There are delays, there are delays, and then there's 10 Downing: the frantically blogged-about West Village spot that—through a perfect storm of construction and inspection snafus—saw its opening pushed back over a year.
The restaurant finally opened on Tuesday. At the helm: executive chef Jason Neroni, working closely with consulting chef Katy Sparks (Balducci's) on a Mediterranean- tinged American menu filled with dishes like squid-ink agnolotti and grilled lamb with feta, chickpea and Provençal herbs.
Neroni himself is no stranger to blog fodder, following an imbroglio last year with onetime employer Porchetta over a larceny charge. It turned him, he says, into "the Paris Hilton of the food world," diverting attention from what should really matter most: his food.
That was quite an epic wait for 10 Downing to open.
Tell me about it.
What was it like for you?
It was difficult, to say the least. I was involved with the project since August of last year. I've written 10 menus—for fall, then winter, then mid-winter, then Valentine's Day. We had a spring menu [sighs]. It feels good that it's finally happening.
Did all the downtime have an upside?
Yeah, most definitely. I got to cook for my wife every night, which was nice. I toured the country twice. I went to Alinea, I went back to Chez Panisse to hang out. There’s something to be said about being able to go to dinner any night of the week instead of having one night off a week.
Did you miss the chaos of the kitchen?
I feel alive again. It could be hard having nothing to do most days besides riding your bike around the city. I definitely enjoy being on the line.
You worked with Katy Sparks on this menu. What was your collaborative and creative process like?
Katy was really great at bridging the gap between myself and the owners; not that there was a gap, but owners have a vision and a chef has a vision. Katy was amazing at bringing all of us together and putting our vision as one.
Which item on this menu is particularly close to you?
When I was chef de cuisine at The Tasting Room, I created a dish that stayed with me: Tasmanian ocean trout tartar, which comes with pickled mustard seeds, chorizo oil, pine nuts and a quail egg. It solidifies what my idea of cooking is. I think of food as music: harmony in notes. With this dish, you have crunch, you have heat, you have acidity. I think of food that way: What are the notes, and which notes do I wanna hit a certain way?
The blogs can't seem to get enough of you. Do you ever read stuff that's written about you?
I try not to. I don't understand what the phenomenon is. I actually saw [Eater editor in chief] Ben Leventhal last night and he wouldn't even look me in the eye. I think it's really funny that somebody could try and throw you under the bus, and then they see you in person and they can't even look you in the eye. It shows you what type of person that they are.
How fairly do you think the press has covered you?
I think it's completely and totally outrageous. If anybody actually did any research, they would know all of it's bullshit. That's the problem with bloggers: There's no validity to what they write because they don't fact-check, specifically [former Grub Street editor and current The Feedbag boss] Josh Ozersky and Ben Leventhal.
You were involved in an incident last year with your former employer at Porchetta in Brooklyn, which has since closed. Are you surprised at the amount of interest that people have in a chef's life outside the kitchen ?
No, I'm not, because terrible TV shows like "Top Chef" glorify this celebrity lifestyle. I swear to god, last year I felt like the Paris Hilton of the food world.
There was a fascintaing tabloid quality to all of it.
I know and it's really sad. It really bums me out because this is a craft where people don't get paid a lot of money and they really put their heart and soul into it. And for people, especially in these economic times, to go and just shit all over somebody's hard work and dismiss it as nothing? It's not cool. It’s so easy for them just to dismiss us as…as tabloid! [laughs] It's yellow journalism, as I call them.
Frank Bruni, in his review of Porchetta, described you as "bursting with ambition." [The review mentioned a leaked e-mail in which Neroni solicited votes for a James Beard Award nomination.]
That whole James Beard thing was between my friends. One of my friends happened to be friends with Josh Ozersky, and Josh Ozersky took that to another level that it didn't need to go to. And it was ridiculed for being desperate. It's unfortuate that the New York Times reviewer would take a cue from journalists that don't fact-check and exploit bullshit.
I think Frank Bruni has done me well in the past. He gave me an amazing review at 71 Clinton Street. Unfortunately these days, this blogging atmosphere has clouded people's judgement, specifically because I know that Frank Bruni dines with Ben Leventhal. And for him to call me "bursting with ambition," it feels good, and I hope that he comes back and enjoys himself here at 10 Downing. But to be honest with you, I'm not paying attention to anybody anymore. I'm just really trying to bust my ass and do really good food.
Photo by Melissa Hom
