SHO - Shaun Hergatt is closing
Hopes to relocate, I certainly hope he does, in the right location he will be a contender.
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sgordon
Jun 16, 2012 06:13 AM
I'd heard something months ago about he was going to open a second, more casual place in Midtown - Midtown West, I think? Maybe he'll be moving the flagship to that space.
Either way, good for him - one of the big things holding him back was the location. I could see him doing especially well with a smaller place in Tribeca or the West Village. A place with the same food but a slightly more casual ambience. The LES probably wouldn't be the right fit - other than WD-50, high-end places just haven't done well there. SHO isn't really a "destination" place the way WD is, either. It could be one, in time - but it'll take a bit of re-introduction to the dining masses.
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re: sgordon
Blue Ribbon in the Thompson hotel, as I posted the other day, is high-end, and exceptional. It looks by the crowd ( mostly Asian) that they will make it. The place was pretty packed and it was during the week. So I think with more hotel spaces opening on LES , a high - end place can do well. High - end but casual, as far as dress etc. That's the key. No one wants to wear a suit to the LES.
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re: foodwhisperer
sgordon
Jun 16, 2012 08:07 AM
I wouldn't call Blue Ribbon Izakaya high-end, at least not by NYC standards - they're in the mid-range, I suppose. Their sushi / sashimi prices are pretty standard, with a few typical outliers, but most of the main dishes are under $30 - some even under $20. Like the original Blue Ribbon, there's prices all over the map - something for everyone. You could spend $50/pp, or $100/pp and leave satisfied either way.
That said, it's more the vibe I meant - agreed, no one wants to wear a suit on the LES. But then, no one wants to in Chelsea or the West Village or Tribeca either. I just think those neighborhoods fit Hergatt's style a little more - the LES is hustle-bustle, a bit douchy on the weekends. While there are a couple little oases hidden about, the overall mood isn't really a "fine dining" one. Tribeca would be optimum, I think - he'd fit right in with Bouley, Corton, Jungsik, etc.
If he were to move to the hood, I wouldn't complain, though - be nice having him nearby. Hasn't The Orchard space been for sale for a couple years now? Maybe he could use that spot... Or one of the ludicrous number of storefronts that's remained empty for years on lower Avenue A, since the Community Board refuses to approve anyone for a liquor license down there... maybe a fancy place like SHO would get the nod from them, for once.
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re: sgordon
sgordon, I think Blue Ribbon ( the new one, not the old) is high end , by NYC standards. I took some pictures and reviewed some of the dishes I had the other night. The beef tongue was certainly a high end dish, the squid ink rice with uni was as well. They work hard to make their lobster sushi dish delicious. As far as sashimi goes, the aji was as good as any I've had at 15 East or elsewhere. Is it haute? no, but then again Izakaya, isn't really haute. However, the cost of my meal was haute. My bill was about $250 just for myself. That did include sake.
As far as Sho style not working on LES, probably the style is too stuffy. He would fit in with Bouley in Tribeca. At Bouley , one does feel out of place not wearing a sport jacket, although I did eat there without one. Jungsik I feel comfortable in jeans. But anyway, yes Tribeca would fit Sho better than LES-
re: foodwhisperer
If Blue Ribbon Izakaya is high-end "by NYC standards", then NYC dining is in even worse shape than I thought.
Look, if you spend $250 on a meal there, just for yourself, you've got to ask yourself why you're not going to Le Bernardin or somewhere really good. If it's just that you don't feel like putting on a jacket, then ask yourself whether the privilege of not wearing a jacket is worth paying premium prices for very expensive food that just isn't at the highest level. I personally would feel rather raped if I walked out of a dinner at Blue Ribbon Izakaya having spent $250.
This is EXACTLY why I think New York dining is so disappointing.
But in any event, that rather intemperate rant is irrelevant. Because as you agree, the style of SHO Shaun Hergatt wouldn't play in the LES. Even if people might theoretically be willing to pay more there for less elaborate food.* Sean Hergatt just doesn't cook LES food.
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* I say "theoretically" because, as you know, the whole point of izakayas is that it's perfectly possible to walk out without paying the outrageous amount you did. I have to think most of Blue Ribbon Izakaya's patrons do.-
re: Sneakeater
I should make clear that the main reason I'm so upset about this is that it's perfectly easy to eat at one of the "real" izakayas in midtown or the EV for much less than $250 a person. I'm not one of the "authenticity" police: I recognize that non-Japanese people can run a good Japanese restaurant. But I don't see that the Brombergs are doing anything to warrant a PREMIUM over what the pre-existing izakayas are doing. The food at Blue Ribbon Izakaya isn't more sophisticated, and the ingredients aren't better, than at the other places. (Nor are the bathrooms cleaner.) I don't see WHAT could justify that expense.
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re: Sneakeater
I hear what your saying. But If I had gone with my girlfriend, the price would have been half of what I spent. I tend to over order, especially if I am eating alone. I want to try everything, especially if it is the first time I try a place. Eating alone, at a sushi bar is much more enjoyable ( as i did at Blue Ribbon) than going to Le Bernadin alone. By the way the last time i was at le Bernadin, I spent $400 pp, and the food was not good , compared to how it was years ago. When i go for sushi at 15 East, there is no way it will be less than $150 pp. Do I feel raped, maybe sometimes LOL,, but I expect to pay high prices for good food. I did find Blue Ribbon very delicious. Way way way better than the old blue ribbon sushi.
I should not eat alone, that is dangerous for me, as I want to try everything. However, I do eat alone quite often, usually at chef counter or sushi bar. Tonite it was at a table, cost me $60 for Indian food.
Anyway, Sneakeater, I do understand your point about spending the money in the best places as the cost is the same. But, I'll never change my ways,, I usuallyeat where there is a parking spot available, and it's come as you are. I do hate reviewing my Amex bills at the end of the year.
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re: Phil Ogelos
Spiritchaser
Jun 15, 2012 06:59 AM
End of July. Here is the info I saw:
http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2012/06...
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Perhaps a new location will help. Perhaps lower prices might help too. I must say his dishes were very creative. The location in the Setai hotel was beautiful but perhaps, that is a dead area at night. Maybe he should have gotten the spot that Blue Ribbon has in the Thompson. They are packing them in there.
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re: Sneakeater
If the food is excellent, there is nothing wrong with the LES, . Actually I prefer eating on LES than the stuffy 50s and 60s . Hmmm Peter Luger is still in business in what was a horrible area of the city. I think Sho being profitable will be more about the rent they will pay than the location. But they have to step up their food and service. They miss the mark.
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re: foodwhisperer
The LES isn't a bad neighborhood.
It's a middle-market trendy neighborhood, mainly popular with young people, that won't support the kind of "stuffy" adult restaurant that Chef Hergatt apparently prefers to operate.
Look at how much Daniel Boulud had to adapt his style to succeed in that general area (yeah, I know DBGB is across the street from the LES). But that was his fifth or sixth restaurant in NYC. Does Chef Hergatt want his only NYC restaurant to be of that kind?
ETA -- I want to be clear that I'm not trying to insult the LES in any way. A restaurant of the type Chef Hergatt appears to prefer to run would fail in my own neighborhood as well.
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