Empellon Cocina Brunches It Up

Empellon Cocina opened two months ago in the East Village, at 105 First Ave (btwn 6th and 7th), and it's been packed ever since.  Now chef Alex Stupak is ready to launch brunch and he's doing so this weekend.  The menu has things like Mezcal cured Trout, smoked maple syrup, and green chorizo gravy.

The Titanic Turns 100 on Sunday

One hundred years ago, just before midnight on April 14th, 1912, the RMS Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic.  She struggled to stay afloat after 5 of her 16 watertight compartments were torn open.  Before she sank on that cold, dreadful night, the first class members experienced a meal that reflected the wealth onboard the transatlanic vessel.

To honor the 100th anniversary, Frank Falcinelli and Frank Castronovo of the Frankies Empire are recreating the 10-course dinner that was served that fateful night.  Their restaurant Prime Meats, on Court Street in Brooklyn, will host the $115/person, black tie preferred event this Sunday at 7pm.

Just Another Pok Pok Monday

Flo Fab reports in Off the Menu, from today's dining section, that Portland chef Andy Ricker's Pok Pok Ny will be opening for dinner in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn this Monday, at 127 Columbia Street. 

Ricker first gave NYC a taste of his Thai fried chicken with Pok Pok Wing, which opened in the Lower East Side, at 137 Rivington Street in January.  Pok Pok Ny will serve a wide array of Northern Thai food, including spicy minced catfish salad and sweet-and-sour game hen.

Seriouseats sat down with Andy a month ago to pok pick his brain about the allure of Thai food.  When Pok Pok Ny opens Monday, Ricker doesn't want you to expect anything fancy, "we don't have any fucking tweezers."

No End in Site for Mile End

Mile End has been incredibly successful since it opened a little more than 2 years ago on Hoyt Street in Brooklyn.  Noah Bernamoff and Rae Cohen are the husband and wife team responsible for what is becoming a quickly growing business.

There is a cookbook coming September 4th, Mile End Sandwich will open on Bond Street in Manhattan anyday now, and a new, bigger kitchen facility in Red Hook is already smoking meats and making pickles.  You'll be able to buy cured and smoked meats, bread, cookies, pickles, and all things Montreal-deli from the storefront that will open adjacent to the new facility.

3 Stars for Kyo Ya

In his gratuitous 3-star-review of Kyo Ya, Pete Wells boasts of the restaurant's exclusion from technology.  You won't find Kyo Ya on OpenTable, the restaurant doesn't have a website, and if "Kyo Ya has opinions about bankers or fracking, they remain untweeted."  In other words, until the Times mentioned Kyo Ya, it wasn't exactly 'Ko difficult' to experience the kaiseki menu that's only offered to 10 people a night.

The title of the review is "Seasonality's Master Practioner," referring to chef Chikara Sono's seasonal sensibilities and the respect for the seasons that Japanese cuisine is centered upon.  "It is easy in New York now to believe that eating ramps in April makes you an expert in seasonal cooking. As a meal at Kyo Ya will show, this is a little like believing that eating a tuna salad sandwich makes you a marine biologist."

Alan Richman Strikes Again

GQ food writer Alan Richman has given us his list of The 10 Best Restaurants in New York for 2012.  All six of the 4-star restaurants in NYC make his list, although it's The Salon at Per Se getting the credit, not the dining room. 

Cesar Ramirez's Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare takes the number one spot, while Le Bernardin and Corton round out the top three.

A Girl and Her Pig Hits Shelves Today

Today is April 10th Bloomfield.  April's new cookbook, A Girl and Her Pig, goes on sale today.  It is the chef's first cookbook and includes recipes and stories from her years in the kitchen.

"Bloomfield's innovative yet refreshingly straightforward recipes, which pair her English roots with a deeply Italian influence, offer an unfailingly modern and fresh sensibility and showcase her bold flavors, sensitive handling of seasonal produce, and nose-to-tail ethos."

Everybody's Working for the Weekend

This past weekend marked the start of Brooklyn's favorite outdoor markets.  The Brooklyn Flea is now open on Saturdays from 10am - 5pm in Fort Greene, at 176 Lafayette Street, on Sundays it moves to the East River Waterfront in Williamsburg btwn North 6th and North 7th.  Smorgasburg, Brooklyn Flea's food market, will be open from 11am to 6pm on Saturdays, also in Williamsburg.  Here's a look at the smorgasburgoodies.

The Dekalb Market, at 138 Willoughby Street, also kicked things off this past weekend with food, music, art, Easter eggs, and $1 mimosas.  Easter eggs and $1 mimosas aside, Dekalb Market will be open every weekend from 8am - 6pm.  Take a gander.