Wylie Dufresne to Open Alder in the Spring

Wylie Dufresne has been serving the world from his culinary cubicle on the Lower East Side for nearly 10 years. As wd-50 approaches its ten year anniversary, Dufresne readies to open his second restaurant.  Alder wil open next spring in the former Plum Pizzeria space at 157 Second Avenue. GrubStreet revealed yesterday that the "50-seat pub" is going to serve "modern casual food and well-crafted cocktails."  Alex Stupak, the former pastry chef at Dufresne's LES atelier, and whose Empellon Cocina has been packed since it opened on First Avenue back in February, predicted Dufresne domination yesterday via Twitter: "Alder! Wylie is going to dominate the East Village!" [GrubStreet]

Two Stars for Empellon Cocina

Pete Wells makes it over to Alex Stupak's Empellon Cocina and awards it two solid stars.  There were a few "stammers" in a salad with avacado and toasted grains, and a "kind of queso fundido made with lobster and tetilla cheese was buttery and rich, but also so watery that eating it became a three-napkin job."

Wells stresses that tapas may not be the proper format to present the food, but decides "Mr. Stupak’s cooking at Empellón Cocina resembles the food of Mexico the way a dream resembles life."

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.

A Shining Moment for Gwynnett St.

Gwynett St. opened on Graham Avenue in Williamsburg last November.  Justin Hilbert is the chef and he worked with Wylie Dufresne at WD-50 back when Alex Stupak was still around.  His food, and a vision from restaurant proprietor Carl McCoy, have resulted in a glowing two star review from Pete Wells.

Frank Bruni Profiles the Alex Stupak

Alex Stupak is the executive chef/owner of Empellon Taqueria and Empellon Cocina.  Neither place is a year old, though both are bringing  plenty of buzz and a new vision of Mexican cuisine to New York City.

Former NYTimes restaurant critic Frank Bruni profiles the chef and takes us through his brief (Stupak is only 31) career, which apparently started with getting yelled at for putting cream in scrambled eggs when he worked at Denny's.

A Sneak Peak at an Empellon Cocina Creation

Alex Stupak, "Shrimp Tostada" from Eater NY on Vimeo.

See the Empellon Cocina menu here.

WD-Cincuenta

West (Village) Meets East (Village)

Alex Stupak, former pastry chef at WD-50, is opening an Empellon offshoot next week.  Empellon Cocina will be located at 105 First Ave (btwn 6th and 7th) and will open just in time for Valentine's Day. 

Now you can tell your loved one you love them with a mouthful of chicharonnes.