indicate that many graduates earn about $10 an hour. Former students of Portland’s Le Cordon Bleu program, known as Western Culinary Institute, are suing the school for fraud. Stick with studying the hard shake.

What’ll It Be? For Many, It’s Learning Mixology Tricks [Boston Herald]
In Hard Times, Lured Into Trade School and Debt [New York Times]

Read more posts by Leila Cohan

Filed Under: foodienomics, culinary school, mixology, no 9 park, stir, the boston shaker

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