Return engagement: Bar Veloce reopens at its old Kenmare Square location
After hightailing it in 2004 to make way for Bar Tonno (which made way for Room 4 Dessert), Bar Veloce zips back to its original Kenmare Square location. “It’s not often that you have the opportunity reconfigure [a space] and rethink it,” says owner–cum–mini-mogul Frederick Twomey, who’s slowly been expanding his wine-bar empire with the recently opened Solex, in addition to two other Bar Veloce locations. This time around, Twomey dug up Veloce’s old 70-foot bar from storage and cut it up into tabletops. “It’s the greenest bar I ever made—I reused everything!” he laughs, adding that he considers this “the softest and coziest of the Veloces, much less industrial.” New Eames chairs from Design Within Reach add a woodsy-futuristic feel, but the menu remains familiar turf: over 30 Italian wines, plus small bites from panini (speck with grappa-cured apples) to bruschette (prosciutto with fig tartare). “It’s a homecoming party,” says Twomey. “Why reinvent the wheel?” 17 Cleveland Place at Kenmare St., 212-966-7334
The Pizza Shop
Miss Sal’s? The venerable Avenue A pizza place closed months ago, and left behind a lot of memories (most of them hazy and drunken). But for those of us who won’t miss the tattered walls and questionable cleanliness of the old pizza place, a couple of East Village rock-’n’-roll types have come to the rescue. The Pizza Shop, run by Springsteen-approved rocker Jesse Malin, Niagara owner Johnny T and Turbo A.C.s frontman Kevin Cole, offers up a starkly minimalist (and sparklingly clean) storefront to peddle pies. The prices ($15 for a large cheese, $2 to $3 for toppings) reflect the newer, richer EV demographic; however, the $7 meatball-parmesan sandwich (served on focaccia flatbread) presents a welcome, high-end option for those of us trying to soak up the whiskey shots from next door. 110 Ave. A, at Seventh St., 212-614-9798
Bagatelle
Nicolas Cantrel may have recently called it quits with Bobo, but the classically trained French chef is on the rebound, thanks to this cozy French bistro in the Meatpacking District from the all-French team (sense a theme here?) of Remi Laba and Aymeric Clemente, the same duo behind Kiss & Fly next door. Cantrel draws on his sharp pedigree (Ducasse, Boulud and Zakarian—‘nuff said) to reinterpret Southern French fare, with dishes like truffled-leeks ravioli, warm asparagus salad with blood orange, and chicken breast with pepper sauce and tomatoes Provencal. The low-lit digs, decked out to evoke a Parisian apartment, complete the French invasion. 409 W. 13th St. between Washington St. and Ninth Ave., 212-675-2400
Danal
Longtime East Village brunch fave Danal has packed up its drool-worthy croissant French toast and carted it a few blocks west to Fifth Avenue. The bi-level spot now offers more space while still retaining the same rustic French-countryside feel of its previous incarnation. Most of the original furniture remains intact (giving the place an odd sense of déjà vu), as does its traditional French menu filled with can’t-miss plates like coq au vin and mussels Provencal. Plans are in the works to serve weekday breakfast in early February, with afternoon high tea to follow later in the month. 59 Fifth Ave. at 13th St., 212-982-6930
Photo courtesy of Bar Veloce
