FOOD & BEVERAGE
TO DO LIST:
Empirical Spirits by NOMA alum, Lars Williams and Mark Emil Hermansen
Excited to finally get a taste of Bar Chelou this week in LA!
Looks like I’ll be making the return to Manhattan this spring — if I end up in HK, this looks like a great new breakfast spot; Dot’s
Gotta swing by the new Manhattan outpost of L’Industrie
Got to tryNAKS(from the Dhamaka / Semma / Rowdy Rooster team) and it’s fantastic! Didn’t do the tasting menu but the à la carte is legit — in particular, the duck was excellent.
LONDON ADVENTURE
Had a really lovely, if not brief, trip to London last week for work. Normally I aggressively go after seeing some shows but instead went with food. I had a fantastic meal at 64 Goodge Street (Infatuation Best of 2024) with a major selection win with their ‘champignons sauvages, celeriac, confit egg yolk & shredded mimolette’ dish. I’m usually a meat and potatoes kind of guy but this dish was wow-worthy and had a lot of heft/depth comparable to a protein based main.
On night two, I had a bit of a meal crisis where I spiraled trying to figure out which new spot I wanted to try when I ended up having some free time. After much deliberation, I booked a return trip to Sessions Arts Club (which I first tried in 2022) and my goodness — for the longest time Brat in Shoreditch was my favorite spot in London but I think Sessions has taken the crown for being the complete experience package. After I dined, I dug into a bit more of the backstory of the spot:
The restaurant, opened in 2021, sits on the top floor of a stunning Grade II* listed building in Clerkenwell, an old judges’ dining room at Sessions House. It is the perfect balance of historical preservation mixed with chic modern touches. The collaborating team that created the space includes:
Award-winning, beautifully restrained menu designed by Florence Knight
Architecture / brand design by Soda Studio
Paintings / art by Jonny Gent
Additional architecture collaboration by Sätila Studios
All marvelously envisioned and pulled together by noted restauranteur Jon Spiteri
Built on a studio ethos, it’s a restaurant, bar, art & performance space that moves and shifts with the season via its curated collective program. I would kill to see arts programming there…
Waiters wear smocks with hand painted touches by Jon Spiteri— which are available for purchase at the restaurant (almost £800… a bit steep for my wallet)
I cannot express how beautiful and simple the space is — worn down in all the right ways, dramatic candles on each table, rotating art, perfectly balanced seating, and a fantastic playlist curated by noted producer David Wrench.
But the highlight (even more than my first visit) is the menu by Florence Knight. It was just announced that she will be leaving at this end of this month (January) so I’m very happy to have enjoyed one of her final meals there. If you’re taking a trip to London, I couldn’t recommend it more — next time I want to try the balcony seating.
LIFE & STUFF
Mostly annoyed about society’s insistence to define everything in micro detail but didn’t hate reading this Cut article about polyamory.
Tree.fm allows you to listen to various forests from around the world. Into it.
A hotel on an old ship docked in Manhattan? Make it happen, Adams / Hochul!
Definitely not kink shaming but how do we feel about mud play? Need to sit on that one for a bit!
While Pitchfork was often annoying with some of their editorial / curation, this was a real shit thing to do by the eternal fuckface, Anna Wintour.
While I’m not excited by Eddie Redmayne in the Cabaret revival coming to Broadway (it’s FINE), I am excited by Bebe Neuwrith, Ato Blankson-Wood, Steven Skybell, Natascia Diaz, and the just announced Colin Cunliffe (!) and Marcia Marcia Marcia aka Marty Lauter. Honestly would kill to see Colin as the Emcee but it looks like Marty has the honor — I would see it!
I’ll say the quiet part out loud — the majority of folks have reduced their work intensity on Monday or Fridays which basically equates to a four day work week. I’m pro four days of very intense work and a three day weekend. Let’s make it happen!
ART & DESIGN
The Reethaus, a futuristic performance and art space in Berlin.
Utterly in love with these sculptural chairs by Liam Lee — I want a dining room full of them.
Venturing to Luna Luna this coming weekend in DTLA — with a ticket price of $48 and knowing you can’t actually ride the rides, it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll be annoyed by it. Will report back!
I’ve been seeing FAT ‘N CHUNKY YET FUNKY typefaces everywhere — now another with Acid Cafes in Europe.
I’ve wanted to shift into wearing more skirts cause why do women get to enjoy the airy freedom while men are oppressed by pants. Glad to see some traction is being made. Speaking of — very into the elevated Elaine Stritch at Liberty lewk seen at the JW Anderson FW2024 show.
As I start to dive into finding a new apartment, my interior design mood board feels a lot like how Sebastian Curi decorates his studio.
