Bruni Closes the Book on Tailor; Allen & Delancey Gets Good, Not Great, NoticesBruni waited to be the last one to pronounce on Tailor, and his review pretty much recapitulates, albeit in wittier prose and with some much-appreciated Grub Street love, what everyone else has said: erratic brilliance, wee portions, and a killer cocktail program. The result: one star. [NYT]
Allen & Delancey keeps impressing the critics, at least with chef Neil Ferguson’s meat mastery. His fish, though, is strictly from hunger, according to Restaurant Girl. [NYDN]
Randall Lane offers one of his most thoughtful and precise reviews of Allen & Delancey, finding fault only in flavor balances and the fact that the place has to close up at midnight. [TONY]
Foodievents
Pastry Royalty Performs at SweetThe city’s top dessert chefs, from Johnny Iuzzini on down, delighted deep-pocketed foodies with their signature confections at Sweet on Friday night. Evian and Ferro Rocher flexed their marketing muscle, dispatching well-formed young people in tight clothes to represent their not especially sexy brands. The pastry aristocracy (Goldfarb, Iuzzini, and Stupak) were all present and accounted for, standing proudly behind space-age-looking creations that tasted even better than they looked. (Only Sam Mason wasn’t around, as someone had to man the stoves at Tailor.) At first we were sort of alarmed: There were obviously many more guests than had originally been intended, for the long, narrow, space, but since cake isn’t combustible, it all seemed safe enough. A body can only take so much chocolate ganache, Champagne, and high-powered pastry cooks crammed into one hall.
Mediavore
Chodorow’s Got Big, Big Plans; Aaron Sanchez Has an EnemyJeffrey Chodorow is devising a new megarestaurant for a 15,000-square-foot double-decker space in the Empire Hotel at Broadway and 63rd Street. In other news, Frank Bruni has already given it zero stars. [NYP]
Our pal Aaron Sanchez barely avoided being cut on the Next Iron Chef since according to Bourdain, Alton “Knowlton seems not to have disclosed a prior schoolyard incident with a young Aaron ‘El Guapo’ Sanchez — in which Sanchez (it would appear) bullied him mercilessly. He seemed unnaturally eager to send him packing.” [Ruhlman]
Williamsburg’s Hasidic community has its own street-food truck, but you too can buy the kosher grub. [Eat for Victory/VV]
User’s Guide
Grub’s Gold: The Best From Year One
Ah, how time gets away from us! It was only one year ago that Grub Street began. How we long for those innocent days of yore! We poked through our archives, and, while we had to put a few personal favorites aside, here’s our short list of Grub Street’s Greatest Hits.
The Launch
A Trip to Tailor, Camera in Hand
Having documented nearly every stage of Tailor’s much-delayed development, we couldn’t very well pass up experiencing its promised joys. We attended last night’s soft opening, camera in one hand and Eben Freeman cocktail in the other. The official opening is tonight and more photos are after the jump.
The Launch
Sam Mason’s Tailor Revealed to the WorldIsn’t that just the way? Just weeks after we finally give up on Sam Mason, and then go on to have a little sport with him by way of his anonymously blogging portraitist, down comes the plywood on Tailor, with all systems apparently go for an August 30 opening. So reports one of Eater’s anonymous tipsters. But who are we to argue with their own eyes?
BREAKING Plywood Alert: Sam Mason’s Tailor Revealed [Eater]
Related: What to Read While You Wait for Tailor to Open — Sam Mason: The Novel
Farewell, Sam Mason. Hello, Tailor
NewsFeed
What to Read While You Wait for Tailor to Open — Sam Mason: The Novel
If you miss following Sam Mason’s quixotic adventures now that the Launch is kaput, fear not — an anonymous blog Sympathy for the Restaurant Industry is offering “meta-fictional restaurant drama set in present day New York City, served in a convenient serial” and the first story details, in rather purple prose, the agonies of Sean Kasen (sounds kind of like Sam Mason if you mumble it, no?), a young, media-plagued chef opening his first restaurant who is up against “the punishment that comes when you attempt to create something perfect but fail” and also the fact that “being handsome and very talented when you are a chef is a burden.” Oh, the humanity!
Mediavore
Sam Mason Needs More Money; Hawaiian Tropic Zone Looking for Studly Men WithIn an effort to change its image as an “upscale Hooters,” Hawaiian Tropic Zone is hiring a beefy male staff “with personality.” [NYDN]
Does Sam Mason need a new financial backer to open Tailor? Those delays cost major cash. [Down by the Hipster]
China has formed a cabinet-level committee to monitor food safety but still calls the national coverage of tainted exports “viciously sensationalized.” [NYT]
Neighborhood Watch
Prepare to Pose With Dumplings in the East VillageEast Village: Pose with your favorite dumpling! The Rickshaw Dumpling Bar opening on East 8th Street will feature a black-and-white photo booth. [Eat for Victory/VV]
Hell’s Kitchen: Burgers and Cupcakes has opened Mitchel London Pizza next door. [Eater]
Lower East Side: Sam Mason may have plans to serve brown-butter whiskey at Tailor. [Down by the Hipster]
Soho: Yes, that is a yo-yo in the pocket of Balthazar executive chef Riad Nasr, and he plays with it between platings. [Downtown Express]
West Village: Pinkberry accused of seeking world domination for plans to open not just a new location on Sixth Avenue, but two others in the city in addition its four already thriving stores. [Gothamist]
NewsFeed
Room 4 Dessert Is Dead, Long Live Room 4 Dessert
In what might be the least surprising news of the summer, Will Goldfarb has told Grub Street that Room 4 Dessert, at least in its current location, is kaput. (The place has been closed for months, but Goldfarb has been promising it would reopen.) “We’re officially pulling the plug on 17 Cleveland Place,” the cake whiz tells us. “But we’re going to reopen, bigger and better, six months from today.” Goldfarb, theatrical as ever, refuses to disclose the location of the new place, except to say that it’s downtown “in another high-profile restaurant row.”
The Launch
Farewell, Sam Mason. Hello, Tailor
It’s time we finally admitted it: Our winding journey with Sam Mason has come to an end. Construction crews told a Grub Street staffer that the Tailor people plan for an August 6 opening. There might be some truth to this: The date’s not all that far off from the official “mid-August” projection we were recently given, and frankly, we’d sooner believe the laborers than publicists nervous over a massively hyped opening day. And so, we present this album of the magical moments we shared with Mason as he chased the dream of Tailor. If nothing else, we’ll have the memories.
Earlier: Sam Mason Has Maybe a Month or So to Visit Fire Island
The Launch
The Launch
Sam Mason Has Maybe a Month or So to Visit Fire IslandWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason Parties Like Rock Star, Gets MetaWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason Really Needed Those Fourteen SakesWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason Knows an A-hole When He Meets OneWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason Doesn’t Find Wine Intoxicating
Welcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
Mediavore
Alain Ducasse Hates Molecular Gastronomy; BLT Market Pushed Back to AugustAlain Ducasse speaks out on his restaurants, his rivalry with Joël Robuchon, and the challenge of running a global empire. But his most pointed remarks are about molecular gastronomy: “I prefer to be able to identify what I’m eating.” [Bloomberg]
BLT Market, Laurent Tourondel’s entry into the Haute Barnyard sweepstakes, has been pushed back to August. [RG]
“Hipster chef” Sam Mason’s new Internet TV show gets love in the Daily News, which swooningly describes him as “witty, goateed and extremely good-looking.” But you already knew that. [NYDN]
Related: The Launch
The Launch
Sam Mason Ogles Waitresses, Buys TilesWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
Click and Save
Rock-Star Recipes!You may recall that restaurant-launching chef Sam Mason stars in an Internet show called Dinner With the Band, where he teaches tricks of the trade to participating musicians. Intrigued by this concept, we wondered what other rockers eat. How handy are they in the kitchen — or in the parking lot, as the case may be — without the help of a professional? Kara Zuaro, editor of the Brooklyn Record, has the answers in her new book, I Like Food, Food Tastes Good: In the Kitchen With Your Favorite Bands, a collection of recipes she gathered from musicians at festivals, bars, and friends’ homes. There’s wild-boar ragù from the Violet Femmes, semi-raw everyday pasta from Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, buttermilk pie from Okkervil River, and much, much more. After the jump, Grub Street provides a taste of a few New York favorites.
Neighborhood Watch
Sam Mason Is Hiring in SohoChelsea: Taste from over 400 wines plus eats from Alfama and Tintol at Vini Portugal, tonight at Pier 60’s Lighthouse. [Slow Food USA]
Columbus Circle: Bouchon Bakery to beef up its menu starting tomorrow with the addition of Waygu sliders. [A Hamburger Today]
Park Slope: Whole Foods marks its toxic territory. [The Gowanus Lounge]
Soho: Sam Mason is hiring [Eat for Victory/VV]
Tribeca: Mai House will launch a late-night menu of dishes under $10 served after 10 p.m. starting April 25. [Myriad Restaurant Group] Tonight, Centrico is closed for a private party. [Grub Street]
Mediavore
New York Is Tops; More Sam MasonNew York named the nation’s top restaurant city, based on total restaurants, number of internationally known fine-dining places, “a wide segment of second-tier restaurants,” and more. [MSNBC]
The shuttered Tonic holds a press conference at the steps of City Hall to demand the protection of cultural venues. [Gothamist]
Ed Levine goes inside Esca as they await yesterday’s Times review. [Serious Eats]
The Launch
Sam Mason Gets His Own Special IslandWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
In the Magazine
Chefs Try to Take It to the Next Level in This Week’s Issue
Five established chefs take center stage in this week’s issue – or six, if you count Kurt Gutenbrunner, who, per In Season, has a way with white asparagus. The others? Michael Anthony, the Blue Hill Haute Barnyard prodigy who stepped into Tom Colicchio’s shoes at Gramercy Tavern; Christopher Lee, a major rising talent who filled big shoes at Gilt; Kerry Simon, a Las Vegas–based Vongerichten lieutenant who is now doing the food for a giant karaoke bar; and finally Marco Canora and Asian dessert master Pichet Ong, whose long-awaited debuts, Insieme and P*Ong, respectively, open this week. All this star power, along with two short lists that couldn’t be more different, awaits in this week’s magazine.
The Launch
Sam Mason Joins a Molecular Secret SocietyWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
Back of the House
More About That Hunky Sam MasonWe’re not the only ones following Sam Mason’s path to power at Tailor: The April issue of Food Arts has an excellent article on the cocktail program at the restaurant-lounge. (It’s not online, but we’ve scored a PDF.) Given that Mason’s mixologist, Eben Freeman, made his bones alongside the chef at the cutting-edge wd-50, it’s no surprise that the drinks are wild sounding. The magazine gives descriptions and recipes for four of them, including a Lychee Daiquiri With Soy Caramel, a Butternut and Falernum cocktail (“a bit like butternut squash soup –with a kick”), and a Brandy Truffle Flip. With drinks that rich, who’s going to be hungry enough to eat?
Tailor Made [Food Arts]
Related: The Launch
The Launch
Sam Mason on the Sexiness of Japanese SteelWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason Needs Fifteen Women in Stilettos to Complete ConstructionWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason Puts Together His Crew, Decides How He Likes Them ApplesWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason: The Electrician Will Totally Be Done in Ten DaysWelcome to the latest installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Don’t Think Sam Mason Doesn’t Know How Waiters Treat Their UniformsWelcome to the latest weekly installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the swanky restaurant and lounge coming together at 525 Broome Street.
The Launch
Sam Mason on Exorbitant Expenses and Why They Call It Spring StreetWelcome to the latest weekly installment of the Launch, where Sam Mason, former pastry chef at wd-50, relates the ups and downs of preparing to open Tailor, the restaurant and lounge coming together on the corner of Broome and Spring Streets.
Back of the House
Inside the Troubled Russian Tea Room; Meyer and Others on Media ScrutinyThe fullest account yet of the debacle that is the new Russian Tea Room. Gary Robins comes out looking far more sinned against than sinning, and the owner comes out looking like a jerk. [NYP]
A blue-ribbon panel including Mario Batali, Bill Telepan, and Danny Meyer study the question of whether it’s possible to open a restaurant under the radar. The near unanimous answer is no. Will Goldfarb suggests one way: “Do it in Queens.” [Snack]
Pichet Ong formerly of Spice Market is the first of the hot pastry chefs to open his own restaurant, the eponymous P*ong. Rivals Sam Mason and Jehangir Mehta (formerly of Aix) are close behind. [NYS]
Related: The Launch [Grub Street]
Back of the House
The Nitty-Gritty on Opening a RestaurantSo you’ve been thinking about opening a restaurant. (Just play along, okay?) If you’ve already read this cautionary Slate piece by Daily Intel writer Michael Idov and are still looking to get into the game, you’d better have a look at “The Fundamentals of Running a Restaurant,” a Forbes “Special Report.” What follows is our handy breakdown of a few issues put forth by the article. (For an inside look at an imminent opening, read the Launch, our series detailing the process of Sam Mason opening Tailor.)
The Launch
Sam Mason and the Fabulous Egg MachineSam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be launching his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the beginning of March. In the weeks leading up to then, he’ll take us behind the scenes of a hot restaurant opening.
The Launch
Sam Mason: “It’s Like the Special Olympics”Sam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be launching his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the beginning of March. In the weeks leading up to then, he’ll take us behind the scenes of a hot restaurant opening.
The Launch
Sam Mason Gets Some Important Advice and Thinks About SoundproofingSam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be launching his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the beginning of March. In the weeks leading up to that, he’ll take us behind the scenes of a hot restaurant opening.
The Launch
Sam Mason’s Plans on How to, You Know, Make MoneySam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be launching his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the beginning of March. In the weeks leading up to this, he’ll take us behind the scenes of a hot restaurant opening.
The Launch
Sam Mason Devises Oddball Combos of Sweet and SavorySam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be launching his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the beginning of March. In the weeks leading up to that, he’ll take us behind the scenes of a hot restaurant opening.
The Launch
Sam Mason Reckons With GarbageSam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be launching his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the beginning of March. In the weeks leading up to then, he’ll take us behind the scenes of a hot restaurant opening.
What to Eat Tonight
Wacky Desserts by the Pastry All-StarsPastry chefs like Sam Mason (the man who’s sharing the experience of opening a new restaurant with us) are often on the cutting edge of New York cooking these days. The three chefs whose desserts we’re highlighting today all have major reputations. So if you go to wd-50 or Chanterelle tonight, make sure you leave some room. (Presumably that won’t be a problem at Room 4 Dessert.)
The Launch
Sam Mason on the Exhilarating Highs and Dastardly Lows of Opening a RestaurantSam Mason, the former star pastry chef at wd-50, will be opening his own restaurant and lounge, Tailor, at the end of February or beginning of March. As part of an ongoing series, Sam will write us period missives about what it’s like to be a young chef about to open up his own restaurant for the first time.
Back of the House
Lick Your Lips for Headcheese and Foie Gras CupcakesKFC may lose trans fats, giving health nuts a reason to rejoice. But then there are new cupcakes made with duck fat …
• Boulud brings headcheese to Lincoln Center. [Snack]
• Sam Mason brings foie gras cupcakes to Soho. [Snack]
• The West End turns into a Havana Central; Kerouac turns over in his grave. [Eater]
• Bruni on Michelin. [NYT]
• Another Luger chef defects. [TONY]
• Colonel’s secret recipe to lose trans fats? [NYS]