Thursday, September 20, 2012 at 1:45PM 
Welcome to First Bite, in which Digest NY brings you a look at some of the city's newest restaurants shortly after they open. We'll go, eat some food, take some pictures, and report back to you. This go round it's Porsena Extra Bar, the third project from chef Sara Jenkins that opened on East 7th Street last week.
Thursday, September 6, 2012 at 11:33AM 
potato, celery, tuna, capers at extra barIn 2008, Sara Jenkins and her business partner/cousin Matt Lindemulder opened Porchetta in the East Village. The success of Porchetta lead to the opening of Porsena down the street two years later in December 2010. Porsena draws on the same Italian influence as Porchetta with a focus on pasta. According to Porsena's website, the restaurant "is just the kind of colorful neighborhood restaurant you might be thrilled to find in the narrow back streets of Rome or Florence."
Today, Jenkins gets her third establishment with the opening of Porsena Extra Bar nextdoor to Porsena. The two restos share the same 21 East 7th Street address. Unlike Porsena, which is only open for dinner, Extra Bar will be open for lunch and dinner with a different menu for each occassion.
Jenkins in taking a Lebanese lean at Extra Bar. There are wines from Lebanon on the list and, for lunch, eggplant puree, labne, and zataar. Two spaghettini pastas showcase Jenkins' relationship with Italian food, while cantaloupe melon butter and grilled "kimcheese" show her creative side. The dinner/"evening" menu features lamb tartare, oysters, and pinzimonion, the Italian version of crudite. No website yet, but there's a tumblr page dedicated to the new digs.