After Making a Brothy Splash, the Hunan Slurp Team Expands With a Dumpling Spot

Three years after Hunan Slurp made its brothy splash in the East Village, chef and owner Chao Wang is expanding with this second restaurant at 214 East Ninth Street, near Stuyvesant Street, set to open October 10. Its name might not be winning any awards, but the team at Dumpling Lab gets points for this two-story, “cyberpunk” space with leather banquettes and warm, yellow lighting. The menu will nod to Tsingtao, a coastal Chinese city now known as Qingdao, with truffle shrimp toast, sashimi crudo, and, of course, lots of dumplings. Chef Xiaomei Ma, formerly of Hunan Slurp, prepares them here with a dizzying combination of fillings, including mackerel with pork and chive and chicken with mushroom and corn. The East Village restaurant comes from founders Wang and Lu Dong, whose rice noodles at Hunan Slurp come highly endorsed by the New York Times.

BYO blanket at a community lunch from Hags

Ahead of the opening of their East Village restaurant Hags next year, chef Telly Justice and sommelier Camille Lindsley will be serving a “community lunch” in Red Hook’s Coffey Park on Wednesday, October 13. The multi-course menu with grilled corn and glazed pork ribs is first come, first served, with a suggested donation of $5. “Bring your own blanket or chair,” says event host Pioneer Works.

An acclaimed Austin, Texas taqueria pops up in Williamsburg

Edgar Rico of Austin’s Nixta Taqueria is headed “out East” this afternoon as part of a one-day pop-up at Win Son Bakery. The chef will be slinging tacos and tostadas starting at 11 a.m., but it’s not clear what the menu will consist of. In Austin, Rico is known for his high-technique tacos (gochujang octopus, vegan butternut and fingerling potato) priced in the single digits. Here, he’s promised to serve “a dank Mexican Taiwanese menu.”

Hunky Dory gets “weird” in its final days, as promised

When Claire Sprouse announced the closure of Hunky Dory earlier this month, she said that things would probably “get weird” in the restaurant’s final weeks. Well, here we are. The restaurant has released a calendar of happy hours and events ahead of closing at the end of the month, including its last comedy show and a pop-up from Flatbush Oyster Co.