90 newyork| november11–24, 2019
openingsMina’s
22-25 Jackson Ave., at 46th Ave.,
Long Island City; 718-440-4616minastonestartedprivate cheffing
tosupportherselfafterfashionschool
buteventuallydroppedthedress design-
ingforfoodfull-time,establishinga
nicheintheartworldbycateringgallery
dinnersandasUrsFischer’s in-studio
cook.That jobledtoa book, Cookingfor
Artists,andtohernextgig, aschef-
partner of Mina’s at MoMA PS1,where
she’ll be feeding not only artistsbut
museumgoers, the building staff, andthe
greater dining public. Her husband,art-
ist Alex Eagleton, has redesignedthe
space that previously housed M.Wells
Dinette, replacing the school-desk-style
communal tables with Corian-cladtwo-
tops (“I hate communal dining!,”says
Stone) and enclosing the once-open
kitchen (“so it’s not noisy”). Hemixed
sand into the white and pale-green
paints to give the walls a vaguelystuc-
coed effect, a reference to both hisand
Stone’s half-Greek heritage and toStone’s
culinary inspiration. While thechef
resists Greek-taverna clichés inboth
décor and menu, her style is greatlyinflu-
enced by the simple, seasonalhome
cooking that she learned from herGreek
grandmother and that she deemslacking
in New York’s Greek-restaurantland-
scape of diners on the low end andfancy
fish joints at the other extreme.Stone’s
menu offers variously topped toasts,like
one with smoked trout and thepepper
spread called muhammara; a “winter
Greek” salad; turmeric-and-lime-spiked
lentil soup; and daily specials like braised
chicken seasoned with cinnamonand
cloves. She’s sourcing a barrel-brined
sheep’s-milk feta that she swearscan
“convert a feta hater” and baking atahini
babka that nods to her father’s sideofthe
family—Jewish from Cleveland—but,
she says, “feels very Greek to me.”To
drink, there’s everything from ouzoand
the iconic frappé iced coffee to turmeric
lattes, kombucha, and natural wine.The HiHi Room
138 Smith St., nr. Bergen St., Boerum Hill; no phonenew yorkers like to think New York has everything
anyone could ever ask for in a city and, whatever that is, you can
get it 24/7. Not so. Take, for instance, Cincinnati chili. If you
want a taste of that hyperregional delight of overcooked spaghetti
topped with soupy, spiced meat sauce, you have to either coordinate
your schedule around its rare appearances at places where chili-deprived
Buckeyes congregate (Edward’s in Tribeca the last Monday of the
month, Phebe’s in the East Village when the Bengals are playing) or
mail-order some cans of Skyline-brand chili straight from the source.
What distinguishes this southern-Ohio variant from all other
chilies is that it’s not so much chili as it is a sauce or condiment. Most
aficionados don’t eat it in a bowl by itself; they ladle it over spaghetti
or spoon it on top of a Coney (i.e., a hot dog). Its seasoning is a blend
of cinnamon, cardamom, possibly chocolate, maybe ketchup or bar-
becue sauce, plus many other closely guarded secrets. And you order
it by the “ways” system, as if you were describing a chili orgy: Three-
way adds grated Cheddar to the noodles and meat; four-way adds
either raw onion or beans; five-way adds both.
Among the style’s devoted fans are (non-Ohioans) Eric Finkel-
stein and Matt Ross, who have spent the past nine years champion-
ing America’s overlooked hometown specialties at their Court Street
Grocers mini-empire of sandwichshopsandgeneralstores.When
they began brainstorming the menufortheHiHiRoom,theirfirst
table-service, full-bar, beyond-sandwichesrestaurant,Cincinnati
chili was at the top of the list. Butbeforethehomesickandhungry
start lining up on Boerum Hill’s SmithStreet, they shouldknowthat
this version is an interpretive one,madewithduckchiliandhand-
cut spaghetti (four-way, no beans).CreditgoestoWalkerStern,for-
mer co-chef of Battersby and Dover,whowillberunningtheHiHi
Room’s kitchen with Marc Howard,analumofLa Mercerie.
As you might glean from theserésumés,HiHiwillbenoordinary
hash house. Finkelstein describeswhat SternandHowardwillserve
for breakfast, lunch, and dinner as“stuffthat welove,regionalAmeri-
can food filtered through Walker’ssensibility.”Thatis,disheslike
shrimp and grits, upstate escarolespecialty Uticagreens,chicken
scrapple, and crab Louise (like Louisbutwithgreen-goddessdressing
ra ther than thousand island). Sternoriginalsincludesalt-bakedcelery
root with farro and hazelnuts, andbrunchbuckwheatwaffleswith
whitefish salad and roe. There willbea cheeseburger—theCourt
Street Grocers team’s first—made withbeef fromnearbybutchershop
Dellapietras on an Orwashers bun.(“Weneverhada deepfryer,and
we couldn’t serve a burger withoutfries,” says Finkelstein.) And
because a Finkelstein-Ross restaurant without them would be
unthinkable, there will be a sandwichortwo. r.r. & r.p.Photograph by Joe Lingeman