Eataly!

Eataly's new location at 200 Fifth Ave (near 23rd st.)

Despite all the fantastic publicity it's been receiving since February, I just realized I didn't dedicate a post yet to Eataly, the "50,000 square-foot Slow Food–inspired Italian-food temple" that's aiming to be New York City's premier culinary mecca.  The mammoth grocery store/restaurant/center of enlightenment will be opening its doors to the public in mere days, on August 31st.  And it's going to be a mad-house.

And while this may sound so only-in-New-York, Eataly in fact, originated in Italy.

The Original, Photo from Eataly.it

The original Eataly- which will have been the largest artisanal Italian food and wine marketplace in the world post 8/31, opened just two years ago in Turin (or Torino), Italy and has since launched locations in Milan, Bologna, and Tokyo, among others.  The unstoppable founder and creator Oscar Farinetti teamed up with Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, and Lidia Matticchio Bastianich of B&B Hospitality Group to open the NYC location in the Flatiron district - which will be nearly twice the size of the original.

B&B, Image from  Babble.com

So what exactly is Eataly? In a nutshell, "an extravaganza that will include a premier retail center for Italian delicacies and wine, a culinary educational center, and a diverse slate of boutique eateries." The philosophy is a democratizing one: Farinetti’s aim (according to his press release) is to make high-quality Italian foods available to everyone, at fair prices and in an environment where people can shop, taste and learn. Slow Food, defender of such things as "food biodiversity" and "taste education," is the strategic consultant.

There is an exhaustive amount of information out there on what undoubtedly will be an exhausting (though exciting!) place to visit; so I've sifted through various articles and blog posts to offer you some highlights:

- There will be seven "restaurants," 14 food stations, and a full "piazza" with a raw bar, fresh-cut prosciutto, and marble-topped tables. (Gothamist)

Integrated dining areas

- The only named restaurant (and the only dining area that will take reservations), is Manzo, a full-scale white-tablecloth Italian steakhouse with 80 (or 60?) seats. Michael Toscano, formerly of Babbo, is the chef. (Times) Mario says it will contain a beef bar, "akin to a sushi bar, that will have five or six different daily-changing preparations of raw Piedmontese beef" (only 5 or 6? pff)

Bread in Eataly.

- While the packaged goods are mostly imported from Italy (and most are at import prices), the meat and produce is all local. Vegetables come straight from rooftop farm Brooklyn Grange in Queens. (Gothamist) 

Hm, I'm not so sure this is a fair price

- Beer will be brewed right on the 300-seat rooftop microbrewery, which will be run by Dogfish Head. (Gothamist) The aim is to pair artisanal rustic, homemade beers with the artisanal, rustic cooking of Chef Mario Batali. (Dogfish Head)

- A wine shop has an entrance on 23rd Street, and access to a counter for takeout pizza will be on 24th Street. (Times)

- Next to the espresso bar is a wall of five iPads, each programmed to display news from Italian newspaper La Stampa. (Gothamist)

- Artist Jennifer Rubell (niece of Studio 54 owner Steve Rubell) is the designated "vegetable butcher" - she will clean and cut any produce you purchase, free of charge. (Post) Scraps will be gathered in a separate plastic baggie to be weighed at the front and of course, composted. (NYMag)

- Alex Pilas, who ran private events at Del Posto, is the executive chef of the entire operation. (Times)

- Eataly will contain a small school headed by dean Lidia Bastianich.  There will be seminars with artisans, chefs, and winemakers that culminate in special dinners, as well as those that focus on nutrition, sociology, and the chemistry of food. (Post)

Mmmm! Pizza will be made by guys from Naples called Rossopomodoro, similar to Keste style.

- Eataly will have an in-house travel agency to organize trips to visit Italian food and wine producers. (Post)

- About 1,000 individuals applied for managerial and salaried (as opposed to hourly wage) positions,  including many career changers and individuals from finance and other fields who have been laid off or just wanted a different job. (WSJ)

- Eataly NY is a $20 million project. (WSJ)

And finally, click here for an amazingly confusing layout from the NY Post.

I'm very excited (and a bit scared) to see what this place is all about, and whether it lives up to its founding principles.  Lucky for me, it's only a few blocks from work. I know where I'll be spending my lunch breaks!

All photos from Gothamist unless otherwise noted.