An Italian Eatery With a Rooftop Farm
Among Zagat’s new listing of new openings, Rosemary’s, an Italian restaurant that opened recently in Greenwich Village serves dishes sprinkled with herbs and produce grown from its very own rooftop farm.
It looks like it has a charming brunch menu—with eggplant and lamb paninis, and a Scamorza panini, which consists of house made smoked mozzarella, balsamic vinaigrette, and house-grown radicchio.
Despite its environmentally friendly menu, the food is reasonably priced. Pastas are $12, salads $9–$12. The restaurant was founded by Carlos Suarez. He also owns of Bobo, a French bar in the West Village that also serves American food. Rosemary’s is named after Suarez’s mother and is inspired by both her home in Tuscany and the rich heritage of the restaurant’s Greenwich Village corner. Executive chef Wade Moises serves seasonal Italian dishes as well as house-made pastas. The Italian wine list features 40 wines priced at $40, and wines by the glass at $10.
Creative Vietnamese
Listed on Serious Eats, Nightingale 9 is Vietnamese street food meets classic dishes meets adventurous inventions. The restaurant is owned by Robert Newton and Kerry Diamond, who conjured eccentric creations such as the Caramel Pork Belly, which consists of fried egg, rice paddy herb, and phu quoc black pepper; and the Fried Feather Ridge Egg with garlic mayonnaise, cilantro, and chilies. The restaurant recently opened in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. They serve traditional Vietnamese dishes, and some that are somewhere in between ancient and modern—such as the Hudson Valley Beef Pho.
Sugar and Plumm
The unique bistro has locations in the Upper West Side and West Village. They have quite an avant-garde dessert menu. The Earthquake in a Fishbowl dessert looks like a must-try. It is described as a “heaven/hell cake,” which is strikingly similar to the famous line from Paradise Lost, “The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.” The Earthquake in a Fishbowl consist of cheesecake, key lime pie, Brooklyn blackout cake, butterscotch and pudding, vanilla, chocolate and salted caramel ice cream, and whipped cream. There is no doubt that this cake will probably not taste like hell, regardless of your state of mind.
It also has a tempting breakfast menu—with buckwheat crepes such as shrimp and avocado and house-smoked salmon.
It strays from its French décor a bit with some Southern American breakfast flavors, such as Chicken and Waffles made with crispy free range chicken, and perhaps even better, their Pulled Pork and Waffles, which consists of house-smoked 72-hour pork, maple BBQ, pickled onion slaw, jalapeno, and fried heirloom egg.
For brunch, why not take your taste buds on an unexpected venture by having a rabbit confit with poached egg, wild rocket, carrot, haricot vert, orange cider, vinaigrette, pistachio, and petite mint?
Sugar and Plumm’s treats are made by master French chocolatier Thierry Atlan, who uses raw products in the all-natural chocolates.
Bill Could Uproot Brooklyn Outside Brunch Ban
A new bill could potentially override a law that currently bans Brooklyn restaurants from serving outside before noon on Sundays.
The law was made as an effort to ease church attendees’ path to church, according to Brooklyn Paper.
The bill is co-sponsored by Williamsburg Councilman Steve Levin. “It’s totally common sense. I’m not even sure why it’s a law,” Levin said, according to Brooklyn Paper.
The law has been in place since the 1970s.
“It wasn’t a big deal until people started getting fined,” Levin said.
The bill is currently sitting in committee.
South Indian Food and Photography Class
In this two-hour class, you get to prepare a South Indian dish and improve your photography skills.
South Indian Food: You will learn how to prepare kosambri, an authentic South Indian dish that is not usually found in restaurants. Kosambri is a traditional salad made in Bangalore homes that consists of fresh veggies, soaked lentils, coconut, lemon, and fried spices. You will learn about the ingredients and techniques used to make this flavorful, protein-rich, gluten-free, vegan dish.
Food Photography: While you learn how to make kosambri, you’ll also learn how to shoot it. The class covers the basics and some tricks of food photography using a digital SLR. The session includes a discussion on optimal lighting conditions and hacks, and an overview on photography elements, such as aperture and white balance.
Note: Bring your DSLR with you!
The class will be held in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn on Sat. June 15 at 2 p.m. Price: $43.00
The instructors are Chitra Agrawal and Clay Williams.
Agrawal writes food blog, The ABCD’s of Cooking (ABCD = “American Born Confused Desi”), where she shares traditional Indian home cooking recipes using local ingredients. Clay Williams is a photographer and blogger based in Brooklyn.
