Eataly, New York
As one of 2010’s most talked about new openings in New York, Eataly is the sprawling new 50,000 square foot Italian food emporium in the heart of New York’s central Flatiron district. We find out more about chef Mario Batali's exciting new venture.
Spearheaded by legendary New York chef Mario Batali and local entrepreneurs Joe and Lidia Bastianich, Eataly is a soaring mecca incorporating seven Italian restaurants (including an authentic Neopolitan pizzeria, and other Italian restaurants specialising in either seafood, meat, vegetables or desserts), a Lavazza coffee cafe, an Italian gelateria and a premium grocery store offering the finest ingredients and products from Italy. In addition, you’ll also find a 1,000-bottle-strong wine shop, a bakery (run by Nancy Silverton of La Brea) and patisserie (by Luca Montersino), a culinary education center and bookshop, and even a rooftop beer garden thrown into the mix.
With a $25 million price tag and a $40 million annual operating budget, Eataly has expectations of 4-6 million yearly visitors (an ambitious reach even for the city of dreams), and has been modeled after Oscar Farinetti’s Eataly of Turin. Eataly offers something for everyone - a vibrant, buzzing scene for a long, sumptuous Italian lunch which can be enjoyed at one of their many in-house restaurants; a quick takeaway bite of freshly sliced cured meats and cheese while standing at their standing-only tables; or a perfectly crafted Italian coffee and dessert. On your way out, we suggest a casual shop at their expertly stocked grocery store spread throughout the store where you can find fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, handmade pastas, baked goods, coffees and teas, housewares and kitchen supplies, even linens.
Everything is well-sourced, organic and sustainable, like fresh produce from a rooftop farm in Queens, flour from Vermont and upstate NY, and the six pizza chefs, who were flown in from Naples for the opening. The beer garden is simultaneously a microbrewery, crafting its own hops with help from Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head, Teo Musso of Birre Baladin, and monthly Italian “guest brewers” for seasonal-specific selections. Manzo is the flagship, upscale, beef-centric restaurant, where the soft and warm veal-tongue salad and the spruced-up tagliata with truffle-mushroom vinaigrette are sure winners. But with other restaurants independently focusing on vegetables, fish, pasta, pizza, salami and cheese, or crudo, it is impossible to wrap your mind around Batali’s newest concept until you’ve gone yourself, three, four or five times over. While it may not be the most affordable places to do your weekly shopping, it certainly is one of the most impressive.
Eataly New York - 200 5th Avenue, New York +1 (0) 646 398 5100 Website
