Headliner
& Sons
André Hueston Mack, a sommelier and winemaker, started feeling that the expanding roster of well-made American cured hams was not being given its due. “There are ham bars in Spain and France, but nothing like them in New York,” he said. So he has now become a hammelier and opened his own spot, a sliver of brick walls and mirrors with just 20 seats in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn, where he lives with his wife, Phoebe Damrosch, a writer and a partner in the restaurant, and their four sons. They have at least 11 American cured heritage-breed hams on the menu. Some are from venerable producers that have been curing hams for 100 years or more, and others are the work of newcomers. Many of the hams are from Kentucky, and some, like the ruddy Dakota, are on a more-or-less exclusive basis. The chef Cesare Casella’s prosciutto from upstate New York also gets its turn on the vintage slicer. Cornmeal madeleines and American cheeses are served, and Mr. Mack limits his wines to American selections. “I have about 320 labels, many from vintages going back to the 1970s and ’80s,” he said. He grew up in Texas, and began his wine career at the French Laundry. He went on to work at Per Se, and left to start making his own wine, which he still does, with Maison Noir Wines, in Oregon. He also runs a wine shop, VyneYard, nearby. In a few months, he plans a retail shop, & Sons Buttery, selling hams, cheeses, condiments and table accessories, next door to the restaurant.
447 Rogers Avenue (Lincoln Road), Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn, 718-284-0159, andsonsnyc.com.
Opening
The Mermaid Inn Chelsea
Danny Abrams and Cindy Smith have added a fourth edition of their seafood restaurant, this one occupying the former Red Cat space, which Mr. Abrams once owned.
227 10th Avenue (23rd Street), 646-905-5900, themermaidnyc.com.
Dr. Clark
The chef at this restaurant, Mumetake Ogata, is from Hokkaido, as is one of the owners, Yudai Kanayama, who has other restaurants in New York. Lamb barbecue called jingisukan, a Hokkaido specialty, will be on the menu along with sea urchin and seaweed dishes, which are typical of the region. The restaurant, with table seating and a bar, was designed down to the linens by Green River Project, with a natural setting; the name refers to Dr. William S. Clark, a professor of chemistry and agriculture specialist who worked in Hokkaido in the late 19th century to some renown. (Opens Sunday)
104 Bayard Street (Baxter Street), 646-998-3408, drclarkhouse.com.
The Norm 54
This restaurant in the Brooklyn Museum is again changing its personality to suit an exhibit: this time, a homage to Studio 54. The menu emphasizes the diner food that clubgoers of the era would seek after hours, like disco fries with melted cheese, Waldorf salad, smoked salmon on a bagel and rich desserts. Drinks will have disco-themed names like Bianca’s White Horse. (Friday through July 5)
The Norm, Brooklyn Museum, 200 Eastern Parkway (Washington Avenue), Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, 718-230-0897, thenormbkm.com. Museum admission not required for the restaurant.
Feinstein’s/54 Below
The long-running cabaret is adding a classic Sunday brunch with dishes like eggs Benedict, smoked salmon, peach and hazelnut-stuffed French toast and various salads, as well as meats carved and omelets made to order and accompanied by a side of piano music. (Sunday)
Broadway Brunch, $34.95 ($14.95 for children under 12), unlimited brunch drinks $19.95, 254 West 54th Street, 646-476-3551, 54below.com.
Closed
Le Petit Rooster
This Upper West Side French bistro has said adieu.
Fine & Schapiro
This kosher deli, an Upper West Side staple for more than 100 years, has closed indefinitely for renovations, a sign on the window reports.
The Usual
The Los Angeles chef Alvin Cailan’s New York restaurant has closed after less than two years. Mr. Cailan, who opened Eggslut in Los Angeles in 2011 and then took it to London, Tokyo and the Middle East, dipped his toe into New York waters with a pop-up at Chefs Club Counter three years ago. He also had plans to open a full-service Filipino restaurant, Amboy, in New York last year, but that didn’t happen. His brother, Anthony Cailan, a sommelier who was his partner in the Usual, resigned late last year after a New York Times report in which several women said he had sexually assaulted them. Alvin Cailan could not be reached for comment.
Chefs on the Move
Great Gathering of Chefs
(Editors’ note: This event has been canceled, but organizers say they are hoping to reschedule.) “Toques in Black: A Celebration of Black Chefs,” (The Chefs Connection, $44.95), a new book featuring 101 black chefs, will be honored at a reception on Tuesday, with some of the chefs attending and cooking. The event and sales of the book will benefit programs at the Food and Finance High School in Manhattan.
Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m., Prince George Ballroom, 15 East 27th Street, tickets, $100 and $135 (with a copy of the book), thechefsconnection.com.
