Headliner
La Marchande
Nearly 200 years ago, the financial district was New York City’s hub for fine dining. With Crown Shy, Harry’s, Nobu Downtown, Temple Court, the new Le Gratin and this gracious restaurant and bar by John Fraser in the Wall Street Hotel, it’s heading in that direction again. The hotel, owned by Paspaley, a major pearl company in Australia, is in a repurposed office building with a mercantile past. (The restaurant’s name — “the merchant” in French — reflects that.) An elegant bar leads to a white-tablecloth dining room with an elaborate raw bar and a couple of semiprivate tables framed in heavy drapes. Despite the formality of the setting, Mr. Fraser hopes to attract what he sees as a younger crowd who live and work in the area, by modernizing the French fare that shaped his career in Paris. “I’m looking at the 21st century, using global ingredients, sometimes out of left field,” he said. He’s supported by his executive chef, Rick Horiike, who worked at Buddakan and Wild Ink. Among the raw-bar items and appetizers on the lengthy menu are beef tartare, asparagus or blue crab enclosed in rice paper rolls; littleneck clams with cilantro mignonette; and lightly seared duck breast, sliced carpaccio-thin, with a drizzle of fish sauce caramel. Main courses include sweet rice with mushrooms cooked in a banana leaf, a version of homard à l’Américaine made with coconut milk, coffee-crusted pork chop with lentils, trout baked with a basting of miso, and roasted or steamed Dover sole for two with vermouth-lime butter. Desserts include a floating island with Japanese-style cheesecake. Amy Racine, the beverage director for Mr. Fraser’s JF Restaurants, will oversee the 120-label wine list that, while mostly French, lists some Australian selections to honor the hotel’s owners. (Opens June 7)
The Wall Street Hotel, 88 Wall Street (Water Street), 212-837-1918.
Opening
Il Gradino
An accommodating head captain at Scalinatella, especially for regulars, Luis Diego Argudo has opened his first restaurant nearby, in the former Fig & Olive space. Carlos Inga, formerly of San Pietro and Il Mulino, will be the executive chef, executing a traditional upscale Italian menu. In his new restaurant, Mr. Argudo offers several items “a piacere,” cooked however you like. That applies to calamari, risotto, veal, chicken and lobster.
808 Lexington Avenue (62nd Street), 646-649-3289, ilgradino.com.
Calle San Marcos
PDT, the bar behind Crif Dogs, has opened this street-side summer pop-up inspired by Mexico. Cocktails feature agave-based spirits. For food, there are hot dogs created in collaboration with the chefs Rick Bayless (a chicken Milanesa dog) and Enrique Olvera (esquites dog with corn and queso fresco).
113 St. Marks Place (Avenue A), pdtnyc.com.
Singlish
Named for the colloquial language spoken in Singapore, this latest from Salil Mehta, a restaurateur and chef who specializes in Southeast Asian cuisines, is a second-floor bar serving drinks that look both East and West, adding splashes of fish sauce, touches of galangal and dustings of Sichuan pepper to drinks made with tequila, bourbon and gin. Alongside are street-food snacks like fries with salted egg aioli, papaya salad and marinated duck tongues.
17 East 13th Street, 646-609-2633, singlishnyc.com.
Merchants Social
An airy space with lightly stained white oak walls, an open kitchen and a patio in a mid-19th century building is the setting for the chef and restaurateur John DeLucie’s new Hudson Valley venture. He is joined by the executive chef, Kevin Rubis, who was at Hutton Brickyards in nearby Kingston; the manager and partner Jaime Donato; and the beverage director Michael Kang. A hearty menu features noodles with corned beef tongue, Dutch runner beans in a Dijon dressing, ham terrine, local steelhead trout and soy-braised beef cheeks. (Saturday)
333 Warren Street (City Hall Place), Hudson, N.Y.
Chefs on the Move
Gerardo Alcaraz
Mr. Alcaraz, the chef and a partner at Aldama in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, has added the kitchen at Ponyboy in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, to his responsibilities.
Christ Brandt
Mr. Brandt, the new culinary director for La Fin, on the waterfront in Montauk, N.Y., has expanded the menu. He has worked at resorts like the Greenbrier.
Looking Ahead
Chambers
The former Racines NY, the wine-focused restaurant at which the sommelier Pascaline Lepeltier was a partner, closed about a year ago after the chef, Diego Moya, left. Something new was promised, and it will be delivered on June 13. Ms. Lepeltier, with David Lillie and Jared David, also partners, have added Jonathan Karis, who was the chef de cuisine at Gramercy Tavern, to the team. The room has been redecorated.
94 Chambers Street (Church Street), 212-580-3572, chambers.nyc.
Closing
Bessou
Maiko Kyogoku, the owner of Bessou, a charming little NoHo spot for home-style Japanese fare, was unable to renegotiate her lease. She announced that the restaurant would close after six years in business. June 18 will be the last day, but some of her specialties can be ordered from cookunity.com.
5 Bleecker Street (Bowery), 212-228-8502, bessou.nyc.
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