Archive for July, 2010

July 14th, 2010

Beny’s Delice, a Sweet and Savory Bakery, Open in Clinton Hill

by jenny

This story originally appeared on Grub Street.

French bakery Beny’s Delice opened July 9 in Clinton Hill, joining restaurant Autour de Monde and wine shop Olivino on the increasingly Euro blocks of Fulton Street near Clinton Avenue. Owner David Benizeri was a caterer in New York and the south of France, and did a stint in the kitchen at Ten Bells before deciding it was time “to have a window on the street.” The former barbershop has a dark counter made of reclaimed wood, a shiny black tin ceiling, and four high stools for those who wish to dine in. The bakery is open daily between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m.

Benizeri’s savory offerings reflect a Mediterranean influence. There’s pan bagna, bread filled with a mix of tuna, olives, cucumbers, boiled egg, radish, and other veggies (“like a Nicoise salad but without the potatoes,” he says); a selection of salads, classic jambeur (ham, cornichons, and butter on baguette); and a rotating selection of friands filled with things like spiced ground beef or pear and goat cheese. Tarik Slamani, Benizeri’s former catering collaborator, oversees the sweet side of the operation with a “very, very, traditional French” pastry case. Look for berry tartlettes, puffy religieuses filled with chocolate pastry cream, and a selection of madeleines and other small cookies packed to travel in tiny cellophane bags. Coffee is La Colombe and the bread comes from Pain d’Avignon.

Beny’s Delice, 903 Fulton St., nr. Clinton Ave., Clinton Hill; 646-704-1315.

Read the original story on Grub Street.


July 14th, 2010

Who Dat? New Orleans pops up in Williamsburg

by jenny

This story originally appeared on Tasting Table.

Tchoup Shop

If we have to put up with New Orleans-style mugginess this summer, we should at least do so in the company of NOLA-style cuisine and bon temps.

Both can be found at Tchoup (“chop”) Shop, a pop-up party that throws down Sunday afternoons at d.b.a. Brooklyn. There, chef and NOLA native Simon Glenn prepares a dozen or so dishes each week on his makeshift grill.

The chef’s down-home touch has attracted a cadre of regulars and Louisiana ex-pats. Some come for Glenn’s more contemporary creations: A recent Sunday brought a memorable grilled boudin sausage (shipped in from Breaux Bridge, Louisiana) topped with his homemade pickles and Cajun mustard; sweet-sour chicken wings coated in homemade Cajun pepper jelly; and divine duck-fat-roasted asparagus punctuated with Chinese sausage, walnuts and blue cheese.

And there are others who just want to grab an above-par burger and some peel-and-eat shrimp accompanied by a sweaty mug of beer and listen to the tunes of a live Louisiana band.

Is it Sunday yet?

Tchoup Shop takes place every Sunday through October from 2:30 p.m. until the food runs out (usually around 8 p.m.). d.b.a. Brooklyn, 113 N. Seventh St. (between Berry St. and Wythe Ave.), Brooklyn; 718-218-6006 or tchoupshop.com

Photo: Alex Solmssen

Read the original story on Tasting Table.