Headliner
Doma Food and Drinks
Yu Li, who owns Tang Hotpot and the Tang on the Upper West Side, has turned the Tang in the East Village into this Korean bistro, where the chef Jackie Kim weaves traditional dishes like bibimbap and Korean fried chicken into an eclectic menu. More offbeat are kimchi arancini made with kimchi rice, ceviche in a Korean mustard vinaigrette, and bossam to wrap in steamed buns instead of lettuce. (Ms. Kim is from South Korea, and has lived in Spain, which accounts for some of the influences.) There’s also a late-night menu, served after 10 p.m., which features a platter of fried snacks with kimchi mayonnaise, and small seafood pancakes. The room, designed by Mr. Li’s partner, Minn Hur, who is also from South Korea, is done in pale tones with eye-catching pink velvet and strips of neon on the back wall. The kitchen is partly hidden by fluted glass and a window shade. A garden will open in the spring.
120 First Avenue (Seventh Street), 646-678-3092.
Opening
Paisley
After much delay and with a change of focus, this Indian restaurant is finally set to open. The chef was to be Eric McCarthy, who is from Goa and planned a menu reflecting his background, but he resigned last fall. Now, the owners have tapped Peter Beck, a veteran of many of New York’s best-known Indian restaurants, including Chola, Tamarind and Nirvana, to be the chef. The menu touches down all over India, and is served in a room that retains the wraparound bar from Dylan Prime, the previous tenant. (Opens Thursday)
429 Greenwich Street (Laight Street), 212-274-8003, paisleyrestaurantnyc.com.
Little Ways
This SoHo restaurant is from Eldridge Hospitality, which also owns the Flower Shop, a somewhat smaller spot on the Lower East Side. The chef and a partner, Michael Hamilton, who is from England and is also the chef at the Flower Shop, has assembled a contemporary all-day menu featuring deviled eggs, Spanish mackerel crudo, venison tartare, chicken schnitzel and a burger.
343 West Broadway (Grand Street), 212-991-8175, littlewaysnyc.com.
Mokyo
Kyungmin Hyun, a South Korean-born chef known as Kay, is following her Asian-style tapas restaurant, Thursday Kitchen, with this similar spot nearby. It offers a global array of small plates, like ceviche, lobster roll, beef tartare and duck fried rice. But, true to her roots, she seasons many of the dishes with Korean ingredients.
109 St. Marks Place (First Avenue), no phone, mokyony.com.
Tavola Della Nonna
What was once Compass and then Lincoln Square Steak is now old-school Italian, “grandmother’s table.” The pizzas from a new oven in the bar area, antipasti, pastas, main courses and desserts are familiar enough that you could order without looking at the menu.
208 West 70th Street, 212-875-8600, tavoladellanonna.com.
Under the Volcano
Originally a mezcal bar, first in Houston, then near the Empire State Building, this bar, which takes its name from Malcolm Lowry’s 1947 novel about Mexico, closed in 2010. It has reopened as a neighborhood spot with the Mexican focus diminished.
12 East 36th Street (Fifth Avenue), utvnyc.com.
Casa Nomad
This casual restaurant emphasizing vegetables and grains is from Yvan Lemoine, a chef who participated in Richard Grausman’s C-CAP program for high school students, and went on to train in France before working in several New York places.
1204 Broadway (30th Street), 646-870-0404, casanomad.nyc.
Chefs on the Move
Tim Jocz and Michael Aungst
These two chefs, both in their mid-20s, have been promoted from sous-chefs to executive chefs, sharing the workload, at Oceana in Midtown Manhattan. They replace Bill Telepan, who left recently.
