Headliner
Anto
The townhouse space that was, for decades, Lidia Bastianich’s Felidia is now this high-end expression of Korean food, from Tony Park, the Korean-Italian entrepreneur behind Paris Baguette and Essen, in New York. Butcher restaurants at Majang Meat Market in Seoul are an inspiration. Steak cuts can be prime and Wagyu, domestic and imported with different aging methods. A seven-course menu for $110, plus optional additions, showcases techniques for seafood, vegetables, noodles and sweets. “The food is grounded in tradition, using Korean ingredients without Western presentation,” said Joshua Copeland, the manager. It’s all meant for sharing, and tables are equipped with grills operated by servers. The chef, Imsub Lee, 37, a native of Seoul, who worked in New York for the past 15 years, will run the kitchen. It’s visible through a window on the ground floor, and will serve diners at 60 seats in several brown, wood paneled dining areas on two floors. He will take center stage at the 10-seat chef’s counter later this year, when it opens. Mr. Copeland said there would be an extensive wine list assembled by the wine director, Joo Lee. “The previous owners left us a lot of storage space to fill,” he said. (Opens March 22)
243 East 58th Street, 212-970-8888, anto.com.
Opening
Stretch Pizza
Started as a pop-up from Breads Bakery, near Union Square, in 2021, this collaboration between Gadi Peleg, the owner of Breads, and the chef Wylie Dufresne, now has a home of its own. It will serve 12-inch pizzas, including classics and inventions like the ploughman with ham, smoked Cheddar and horseradish, and the couch potato, featuring fingerlings with sour cream and bacon. Small plates like salads and chickpea fries, and soft serve for dessert, round out the menu. (Friday)
331 Park Avenue South (24th Street), 212-301-7751, stretchpizzanyc.com.
Mesiba, Bar Bedford
The restaurant scene in Tel Aviv is the inspiration for Mesiba from Bar Lab Hospitality, run by Elad Zvi, an Israeli native, and Gabe Orta. The chef, Eli Buli, also from Israel, offers modernized Levantine fare, like Yemeni pancakes with pickles and tahini, seasonal whole fish with carrot zhoug, and vegetarian kreplach dumplings with a shaved fennel salad. Aviram Turgeman, an expert on Israeli wines, has assembled the wine list. The greenery-bedecked, high-ceilinged room in the Moxy Williamsburg, a new hotel in Brooklyn, is centered on a curved marble bar. This is Bar Lab’s first New York restaurant. The company has also installed Bar Bedford, in the hotel lobby, where small bites by Mr. Buli are served with cocktails like the New York Sour with wine foam. The back bar’s selection of spirits is movable, for easy access by the bartenders. (Wednesday)
353 Bedford Avenue (South 4th Street), Williamsburg, Brooklyn, mesibabk.com, barbedford.com.
Pierre Loti Mediterranean Kitchen & Bar
A space serving 20-plus Mediterranean and Middle Eastern hot and cold mezze, along with more substantial choices like whole roasted fish, grilled lamb and veal chops, has been installed adjacent to the Pierre Loti wine bar on Irving Place. Wines skew Lebanese, Greek and Turkish, and seating is flexible: bar, high tops and tables indoors and out. (Wednesday)
55 Irving Place (18th Street), 212-777-5684, pierrelotimezze.com.
