Grub Street Grub Street New York

Eater hears that Carlos Quirarte and Matt Kliegman’s West Village club, Westway, just got the State Liquor Authority’s approval for a license after much community quibbling and will open in mid-May. Not as lucky were another team, Mario Carbone and Rich Torrisi. At last night’s Community Board 2 licensing-committee meeting, Carbone pled his case for a liquor license at his forthcoming concept Parm. Among other things, neighbors were concerned that the planned to-go window would cause congestion and voted not to support the application. In a separate post, Eater also has news about Kyo, a locally and sustainably minded Southeast Asian concept Marc Forgione will bring to 265 Elizabeth Street. The committee put off a decision about that, but weighed in on Corkbuzz, Gonzalez y Gonzalez, and an Asian-fusion concept from the owner of Caliente Cab Co.

CB2 Denies Gonzalez y Gonzalez, Approves Corkbuzz [Eater NY]
Community Board 2 Drops Hammer on Torrisi Spinoff Parm [Eater NY]
Westway Approved By SLA, Plans May Opening [Eater NY]

Anton Nocito of P&H; Soda Co. tells us that if all goes according to plan, he’ll be among the beach vendors this summer when Rockaway Taco and friends take over Rockaway Beach’s boardwalk concessions. While he also weighs the possibilities of returning to the New Amsterdam Market and the Hester Street Fair, he’s speaking to Workman Cycles about creating a cart that will be equipped with a pony keg and soda tap (the company has been making such carts for over a century). The cart will peddle the usual flavors as well as seasonal varieties like cherry and lemon verbena, and perhaps most exciting of all, there’ll be a new cola flavor, too.

Last night at Minetta Tavern, everyone came out in style to celebrate Adam Rapoport’s first issue of Bon Appétit. While Rapoport beamed and mingled with David Chang, the Franks, Mario Carbone, Scott Conant, Daniel Boulud, and about every other chef in New York, we spoke to a few interesting guests who, for obvious reasons, wanted to talk food!

More news out of the Hamptons today: David Loewenberg and Kirk Basnight have just inked a deal to open a café called Little Red at 76 Jobs Lane in Southampton. A more casual version of their popular Southampton brasserie Redbar, it’ll serve everything from burgers and steak-frites to roast chicken and fresh fish along with an extensive wine list, including lots of half-bottles. ”Kirk and I have wanted to do a fun café like this for years,” says Loewenberg, who also owns the Beacon in Sag Harbor and Fresno in East Hampton. The pair plan to open the café in mid-June.

Last night, in the waning months of Ferran Adrià's El Bulli, Anthony Bourdain, chef José Andrés, and the crew of No Reservations documented one of Adrià's 52-course "last suppers" by photo, video, and Twitter. Bourdain proclaims, "I will never eat so well again," and "Half the dining room were in tears." Andrés got Adrià on-camera for about fourteen non-sequitur seconds, listened to an unidentified Asian man sing opera, and proclaimed "prople of america [sic] ! this show about el bulli will be one of the great tv shows ever ... " They ended the night with gin and tonics, sitting with Ferran, looking out at the ocean, feeling the "wind off the Pyrenees" before heading to bed. But that's not the end of it.

After two years of searching for the right Hamptons spot, the Nobu team appears to have found a vacation home in Southampton at the Capri Hotel, which once housed the Pink Elephant. “I hope to have a deal signed this week,” co-owner Richie Notar tells us. Nobu at the Beach, as it will be called, will serve the restaurant's familiar favorites throughout the day and night. “It will be a little more relaxed — there might not be as much omakase,” says Notar, who also plans to offer catering (Nobu clambakes! sushi by the pool!). “I think it’s great because our customer base is there. It excites our staff and we found the right fit.”

Last fall Tuck Shop replaced People's Pops in the Chelsea Market, but Nathalie Jordi tells us she and her partners will return to the market this Friday. From April till October, look for the stand made from pop sticks (and of course the big ol' block of ice) near the 15th Street entrance, by Jacques Torres and Lucy's Whey. Just like last year, the stand will celebrate its opening by giving away shave ice (normally $2.50) on Friday starting at 10 a.m. (last year, 150 pounds of ice disappeared in about five hours), or you can plunk down $3.50 for one of the pop flavors below. The farm-to-freezer enterprise will also return to the Brooklyn Flea (they were back on the scene last weekend), the Amsterdam Market, and perhaps also the High Line (potential vendors are submitting their proposals this week).