Rose MacDowell, Author of ‘Turning Tables,’ Only Cried on the JobIdentical twins Heather and Rose MacDowell waited tables for five years in Manhattan before penning their novel, Turning Tables, out next week. Rose won’t name the restaurants they worked for, offering only that she was at one of the Ark Restaurants in Manhattan (it operates the Bryant Park Grill and others), while her sister worked at a defunct Italian restaurant in the Columbus Circle area. Nevertheless, she was quite candid about the industry she says she could only cope with via on-the-job hookups and shots snuck from behind the bar.
Openings
Radegast May Soon Bring a Second Oktoberfest to Williamsburg
Difficulties securing a certificate of occupancy have delayed the opening of Radegast Hall for over a month, but owner Ivan Kohut and his partner, Andy Ivanov, tell us they’re hoping to pass a follow-up buildings inspection later today, in which case they could have Williamsburg’s first beer hall up and running sometime next week. As you can see from our gallery of interior shots, the place sure looks ready.
Openings
Soto’s Sushi, Straight Outta AtlantaWe don’t yet know what Soto’s menu has in store (they’re keeping it secret until they open), but it’s safe to say this is the biggest sushi opening to hit New York in a while — or so we gather from Rob and Robin’s story of how Sotohiro Kosugi built a national reputation from his original restaurant in an Atlanta strip mall. This week he tests the New York market for his inventive, complex food. If you don’t have the endurance for Kosugi’s fifteen-course, $80 tasting menu, ask about his omakase.
Openings: Soto, Grom, Vestry Wines [NYM]