King me
Bar Tizio, Opties and Dinghies, Pacific St listings, King, Schaller & Weber, best ranch stays, MORE
BARS • First Round
In a tizzy
Jonathan Waxman is a busy man. Alongside his forever-cool West Village restaurant Barbuto and the reboot of his big-in-the’80s Midtown spot Jams (not to mention a restaurant in San Francisco), the chef is readying a Barbuto outpost at the 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge this month. On top of all that, he popped open a new wine bar, Bar Tizio, just down the block from Barbuto, in May.
On a recent Wednesday night, I spotted my friend at the bar and pulled up a stool. We studied the drinks menu, weighing a lineup of classic cocktails — martini, negroni, French 75, among others — against the substantial by-the-glass wine list (I counted 26 on offer) before the amiably chatty bartender recommended a glass of Miranius 2022 organic white wine from Catalonia. Fresh with crisp acidity, it was a perfect glass on a rainy late spring night.
Bar Tizio’s room has an industrial feel not unlike that of Barbuto itself. Big windows open out to the street, and there are a bunch of tables too (though they sat empty on this night). The word is not yet out.
With dinners booked afterwards, we weren’t planning to dine, but we couldn’t resist, ordering the fresh tajarin (egg rich) pasta and a razor clam pizette from the surprisingly substantial and interesting food menu. Both dishes were perfect for bar dining, the pasta a small pile of noodles somewhere between spaghetti and angel hair in width, and the pizzette a dinner-plate-sized circular pie with crisp crust and a generous helping of clams served atop ramps, baby arugula, and Thai pepper — as good a clam pie as I’ll likely ever have sitting at a bar.
One more surprise: a trip downstairs to the bathroom revealed the ultimate rec room, a cavernous basement filled with couches, tables, and rack after rack of wine. The bartender said they plan to use it as a private event space. A party down there would be a lot of fun, for sure, but I’ve also slotted Bar Tizio into the rotation as a perfect pregame or postgame spot. –Lockhart Steele
→ Bar Tizio (West Village) • 107 Horatio St • Tue-Sat 5-10p • Reserve, bar seats for walk-ins only.
GETAWAYS • Shelter Island
Shelter from the storm
After a dramatic exit from the mainland, eclectic Chinese-French cafe Opties and Dinghies has set up shop on Shelter Island in one-half of the forever-in-flux North Fork Fish Market. Bright and awash in cottage-coastal colors, it’s the type of anytime dining that the island’s been needing.
Orders placed at the counter are served in plaid paper-lined baskets atop red plastic trays. There are a handful of tables inside and picnic tables in front. The menu takes up an entire wall — a black chalkboard scribbled with colors, all done by hand (like their dumplings).
The casual manner doesn’t carry over to the food, which takes its inspiration from the backgrounds of married owners Vincent Bertault and Claudia Lin. This isn’t an attempt at fusion, and while it can feel like there are two menus simply existing side by side, the treasures from each cuisine make it work.
Homemade dumplings rival any you can get in the city. (They also sell them frozen to-go.) There are extraordinarily flaky, scallion pancakes for sharing, and a kimchi salad, something you can’t find anywhere else on Shelter Island. On the French side of the menu, crepes of sweet and savory varieties and a handful of homemade pastries and breads are made fresh every morning.
Everything’s made in-house, in fact — except for the ice cream, which comes from Il Laboratorio del Gelato, a bougie alternative to the bright blue “Cookie Monster” flavor from the nearby Tuck Shop.
With dumplings worth a ferry ride from either fork, on an island with relatively homogenous restaurant options, Opties and Dinghies is a glorious addition to the Shelter Island dining scene. –Sylvie Florman
→ Opties and Dinghies (Shelter Island) • 87 N Ferry Rd • Daily 7a-10p • Walk-ins only.
GETAWAYS LINKS: In Montauk, Gurney’s ups its spa game • Lunching at new Palm Beach import Swifty’s in East Hampton • Thruway work may delay drives Upstate this summer • New Charleston hotel alert: The Nickel on Upper King • The London luxury hotel explosion • Trending: Coolcationing
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Three for-sale buildings on Pacific St. in Cobble Hill & Boerum Hill that came to market in the last 30 days.
→ 390 Pacific St (Boerum Hill) • 6BR/2.2BA, 3200 SF 2-family townhouse • Ask: $3.995M • double duplex with lower entrance beneath stoop • Days on market: 16 • Monthly tax: $774 • Agents: Jackie Torren & Charlie Pigott, Corcoran.
→ 433 Pacific St (Boerum Hill, above) • 5BR/4BA, 3612 SF 2-family townhouse • Ask: $4.995M • another double duplex, first time trading in 25 years • Days on market: 9 • Monthly tax: $797 • Agent: Aimee Scher, Compass.
→ 126 Pacific St (Cobble Hill) • 7BR/5.1BA, 6504 SF mixed-use building • Ask: $11.995M • 25’-wide over 4 floors plus finished basement • Days on market: 25 • Monthly tax: $2892 • Agent: Nick Gavin, Compass.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: NYC broker fee ban has taken effect • 1200 ft tall supertall proposed for 77 West 66th on Upper West Side • New owner of Hotel Bossert in Brooklyn Heights plans residential conversion • Will The Torch’s brand of weird grow on us?
CULTURE & LEISURE • Friday Routine
It takes two
JESS SHADBOLT & ANNIE SHI • co-founders, chef & beverage director • King
Neighborhoods you work: Soho & Rockefeller Center
Neighborhoods you live in: Fort Greene & Upper East Side
It’s Friday afternoon, how are you rolling into the weekend?
JS: We recently opened for lunch at King on Fridays, and it certainly kicks off the weekend feeling in the restaurant! Something about a long lunch to start the weekend feels so luxurious. Now that we’re into spring and the weather is getting good, I tend to close out the week catching up with the chefs on the terrace, talking through weekend menus, and ordering produce from the market while podding peas and fava beans.
AS: I just opened my wine bar in Chinatown, Lei. Back when we were in construction, I would plan my check-in around groceries from the neighborhood — soft tofu from Fong On, lap cheong and some zong zi from Sun Ming Jan to have for breakfast the next morning, and always the freshest greens from the street stands. If I'm feeling ambitious, I walk to Di Palo's in Little Italy, where we buy our ricotta at King, to pick up fresh mozzarella and bresaola for an aperitivo snack plate to share with my husband.
Where are you drinking or dining this weekend?
JS: Having spent most of the week in restaurants — either King, or our sister restaurant Jupiter — I tend to spend weekends at home, cooking in my kitchen. I've loved introducing my New York friends to the British tradition of Sunday lunch as a reminder of home. Usually I’ll prepare a rib of beef, yorkshire puds, horseradish cream — the works!
AS: We go to Eli's Table at least once a week — it’s our local Upper East Side spot and we couldn't be more lucky to have access to Eli's incredible cellar right underneath our apartment. Thibault is the wine director there, and is exceptionally talented — he can always meet the brief with something delicious.
Any weekend getaways?
JS: I love to visit Sara and Sohail at Brushland Eating House in Bovina whenever I’m Upstate. I stay at The Owl’s Nest, feast on one of Sohail's celebratory dinners, and bask in the warmth of this beautiful dining room amongst great people. It’s forever my favorite place outside of the city.
AS: Like everyone else in New York, we love going away Upstate too. Some hotel prices have gone through the roof in recent years, but the White Hart Inn in Salisbury, CT remains reasonable. Check out Black Squirrel Antiques if you’re in the neighborhood for some great gems.
What was your last great vacation?
JS: Nothing beats a trip back to the U.K. to see family and friends. Aldeburgh in Suffolk is a small coastal town on a pebble beach on the North Sea. When I’m there, my days usually consist of windy walks, fish and chips, a pint of Adnams at the pub, lunch at The Greyhound Inn, dinner at The Suffolk, and a morning swim (if I can brave the freezing water).
AS: We have a tradition of taking our newborns on an international trip — it's when sleep is meaningless no matter where you are and jetlag’s not yet an issue. I had been itching to get back to Champagne and Burgundy, so we took our two-month-old daughter there. It was an absolute dream. We saw ten different producers in the two regions, and they were so welcoming. A highlight was seeing Cedric Bouchard, my favorite Champagne producer, and tasting in his home and cellar. In Paris, our best meal of the trip was Dandelion in the 20th arrondissement. It's a little bit of a trek but so worth it. I still think about French onion soup with foie gras and Comté from chef Antoine Villard. His partner, Morgane Souris, runs the wine program and on our visit, we polished off a bottle of Beau Paysage 2021 — possibly the best Merlot I've ever had.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
JS: Wallpaper. No wall is now safe, and it appears to be a surprisingly expensive addition, but I think it's the Brit in me. Trustworth Studios is perfect in every way.
AS: The U.K. design firm, Pinch, recently popped up in Tribeca. They had a sample sale afterwards (no U.K. shipping or VAT!), and I got some gorgeous black American walnut shelves and the Anders light pendant. The shelves are still in storage awaiting a future home, but the Anders light is going into the wine bar.
What store or service do you always recommend?
JS: Head straight to PORTA on Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn and buy everything in the store! The owners, Alice and Francesca, source beautiful heritage crafts with contemporary design from across Europe, resulting in a homeware collection like no other.
AS: On the Upper East Side, Schaller & Weber is one of our favorite old-school German delis and butchers, and a place we love bringing family and friends who come to visit. We always go for the incredibly hot mustard, bratwurst, and sauerkraut. They also have great marzipan fruits and in the wintertime, the best Haribo advent calendars.
Where are you donating your time or money?
JS: I feel so lucky to be part of the chefs committee for the childhood cancer foundation, Cookies for Kids Cancer.
AS: We have become good friends with Steve and Lisa who run The Here And There Collective, a non-profit that supports artists from the Asian diaspora. And I feel lucky to have been a part of Prep for Prep, which changed my life.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Still Crazy
Ringo Starr & His All Starr Band • Radio City (Theater District) • Fri @ 8p • orchestra 4, $302 per (lowest avail, $200)
Turnover • Brooklyn Paramount (Downtown Brooklyn) • Fri @ 6p • balcony, $120 per
Paul Simon • Beacon Theatre (Upper West Side) • Mon @ 8p • orchestra center, $591 per (lowest avail, $312)
CULTURE & LEISURE LINKS: How The Met raised $70M for the Rockefeller Wing • After $8.9M reno, Grand Army Plaza arch finally reopens • Navigating the maze of the Arbus exhibit at the Armory • Lana Del Rey fans unite in group show at Tribeca gallery • In praise of the hammock • How to survive a gallery dinner.
GETAWAYS • The Nines
Ranch stays
The Nines are FOUND's distilled lists of the best in NYC and beyond. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@foundny.com. Visit the full archives here.
Alisal Ranch (Santa Ynez Valley), 10,000 acres of private land north of Santa Barbara, quaint, private cabins, horseback riding, lakeside barbecues