Major Food Group Is Opening a Members-Only Version of Carbone in NYC

Jeff Zalaznick, Mario Carbone, and Rich Torrisi, the hit-making trio behind Carbone and Major Food Group, are bringing a location of their exclusive, members-only club to Hudson Yards by the end of this year, according to the New York Times. ZZ’s Club, which opened in Miami’s Design District last year and currently has a waitlist of 7,000 people, will be taking over a three-story space formerly occupied by the Tavern, an exclusive bistro-style restaurant opened in partnership with magazine Wine Spectator.

The 25,000-square-foot space will now house lounge and bar spaces, a Japanese restaurant, and a version of Carbone, all of which will only be accessible to club members. In Miami, only individuals nominated by existing members of the club are eligible to apply for membership, but membership will be invite-only in New York, a spokesperson for Major Food Group tells Eater. It’s unclear how many members ZZ’s Club will accommodate when it opens at Hudson Yards this year.

How to befriend NYC’s bouncers

The New York Post spoke with bouncers at Temple Bar, Make Believe, and Paul’s Casablanca, soliciting advice on how to get into the city’s “most exclusive” nightlife spots. Doormen say the “days of who’s who ... are over,” at least for now, and getting inside these clubs is more about “big personalities” and dressing well. (Being white and hot probably doesn’t hurt, either.) Not a single Brooklyn venue made the cut, by the way, which makes us wonder: Has the Post ever tried walking into Bonnie’s in Williamsburg on a Friday night?

A smash burger hit heads uptown

7th Street Burger is on an expansion tear. The smash burger spot, which started with a single location in the East Village last year, has signed a lease for a new burger shop at 1603 Second Avenue, near East 83rd Street, on the Upper East Side, owner Kevin Rezvani tells Eater. It’s 7th Street’s third location in the city, after opening an outpost of the late-night burger shop in Greenwich Village this March. A Brooklyn location is also in the works.

Hot dogs from chefs Enrique Olvera and Rick Bayless

East Village cocktail bar Please Don’t Tell is hosting an outdoor pop-up this summer with cocktails highlighting agave spirits and hot dogs created in collaboration with chefs Enrique Olvera and Rick Bayless (think: dogs made with chicken milanesa and esquites). The pop-up, called Calle San Marcos, will operate Fridays, from 6 to 10 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 1 to 10 p.m. starting May 13.