The Fulton Fish Market may be a market no more, but it still provides deep harbor for a seafood-haul eatery called Fish Market Restaurant (111 South Street) that opened in April. Proprietors are Vincent Camporeale, who also owns Vinny Vincenz, and first timer Jeannette Josue. Executive chef Eddie Montalvo, who worked under Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Laurent Gras, and David Bouley, is serving his menu tapas-style to encourage sharing. The 60 seat space, an abandoned fish store, avails itself of nauticalia (buoys and the like), exposed brick adorned with antique photos of the neighborhood in its heyday, and Brooklyn Bridge views to create a kicked-back vibe. Tasting plates ($11 to $17): almond soup with lobster and tangerine; black cod "niçoise" with cannellini beans, olives, capers, lemon pulp, and basil. Hearty dishes ($21 to $37): whole roasted branzino with clams, tapioca, shaved baby fennel, and saffron/citrus broth; linguini with clams, Portuguese linguiça sausage, and garlic. Desserts ($6 to $7): tart cherry bread pudding with Port reduction and brandy cream; chocolate ganache with baguette crisp, Maldon sea salt, and vanilla bean.
In April Chicago's Charlie Trotter returned to Sin City to launch a premium seafood venture, Restaurant Charlie, in The Palazzo. Driving the menu are seasonal organic produce and cooking techniques that use virtually no cream or butter. The briny endeavor consists of several discrete spaces, starting with an airy dining room that seats 120 under 20 foot ceilings. Hovering high above the kitchen and offering a bird's-eye view of chefs is the steel and glass Kitchen Sky Loft accommodating eight guests. Bar Charlie, a restaurant within the restaurant with counter-only seating for 18, serves an East-West kaiseki-inspired sushi-based tasting menu ($175 for eight courses, $250 for 14). Finally, the 15 seat Drinks Bar juxtaposes vintage pre-Prohibition classics with more modern concoctions. Executive chef de cuisine Matthias Merges, 12 year veteran of Chicago's Charlie Trotter's, oversees the savory and pastry teams. Apps ($9 to $22): Dungeness crab salad with sake and rice milk; warm flan of smoked salmon with fennel confit, crème fraîche, and orange. Mains ($38 to $75): seared bigeye tuna with wilted Bibb lettuce and extra-virgin olive oil; hand-harvested sea scallops with parsley emulsion and yogurt. Desserts ($14 to $18): blueberry/brown butter tart with sour cream sorbet and tiny basil; steamed cacao nib cake with sour candied kumquats and 99 percent cacao ice cream.
June ushered in the freewheeling Gitane (6 Claude Lane) with a bold 60 seat interior that draws on vintage looks from the 1950s, '60s, and '70s and a globe-roaming menu favoring the foods of Spain, France, and North Africa. Franck LeClerc, who also owns Café Claude across the way, recruited Lisa Eyherabide, late of San Francisco's Le Charm and Piperade, as executive chef. Apps ($7 to $10): mackerel escabeche simmered in onions, carrots, bay leaf, Champagne vinegar, and white wine served with saffron potato salad; squab pastilla (shredded squab mixed with almonds and enclosed in feuilles de brik pastry). Mains ($17 to $25): seafood cataplana (monkfish, bacon, chorizo, littleneck clams, mussels, prawns, tomatoes, red bell peppers, and pasilla chiles braised in the traditional Portuguese clam-shaped clamped copper pan); lamb shank braised in Rioja, orange juice, and coriander with fire-roasted butternut squash. Desserts ($7 to $9): classic crema catalana; cigarrillos de almendras y miel (almond and sugar cigar-shaped crisps rolled in honey, pistachios, hazelnuts, and almonds with honey/cream dipping sauce).
Restaurateur Scott Jones, owner of Café Italia, takes a stab at Southern fine dining with the May opening of Screen Door, seating 120 indoors and 80 outside, at One Arts Plaza, a new mixed-use downtown complex. Artful chandeliers and wide plank flooring, tethered with tropical green accents, summon the grand ballroom elegance of an old Southern mansion. Executive chef Fitzgerald Dodd, who has worked at Stephan Pyles and Hotel ZaZa, juggles "then" classics as grandma used to make them with "now" reinventions of traditional dishes. Executive sous chef Erasmo Casiano decamped from Victory Tavern, and pastry chef Erica Nicholl came by way of the Hôtel St Germain, where she was sous chef. Apps ($7 to $12): fried green tomatoes with smoked mozzarella and red pepper jam; griddled ham and cheese sliders with basil crème fraîche and smoked tomato soup. Mains ($18 to $30): Lowcountry broiled "shrimp & grits" with mâche; braised pheasant with down-home dumplings, pearl onions, and morels. Desserts ($7 to $10): brown sugar pound cake with macerated berries and crème fraîche ice cream; praline tart with orange/ginger caramel.
In May Georges Perrier and Chris Scarduzio's Signature Restaurants (Le Bec-Fin and Brasserie Perrier in Philadelphia and Mia in Atlantic City) unveiled Table 31. Named for the most coveted table at Brasserie Perrier, this steakhouse/bistro hybrid lives in the new Comcast Center (1701 John F. Kennedy Boulevard). The tri-level 15,000-square-foot space is a graceful maze of sleek modern dining rooms, a bar, and a lounge accommodating a total of 235 guests. Chef de cuisine Jeremy Duclut is a veteran of Mia. Corporate pastry chef Rocco Lugrine does desserts. Alongside redefined steakhouse appetizers and sides, the menu offers a wide range of meats, including organic and Wagyu beef in portion sizes to suit various appetites. Apps ($9 to $22): savory pork trotters with mustard and bread crumbs; beef carpaccio with fava bean/chervil salad, summer truffles, and Manchego cheese. Mains ($20 to $74): spice-rubbed prime Delmonico steak; rotisserie-cooked peppered Peking duck with ginger/garlic sauce. Desserts ($8 to $12): "PB&J" of peanut dacquoise, chocolate/raspberry ganache, peanut butter mousse, and raspberry coulis; the ultimate chocolate cake (chocolate mousse, chocolate/vanilla ganache, chocolate meringue, and devil's food cake enrobed in chocolate glaze).
Wanting to do his part to revitalize downtown Wilmington, in April savvy local businessman Michael Hynansky converted 900 Orange Street, a space he has owned for some time, into Ameritage Bistro, a restaurant and prêt-à-manger market rolled into one. Partner/general manager Henry Dawson has years of experience at the Dilworthtown Inn (West Chester, PA), and executive chef Sean Holland, who serves up classic bistro fare, decamps from Moro Restaurant (Wilmington) and The Farmhouse restaurant (Avondale, PA). Relying on such palatable bistro tropes as oversized mirrors and a warm gold and wine-red palette, the 135 seater walks the line between worldly sophistication and approachable informality. Apps ($8 to $16): braised pork belly with caramelized onion/potato tart and arugula salad; parisienne gnocchi with lobster, Brie, and roasted garlic. Mains ($16 to $22): grilled center-cut pork chop with golden raisin/roasted garlic jus, broccoli raab, and wild rice medley; wild rockfish with lemon, olive oil braised vegetables, and fingerling potatoes. Desserts ($6 to $12): chocolate brownie puddle sundae; raspberry linzer tart.
Chef Dino Bugica and owner Doug Swett fulfilled their dream of creating a casual analogue to Santi, their major Italianate thread in the wine country dining tapestry, with the May launch of Diavola Pizzeria & Salumeria at 21021 Geyserville Avenue. Located in an historic building dating back to the early 1900s, the 45 seater relies on original brickwork and hardwood floors for its easy rusticated good looks. Bugica, who is well versed in Italian cookery, butchery, and charcuterie thanks to a seven year stint in Italy, cures all his own salumi (with the aid of chef emeritus Franco Dunn) and presides over a wood-burning oven (embellished with blue and white tiles protected by a small altar for San Lorenzo, patron saint of cooks), where he interprets cucina povera ("cuisine of the poor") as handmade pizzas and simply roasted meats. Apps ($7 to $12): ox tongue with boiled potatoes, green onions, and extra-virgin olive oil; escarole salad with house-cured anchovies. Mains ($13 to $23): mascarpone, prosciutto, and tomato pizza; roasted whole Spanish mackerel with zucchini gratina, mint, and fresh herbs.
