Ippudo joins the East Village ramen wars
Regular diners looking for the old Duane Park Café, which closed on Jan. 1, have been walking in—dumbfounded—to find that their pretty, if stuffy, old haunt has now been transformed into an eclectic Louisiana mansion with 18th-century etchings. “But they always stay, and they say the food is so much better,” says co-owner (and former Duane Park Café manager) Marisa Ferrarin, who describes the new menu as “seasonal contemporary American with a Southern twist.” Aside from hiring over half of the old staff, she’s also brought onboard former DPC chef Shawn Knight (recently at the now-defunct Natchez). He tips his hat to NoLA with dishes like remoulade-laced crabcake with caviar, and barbecued quail with black-eyed-pea salad and grilled speck. (157 Duane St. between West Broadway and Hudson St., 212-732-5555)
Batch
After making a splash last year with the opening of P*ong, sweet-savory wiz Pichet Ong ups the ante with this dessert-and-pastries takeout spot right next door. “My original plan was to open up a dessert restaurant with a shop attached to it, like a bakery,” he says. “But because the space I found for P*ong was so small, I separated the takeout concept.” That concept includes envelope-pushing cakes, ice cream and cookies made with Ong’s signature ingredients (Ovaltine pudding!), as well as Asian-influenced flavors in goodies like yuzu shortbread and coconut-calamansi cake. “I like more extreme tastes,” he says. “The salty is saltier, the sweet is sweeter.” And with two businesses side by side, it looks like “busy” means “busier.” (150B W. 10th St. between Greenwich Ave. and Waverly Place, 212-929-0250)
Ippudo
Ding, ding! It's round two of the East Village ramen slug-fest: This newbie—the first U.S. outpost of a popular Japanese chain—serves up some UFC-style pummeling with five types of ramen, including one with a white-pork broth. (The owner is a “Ramen Hall of Fame” member who’s won several ramen championships on Japanese TV—nope, we didn’t make that up.) Sip the broth and you’ll understand why it’s a contender: It’s cooked for over 15 hours, which lends the stock a creamy veneer. Non-ramen-philiacs can go for bites like pork croquette with bechamel sauce while ogling Ippudo’s quirky bamboo centerpiece, which flanks the joint’s white-on-wood aesthetic. (65 Fourth Ave. between Ninth and Tenth Sts., 212-388-0088)
Insomnia Cookies
What started as a late-night cookie delivery service by two UPenn grads has now expanded into the franchise’s first shop, right off NYU. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 3 a.m., while delivery runs from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. (covering 14th Street to Broome). Cookies like white-chocolate macadamia and peanut butter go for 90 cents a pop, while brownies, which start from a buck, come topped with a variety of sweets and nuts. No word yet if Ambien is on the toppings list. (50 W. Eighth St. between Sixth Ave. and MacDougal St., 877-63-COOKIE)
Also open:
Booming coffee chain Joe gets Chelsea abuzz with its fourth location, this one at the London Terrace. (405 W. 23rd St. at Ninth Ave., 212-206-0669)
The folks behind Ditmas Park sensation Farm on Adderley branch out with Pomme de Terre, a Franco-centric spot a few blocks down. (1301 Newkirk Ave. at Argyle Road, 718-284-0005)
More fro-yo mania: Yogo Monster stomps Park Slope. (88 Seventh Ave. between Berkeley St. and Union Place)
Dolce Vita brings new life to the old Da Domenico space. (181 Grand St. between Mulberry and Baker Sts. 646-688-4110)
On view at Astoria’s Vue Café: eclectic international fare, from tuna taratre to duck strudel. (12-14 31st Ave. at 12th St., 718-726-4400)
Recently closed:
Armando's Restaurant (Brooklyn Heights)
Le Madeleine (Midtown West)
Xth Ave Lounge (Hell's Kitchen)
Metsovo (Upper West Side)
Chubo (Lower East Side)
