Interview with Michele Smith; Wine and Service Director at Brooklyn Fare

Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare didn’t have a liquor license when it opened in 2009.  The early BYOB status, coupled with Chef Cesar Ramirez’s back-to-basics, bright, elegant food, the restaurant quickly became a haven for collectors, wine eccentrics, and anyone looking to eat at one of Brooklyn’s most exciting restaurants.

Michele Smith started working at Brooklyn Fare in the summer of 2010.  She was hired with the intention of building a wine list that would pair with Cesar’s food once the restaurant got its license.  That happened in January this year.  You can’t bring your own booze to 200 Schermerhorn Street anymore, but you can pick from Michele’s wonderfully curated list.

Digest NY recently talked with Michele about putting the list together, her philosophies about wine, and what it’s like to work with the same six people six days a week.

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Is San Pellegrino's World's Best Restaurants List Sparkling or Flat?

San Pelligrino's list of The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2012 came out earlier this week and Copenhagen's Noma keeps its number one spot.  Noma has made the list for seven out of the nine years that it's been a restaurant, and according to the World's Best website, Noma offer's "a dazzling array of one-bite starters that are alone worth the air fare to Denmark."

Per Se, #6, and Eleven Madison Park, #10, are the two NYC restaurants to make the top ten, EMP doing so for the first time.  Grant Achatz's Alinea in Chicago is the other U.S. resto to make the top ten and falls in the #7 spot.

Mexican Cuisine Mastermind Rick Bayless isn't thrilled about the list and digestny wonders if Brooklyn Fare and Marea feel left out.

Atera and the Forest Have a Lot in Common

While Erik Torkell waits to review Atera, the new, wildly popular Tribeca restaurant from chef Matt Lightner, the guys at immaculateinfatuation think it's best to save your money for Brooklyn Fare.  "For that much money, we need every bite to be an out of the park home run, and there are some singles and doubles on this menu that had us wishing we could order a la carte."

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.

Brooklyn Fare Soon to be Manhattan Fare

Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare opened three years ago.  Since it's inception the restaurant has earned 3 Michelin stars and is the only one in Brooklyn to do so.  Cesar Ramirez's $225, 20-plus tasting menu is one of the most expensive and most difficult to land a seat at.

Moe Issa is the owner and he has decided it's the right move to open at a space in Hell's Kitchen, on 39th Street between 9th and 10th.  The chef's table at the Manhattan location will be downstairs in a wine room, with only 10 seats.  The restaurant itself will be 60 seats and have an a la carte menu.

Manhattan could see an interpretation of Chef Ramirez's food as early as June.