A Dessert Cafe Opens in Chinatown — And More Intel

— The Bushwick location of popular Prospect Heights restaurant Chuko Ramen may finally be opening in a month. The highly anticipated outpost at 144 Evergreen Ave. has been in the works for about four years.

— A new dessert cafe called Sweet Moment has opened in Chinatown/Little Italy at 106 Mott St., serving pastries made in-house, shaved ice, and La Colombe coffee. Shaved ice flavors include a black sesame red bean, matcha cheesecake, and mango cheesecake. They also offer some real cute bear-themed latte art — for both hot and cold drinks:

— Quirky soft-serve shop Big Gay Ice Cream is opening a location in South Street Seaport.

— Lower East Side restaurant The John Lamb is now closed, just about six months after it opened. Sago Hotel tells Bowery Boogie that a new operator is coming into the space as early as this week.

— Elsewhere on LES, Serafina at 98 Rivington St. has been shut down by the health department. It opened about four months ago.

— But another seafood restaurant is joining the neighborhood. Chamusca has signed a lease for an 800-square-foot space at 92 Rivington St. It’s slated to open in August, serving a “sustainable and seasonal” menu.

— That “Mad Men meets Twin Peaks”-style cocktail bar and restaurant in the Meatpacking District opened on Friday. The Lately, at 357 West 16th St., serves cocktails like “The Ultramaroon,” which has watermelon and beet root shrub, lime cordial, moroccan bitters, and cazadores reposado. Food includes a spicy cheddar chorizo wurst and a hot pretzel with beer mustard.

The Lately

— The dining scene in the South Bronx near Yankee Stadium is growing this spring. Both Bed-Stuy based Jamaican restaurant Smokey Island Grille and Chinese-Japanese-American fusion restaurant Hibachi Grill and Supreme Buffet are opening in Concourse later this year.

— Sepp Stoner, chef at the red hot Polo Bar is stepping down, and will be replaced by former Benoit executive chef Philippe Bartineau. “I plan on taking a little bit of time off and spending it with my family,” says Stoner, who has been chef at the Ralph Lauren owned restaurant since it opened in 2015. A combination of the food, ambiance and a who's who crowd has made it one of the toughest reservations to score in New York. - BL

— It’s now a little bit easier to pick up a doughnut from Underwest Donuts, the shop in a carwash on the far west side from chef Scott Levine. All locations of gourmet grocery Dean & Deluca now offer Underwest flavors like jasmine green tea, banana milk, and cool raspberry.

— Adam Platt awards two stars to Italienne, the Flatiron Italian restaurant with two dining rooms from chef Jared Sippel. The concept seems boring at its onset, but the food itself offered “unexpected pleasures,” including house rillettes, cauliflower gratin, and Northern Italian dumpling specials.

— Umami Burger is opening a new NYC location early this year.

— Dirt Candy’s Monday night pop-up, the Great Canadian Beer Hall, is running a 2-for-1 spring special tonight, where all beers, Bloody Caesars, and shots of Canadian whiskey will be two for the price of one from 5 p.m. on.

— In other Canada-in-New York news, smoked meats shop Mile End is offering special set menus starting this week with guest chefs in honor of a traditional Quebec sugar shack, hearty restaurants centered around the maple syrup harvest. On Sunday, April 2, alum from popular meat-centric restaurant Au Pied de Cochon will serve cabane à sucre (sugar shack) specials at dinner and a $45-per-person cabane à sucre feast for brunch.

— Fast casual flatbread pizza chain My Pie is expanding to the Upper West Side. Plus, other Italian, Chinese, and Mexican restaurants have opened in the neighborhood.

— Finally, have you considered eating a pig steak? Check out how Grindhaus in Red Hook does it: