Tammie Teclemariam

1 month ago | grubstreet.com | Tammie Teclemariam

Flynn McGarry, at work in his Gem kitchen in 2022. When we last caught up with Flynn McGarry in November, Gem Home had just opened on Mott Street. It’s a café in the back, where one can nosh on focaccia sandwiches and pastries at communal candlelit tables, and fine grocer in the front, sprinkled with McGarry’s vintage sundry selections. At the time, McGarry emphasized it was “not a restaurant,” but when its lease runs out at the end of the month, Gem Wine will now be closing.

1 month ago | grubstreet.com | Tammie Teclemariam

A mushroom slice and plain tomato at Ceres. Much like the recent burst of new bakeries that have stoked a fervor for croissants, conchas, and cinnamon rolls, pizza has also found itself in the middle of a renewed hype cycle, where lines and limited drops can be as important as the food itself.

1 month ago | grubstreet.com | Tammie Teclemariam

Ikura, and plenty more, at the Residence of Mr. Moto. Last week at Don Udon, a new noodle bar in Crown Heights, I slurped on bukkake udon — the dish had the name first, for the record — that I drowned in chilled, seasoned dashi before eating. The cold noodles were thick and tense, and the broth, into which a finely grated mound of daikon radish dissolved into crunchy flecks, was crisp and salty.

1 month ago | grubstreet.com | Tammie Teclemariam

five lines The new viral foods that are worth eating (and some that aren’t). On Instagram and TikTok, anything worth eating comes with a line. Whether social-media fame is sparked by an influencer or is the result of a concerted marketing effort to engineer a food’s digital moment, timeline domination does not always correlate to actual quality.

2 months ago | grubstreet.com | Tammie Teclemariam

Before opening the Cooper Square bakery Hani’s last fall, co-owner Shilpa Uskokovic knew the cinnamon buns would be popular. But she never expected them to be the top seller, tied with the triple-chunk cookies, “day after day, week after week.” Each bun is a thick band of yeasty dough rolled and baked until it’s filled with peaks and valleys where glossy malted glaze can pool.