Latest news with #NickCurtola
Eater
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Eater
The Four Horsemen Follow-Up Is as Exciting as We Hoped It Would Be
is a born-and-raised New Yorker who is an editor for Eater's Northeast region and Eater New York, was the former Eater Austin editor for 10 years, and often writes about food and pop culture. The Italian restaurant's name translates to 'little horses,' which makes for a befitting spinoff, but there's nothing small about I Cavallini. The Italian restaurant has over 60 seats in a dining room that has breathing room. The bigger kitchen allows the Four Horsemen executive chef and I Cavallini co-partner Nick Curtola, chef de cuisine Ben Zook, and the rest of the staff to expand their culinary prowess in this new playground. Getting in: I honestly was expecting to line up outside the restaurant for a walk-in, especially after the initial batch of online reservations were immediately snatched up. But during my random checking of the Resy link, I grabbed a 5 p.m. seat for two. Walking up to the restaurant a few minutes before the reservation time, there was already a short line of people awaiting walk-in spaces. A dining table at I Cavallini. Nadia Chaudhury/Eater Northeast The space: As to be expected, I Cavallini is very cool, thanks to interior designer Amy Butchko. It's a warm, bright, and elegant space framed by whitewashed brick walls in a room aligned with blond wooden tables and chairs. The back bar and the shelves above the kitchen are full of sculptures, books, and a framed photo of the Four Horsemen co-founder Justin Chearno, who died in 2024. We were seated across from a vibrant painting that I can only describe as an artist monkey in front of a canvas. Even in the bathrooms, there are painted murals, including the delightful big ol' bucket of pasta next to a trippy rock band. The food: One of the most interesting dishes I've had in a while was the nervetti and onion salad ($19). It's a beautiful, jiggly, wet pile (complimentary) of sliced and chunked beef tendons and onions, soaked in chive blossom vinegar. It's more of a charcuterie plate than a salad, and it was still a meaty wonder. Of the pastas, my shining star was the gnocchi sardi ($32). The bowl came with little Sardinian pasta, plump itty bitty shrimps, and small zolfini beans swimming in an herby buttery broth. I could have used some bread, or maybe I should have held onto the focaccia ($18, paired with a whipped ricotta and roasted cherry tomatoes) we ordered for the beginning, since I was spooning up the broth to drink on its own. The nervetti and onion salad at I Cavallini. Nadia Chaudhury/Eater Northeast The side of chilled cucumbers ($14) doused in colatura di alici (an Italian fish sauce) was a nice reprieve from the heat outside, but it would've been better suited in the antipasti section of the menu. The desserts: You have to judge an Italian or Italian-ish restaurant based on its tiramisu, and I'm pleased to report that the coffee-soaked dessert ($15) at I Cavallini is quite good. The plated sweet is easily shareable between two people — in ladyfinger terms, it's three pieces wide and two pieces tall, served on a plate. We also got the olive oil cake ($18), which was fine, but the side of marinated strawberries from cult-beloved Harry's Berries made it much better. A tip: add some strawberries to the tiramisu; you won't regret it. The drinks: While the Four Horsemen sticks to wine and beer, I Cavallini has a liquor license, so this means first-time cocktails from the team, led by bar director Jojo Colona. The results are playful drinks with spirits and, because it's a cool Italian joint, amaro. I started with the Pomozoni ($19), a bright Italian gin drink made with Sungold tomatoes, Dola Dira (a rhubarb-ish Italian aperitivo), lemon, and a touch of salt. It was a perfect summer cocktail that I could imagine drinking out on a patio somewhere. The Pomozoni at I Cavallini. Nadia Chaudhury/Eater Northeast For the main meal, I switched to a glass of wine from the all-Italian list, from wine director Flo Barth. Our server recommended the Tiberio Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo 2024 ($18), a rosé-ish wine that was served slightly chilled, lending a lightness to a full flavor, pairing well with our pastas and seafood. To end the meal, I got the frothy fun Dolce Amaro Fizz ($21), an egg cream-like concoction made with Amaro Noveis, coffee liqueur, shaken egg yolk, cream, hazelnut, and prosecco for some bubbles. The takeaway: As my friend and I walked out of the restaurant, it was cool seeing the team (including LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy) hanging out by the bar. It was also nice seeing that the Four Horsemen was still packed across the street. On my commute home, I listened to This Is Happening for the first time in a while. The album works as a reflection on the restaurant, too: I Cavallini is finally happening. But what makes I Cavallini stand out is that the team takes what they know already works and fleshes it out in this new restaurant brimming with friendly service, a warm atmosphere, and high-quality food and drink, without being gimmicky.
Eater
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Eater
The Four Horsemen's Anticipated Italian Restaurant Is Finally Here
Fresh off celebrating the Four Horsemen's tenth anniversary, the team has opened their hotly anticipated new restaurant across the street. I Cavallini is opening in Williamsburg on 284 Grand Street, between Havemeyer and Roebling streets, starting on Wednesday, July 16. The new restaurant is larger than its older sibling, with 64 seats (tables, bar, and counter) and a bigger kitchen. The dinner menu features in-house-made pastas, including the bucatini with tomatoes and ricotta salata ($30), and the gnocchi sardi with shrimp, beans, and herb butter ($32). Other dishes include the fried eel toast with pine nuts and golden raisins ($24); roasted golden chicken with garlic and grilled hearts ($49); and the olive oil cake with berries ($18). Drinks include the all-Italian wine list with more than 100 bottles. Then there's cocktails, which is new for the team, many with amaro, such as the Shakerato Rickey with amaro, lime, and soda ($18); the Pomozoni with Italian gin, doladira, lemon, tomatoes, and salt ($19); the Safe Harbor with a dry gin, fino, coconut, cucumber, absinthe and soda ($18); the after-dinner Dolce Amaro Fizz with amaro noveis, hazelnut, coffee liqueur, egg yolk, cream, and prosecco ($21); plus beers, nonalcoholic options, and coffee. I Cavallini co-partners are executive chef Nick Curtola (who also oversees the kitchen of the Four Horsemen), managing director Amanda McMillan, James Murphy, Christina Topsoe, Randy Moon, and Stacy Fisher (who is the wife of the late partner Justin Chearno). The rest of the team includes wine director Flo Barth (who worked with Chearno at the Four Horsemen), bar director Jojo Colona (who worked at Attaboy), general manager Kendra Busby, and sous chefs Jonathan Vogt and Max Baez. Reservations can be placed online, but there is room for walk-ins — good luck to anyone trying their luck at this on opening week! The fried eel toasts at I Cavallini. Nick Curtola/I Cavallini Ichimura's final days Sushi Ichimura will close after service on Thursday, July 14. As Eater reported earlier this year, Sushi Ichimura opened the 10-seat sushi spot in 2023 from the esteemed Eiji Ichimura — who set forth a new chapter on high-end omakase in New York — and Kuma Hospitality, also behind the restaurant l'Abeille (both were featured in Celine Song's summer movie The Materialists). At the time, the group suggested that Ichimura was retiring, but he has denied that that's the case. Kuma is working to flip the space into a new concept at 412 Greenwich Street, near Laight Street, in Tribeca. Eater has reached out for more information. A roast beef sandwich icon of South Brooklyn turns 55 Roll N Roaster in Sheepshead Bay is celebrating its more-than-five decades in operation with a bunch of BOGO (buy-one-get-one free) food deals on Tuesday, July 15, like its roast beef sandwiches. Don't miss out on that collectible special-edition pen, either.
