Opening North End Grill

Note:  This story is a continuation from Tabla Through My Eyes

In November 2010 Chef Floyd Cardoz had called me into his office along with the Chef de Cuisine Ty Kotz.  This was never a good scenario.  Being called into a private meeting with Chef and Ty never had a good outcome.  It not only meant I was about to get scolded for something, it meant I was about to get scolded for something so bad Chef Cardoz had to do it in private.

I slowly walked behind them, my short stature illusioning I was a kindergartner following my two teachers.  Closing the door I sat down quietly, awaiting my fate.  "I am going to be opening a new restaurant soon, and I would like for you to come work with me again."  Wait...what?  "It's not going to be like this.  The food will be different, the restaurant will be different."  "Of course I will Chef, I would love to open a restaurant with you!"  

Little did I know what was ahead of me.

The Nomad

 "The competition would be too great."

When I first heard news last year that Danny Meyer was selling his four-star restaurant, 11 Madison Park, I was a bit shocked.  Restaurateurs and chefs alike strive for that rating given to them by the NY Times.  It takes some restaurants decades to finally mature to that level, honing their skills year after year, until perfection is finally reached.  Once its reached, they strive for an even higher level.

Daniel Humm and Will Guidara, the Chef and General Manager of 11 Madison Park, with a group of investors started the company MadeNice.  Once hearing these two professionals, two people who are truly at the top of their game in their respected fields, were planning on opening a restaurant just a few blocks away from 11 Madison, Danny had no choice but to sell.  The diamond of Danny Meyer's empire was now sold to Daniel and Will, and just a year later, they opened The Nomad Restaurant located inside The Nomad hotel.  Finally having a chance to eat here tonight, I realized Danny Meyer made a very smart decision.

The Nomad has taken casual hotel dining, elevated it with Mr. Meyer's signature hospitality warmth, and mixed it with cuisine cooked with incredibly high standards by a military-style French brigade in the basement kitchen.  Abram Bissell, the former Executive Sous Chef at 11 Madison, has been given the prestigious task of running The Nomad, which includes the now three-star restaurant, rooftop dining, and 24-hour room service.

The Nomad Hotel

The Nomad, which means "North of Madison Square Park", is located on the corner of 28th and Broadway, in a building very similarly designed to the iconic Flatiron Building located just five blocks downtown.  "The Atrium", or main dining room, is situated just off the hotel lobby, and is equipped with a skylight the same size as the dining room.  The skylight allows natural light to shine down on the dark wood furnishings, upholstered chairs, stone floor, and other forms of classic old-world architecture.

Located just off the Atrium is the bar, equipped with a dark mahogany countertop and designed to give the feeling of an old-world library.  Off in the other direction, is an actual two-story library, an area which serves small pastries and coffee.  The last section is The Parlour Room, and is a bit more intimate with red accents on the wall and a marble hearth imported straight from France.  Here, you can meet one of the sous chefs as he overlooks the cooking of small snacks and the now very well-known foie gras and truffle-stuffed chicken-for-2.

Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business

Arguably the biggest restauranteur in New York City and possibly the country, Danny Meyer's name is synonomous with hospitality.  He is the CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group, which includes such New York restaurant institutions as Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, The Modern, Shake Shack, North End Grill, Untitled, Maialino, Blue Smoke, Union Square Events, Cafe 2, Terrace 5, and his business "school" Hospitality Quotient. 

"Virtually nothing else is important as how one is made to feel in a business transaction.  Hospitality exists when you feel the other person is on your side.  The converse is just as true.  Hospitality is present when something happens for you.  It is absent when something happens to you.  These two simple propositions - for and to - express it all." 

Maialino

I’ve been to Maialino, located in the Gramercy Park Hotel, about three times now.  However, I never made it into their dining room, as I love to sit at the long open bar, which is why it’s only fair I review just the bar area in this post. 

The bar area at Maialino has a very modern European café look to it, and their dining room resembles an old school Roman trattoria.  Blue and white picnic-style tablecloths cover the wooden tables, fresh baked breads line the walls, a small open kitchen displaying the house-made charcuterie, wine bottles lining the room dividers, and huge windows facing the street allowing so much natural light in.  Maialino is definitely a great place to grab a drink and a quick bite to eat.  They even serve breakfast, and I have been trying my best for months to wake up early enough try their Porchetta sandwich.  Roast pork and fried eggs served in a roll.  Now that sounds like a great way to wake up. 

To say the staff is friendly is an understatement.  Everyone who works here is incredibly nice.  For those who know me, yes this opinion is a little biased as I know a quarter of the staff, but I can see how they serve other patrons as well.  Every diner here seems very comfortable, as if they were sitting in someone’s home.  Danny Meyer’s famous hospitality definitely comes through with this restaurant. 

Tabla through my eyes

I am sad to say that my once favorite NYC restaurant is now closed.  Tabla had a magnificent twelve year run, and I am lucky enough to once call it my home away from home for 3 ½ years.  This restaurant shaped me into the chef I am today, and I’d like to share my story. 

The years leading up to Tabla…

When I was a young cook starting out in this industry I had no desire to work in NYC.  Through school I did my externship at a very well known two star NYC restaurant, which shall remain unnamed.  Externs in general are picked on at all restaurants.  Coming straight out of school they learn very quickly that they do not know everything, it is very easy to make mistakes, and it takes a lot of hard work, dedication, and patience to make it in this industry.  

I was so anxious to be in a professional kitchen for the first time, but that feeling quickly turned into disgust.  As the three months of unpaid work progressed, I learned that all these cooks were just drones.  None of them had any fire in them, no desire to be there.  There was a lack of teamwork.  They were always angry, and obviously took it out on the new guy. 

Luckily, the two chef de cuisines realized my potential and hired me after my three month externship.  I was ecstatic to have found a job in what many people considered to be a great restaurant, regardless of what I thought of my coworkers.  That all changed when I quit three weeks later. 

After two weeks of full time work, I never received my first paycheck.  One of the chefs told me there was most likely a glitch in the computer system and promised I would receive two paychecks the following week.  As the third week ended, the problem persisted.  This time I decided to talk to the other chef, who informed me he had no idea that I was not receiving my paychecks.  He then gave me the cold shoulder, and told me to come back and talk to him the following day.  I was so angry, so hurt, so confused about the communication between upper management.  I remember I went home that night, and I never returned again. 

Was this what it was like to work in a top restaurant in NY?