Headliner
Restaurant Yuu
Multicourse, high-priced omakase counters with limited seating continue to proliferate. Is it because New York’s intimate sushi counters can’t meet the demand? Whatever the reason, the latest example in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, with 18 seats at a black marble counter facing an impressive open kitchen, follows a playbook that’s as French as it is Japanese. The chef and owner, Yuu Shimano, graduated from the Tsuji Culinary Institute in Osaka, Japan, and Lyon, France. He then worked at Guy Savoy in Paris and moved to New York to become the executive chef at Mifune. Mr. Shimano; his chef de cuisine, Shuji Furukawa; and the pastry chef Masaki Takahashi serve an 18-course tasting menu ($250) starting with a smoked trout tartlet with fennel cream, an octopus fritter, and caviar with sour cream on brioche garnished with a shiso flower. After dishes like smoked mackerel confit, a mushroom flan with surf clam and English peas, and fluke and scallop mousse in cabbage with a vin blanc sauce, the finale is his signature duck pie, like a well-burnished duck Wellington with foie gras. Wine and sake or nonalcoholic pairings are options. The restaurant has a couple of plush lounge areas for after-dinner mignardises and digestifs suggested by Akio Matsumoto, the sommelier. There are seatings at 6 and 8:30 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays.
55 Nassau Avenue (Guernsey Street), Greenpoint, Brooklyn, 347-422-0270, yuunewyork.com/restaurantyuu.
Opening
Libertine
More evidence that French cooking is alive and well in New York comes from this new West Village bistro. Cody Pruitt, the manager of Anfora, formed a partnership with the chef Max Mackinnon to open this new place and pursue a love of French food. Mr. Mackinnon’s menu offers gougères, scallops in the shell with seaweed butter, monkfish à la normande, gnocchi parisienne with asparagus and peas, and duck breast au poivre with duck confit Parmentier; desserts include a chocolate mousse. The 46-seat room with an open kitchen is done with dark burgundy banquettes and bistro tables. French posters and gilded mirrors adorn the walls.
684 Greenwich Street (Christopher Street), no phone, libertinenyc.com.
Mitica
Replacing Anella, a popular neighborhood spot for more than a decade, is this eclectic and ambitious 80-seat Mexican restaurant owned by Alonso Guzman and his wife, Amy Hernandez. Their Mariscos El Submarino in Jackson Heights, Queens, won high praise from Pete Wells in The Times, especially for its aguachile, and they call this new restaurant a cantina. The aguachile is on the menu here, as are some seafood dishes, but there is a tomahawk steak, duck breast and a pork shank adobado, all seasoned from a Mexican perspective but often prepared to showcase techniques from elsewhere. “We do Japanese-style grilling, there’s a French sauce for the steak and the pork shank is served with mashed potatoes,” Ms. Hernandez said.
222 Franklin Street (Green Street), Greenpoint, Brooklyn, 347-384-2422, instagram.com/miticanyc.
Boon Dee
All you can eat, Thai-style is the feature at this sprawling new place in Queens. Moo ka ta, a traditional Thai barbecue-hot pot hybrid, features simple wooden booths. The central grill pan at the table is surrounded by a moat of broth for searing and dipping. There are more than three dozen possible ingredients to select for this treatment from a buffet, and servers to give advice. The process is explained on the website. But there are also some strict regulations. Here “all you can eat” means all you must eat; though you are free to replenish, a 30 percent surcharge will be imposed for leftovers, which you are forbidden to take away. The same surcharge will apply to those who overstay their 90 minute limit. The price per person is $39.98, less for children under 7. Some additional à la carte appetizer options include gyoza, crab Rangoon, shrimp roll and tom yum soup: 168-11 Union Turnpike (168th Street), Hillcrest, Queens, 917-456-1088, boondeebbq.com.
