Headliner
Asset
Stretches of pale wood, often slatted, soften the industrial look of black steel at this handsome Upper West Side newcomer. Larry Bellone and Will Tracy, the owners of Tessa, on Amsterdam Avenue, have opened this sibling (the name is Tessa spelled backward) about a block away. As longtime residents of the neighborhood, they remember when the space housed Memphis, a 1970s celebrity magnet. This new restaurant has a long stretch of bar with 24 seats, banquettes for two and intimate areas, with tables, that can double as private dining rooms. Upstairs is a big dining room and bar. The executive chef, John Schafer, has created a menu that’s more American and somewhat meatier than the one he offers at Tessa, which skews Mediterranean. Pigs in a blanket, roasted bone marrow, clams in white wine, and a grain bowl are some of the appetizers. There are a few pastas, and main dishes include Berkshire pork tenderloin, king salmon with corn pudding, sea scallops with whipped celery root and asparagus, and a burger. Some meat and seafood selections can be ordered grilled simply. “Lots of our customers want no sauces and no vegetables, so we decided to serve some items like that,” Mr. Bellone said.
329 Columbus Avenue (75th Street), 212-517-1987, assetrestaurant.com.
Opening
The Riddler
This elegant branch of a San Francisco Champagne bar, done in black and white with vintage touches, offers more than 150 Champagnes and sparkling wines and many Burgundies, alongside snacks like Tater Tot waffles, figs in a blanket and an array of raw-bar selections. (Opens Thursday)
51 Bank Street (West Fourth Street), 212-741-5136, theriddlerbar.com.
Black Seed Appetizing
The required smoked seafood, spreads and salads are ready to accompany the bagels at this new offshoot of Black Seed Bagels. Salmon cured seven ways, whitefish, sablefish, herring and flavored cream cheese are some of the offerings. (Thursday)
Chelsea Local, Chelsea Market, 75 Ninth Avenue (15th Street), 646-915-1500, blackseedbagels.com.
Gnoccheria Wall Street
This is a spacious financial district branch of the East Village Italian restaurant that specializes in several kinds of gnocchi with 11 different sauce options.
100 Broad Street (Bridge Street), 212-422-4102, gnoccheriawallstreet.com.
Yin Ji Chang Fen
With two outlets in California and one in Toronto, this Cantonese rice noodle roll chain has added a branch in New York. The company is based in Guangzhou, China, where it has several dozen restaurants, all serving handmade rice noodle rolls. Called cheong fun, they’re thin sheets of dough filled with ingredients like barbecued pork, pork kidney, beef, shrimp and chives. Customers have been lining up to secure tables in a modern room, where congee and snacks like deep-fried fish skin and sweet crullers are also served.
91 Bayard Street (Mulberry Street), 212-227-4888, yinjichangfenusa.com.
Chefs on the Move
Youjin Jung
Ms. Jung, the new executive chef at Hortus NYC in NoMad, worked at DB Bistro & Oyster Bar in Singapore and Boulud Sud and Del Posto in New York. She is revamping the menus, adding more luxury and elegance to the restaurant’s modern Asian fare, which features Western elements.
Looking Ahead
Eric Frechon
To celebrate 20 years at Le Bristol Paris, a hotel where he is the chef of Epicure and 114 Faubourg, Mr. Frechon will have a brief residency at Chefs Club New York from Nov. 5 to 9. He will serve a dinner of caviar and potato mousseline, lobster with truffles and a celeriac “spaghetti,” Bresse chicken with crayfish and mushrooms, and a chocolate dessert. The dinner is $175, $250 with wines.
Chefs Club New York, 275 Mulberry Street (Houston Street), 212-941-1100, chefsclub.com.
Museum of Ice Cream
A permanent three-story site for this homage to ice cream, covering 25,000 square feet, will open on Dec. 14. Tickets go on sale Wednesday.
558 Broadway (Prince Street), museumoficecream.com.
Seaport Food Lab Remixed
For the third year, there are changes to this collection of chef-driven events. It will be held at R17 on the rooftop of Pier 17 in the seaport district, and will feature a different mixologist, five in total, each week. From Oct. 23 to Nov. 23, they’ll be serving drinks Wednesdays through Saturdays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., with food by the chefs Wylie Dufresne and Mark Ladner. It’s sponsored by Chase, and cardholders can book dinners that will be held on Tuesdays.
Seaport Food Lab Remixed dinners, $150 each, Pier 17 at South Street, seaport district, seaportfoodlab.com.
Awards
Dante
This venerable Greenwich Village hangout, previously called Caffé Dante, has acquired new owners and become an Italian aperitivo bar. This summer, it was named World’s Best Bar at Tales of the Cocktail, a drinks convention in New Orleans. Now, it has landed at No. 1 on the World’s 50 Best Bars 2019 list, a ranking compiled by the same organization that anoints the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Five other New York bars made the list: the NoMad, Attaboy, Katana Kitten, the Dead Rabbit and Employees Only.
