Minetta Tavern Burger Creators Say They’re Done Making Fancy Burgers

Minetta Tavern burger inventors are also done with fancy burgers

On the heels of burger popularizer April Bloomfield declaring she’s done serving burgers at new restaurants, chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr say they’re sick of making a big deal out of burgers, too. The duo — Keith McNally empire alums credited with making the legendary Minetta Tavern burger — will still be offering a burger at their new Tribeca bistro Frenchette, but don’t expect anything fancy. It will be “something simpler, cheaper, and not so scene-stealing,” Grub Street writes. People are too obsessed with burgers now, Hanson says: “There was a time where the burger was kind of this sidekick, and we kind of want to put it back there.” Frenchette is expected to open in October.

Another raw cookie dough purveyor opens in New York

The perpetually long line at cookie dough shop Dō has sparked its first competitor, a Gansevoort Market vendor called 2 Dough Boyz. The recently opened shop also sells only raw cookie dough, but with a ‘90s hip-hop theme. Flavors like a chocolate chip cookie dough with Reese’s and M&Ms have names such as “Nuttin’ Butter G Thang,” and each one comes in three sizes: Lil’ Wayne, Fat Joe, and Big Pun.

Scarpetta flagship reopening date

Vibey Italian restaurant chain Scarpetta is moving its flagship Meatpacking District location to the James Hotel New York at Madison and 29th Street, and the Post now announces that the switch will happen in November, with the addition of a bar seating 50 people. The dining room itself will seat more than 100 people, and the menu of pastas and small plates will remain the same.

Fast-casual Thai opens in East Village

A new restaurant billing itself as “fast-casual Thai” recently opened at 244 East 13th Street, near 2nd Avenue. Thaimee Box comes from chef Hong Thaimee, who also owns local Thai restaurant Ngam. The menu offers a slew of toppings like beef krapow and panang curry that can come over coconut rice, sticky rice, or a blend of quinoa, brown rice, and wild rice.

Princeton, New Jersey sushi and ramen master opens in Bushwick

A restaurant called Ajihei recently opened in Bushwick, serving ramen and sushi from a chef with a long history in Princeton, New Jersey. Owner and chef Koji Kitamura received a favorable review from the Times for his tonkatsu ramen at his Jersey location, and here at the 156 Knickerbocker Avenue location, he plans to serve a similar menu.

A documentary about Franny’s

Brooklyn favorite Franny’s closed over the weekend after close to 15 years in the Park Slope-Prospect Heights area, and a couple former employees want to remember the restaurant with a documentary. Jillian LaVinka and Alyssa Schroeter have been filming stories from regulars, staff, and more over the last month. They’re now raising money for post-production costs.

For a look at a more old-school version of Brooklyn Italian, take a look at Bamonte’s in Williamsburg: