Oct 19, 2021

Colonia Verde Team Opens Comodo at The Freehand Hotel Posted byby CartEgg 2 hours Ago 8 Min Read Last Updated:October 19, 2021 – Advertisement – In 2019, when the Sydell Group sold Freehand Hotels to Generator — a European-based hospitality firm with a watch for hostels — it couldn’t have predicted the pandemic. But tourism went darkish shortly thereafter and the New York property’s eating places closed in accordance with metropolis mandates. Under new possession, now that journey is selecting up, a number of modifications are underway at the Freehand in Gramercy. Gabriel Stulman’s Simon & the Whale — which helped put the resort on the map in New York — just isn’t returning. In its place, Tamy Rofe and Felipe Donnelly — behind the Fort Greene Latin American spot Colonia Verde — have been introduced in to function their very own restaurant. Comodo opens at the Freehand on October twentieth at 23 Lexington Avenue, close to East twenty third Street. While there’s a new menu and placement, Comodo is definitely a reincarnation of Rofe and Donnelly’s first restaurant that they opened on MacDougal Street again in 2012 with the identical identify — that’s, till rising rents compelled them to hedge their bets in Brooklyn 5 years later. “Checking out the space, it reminded us of the spirit of our first restaurant, if we had had more experience and money,” Rofe says. At the two.0 model of Comodo, Donnelly says he’s excited to convey a few of the signature Latin American flavors — Mexican, Colombian, Peruvian, and Brazilian — they’ve come to be recognized for, however there shall be new twists like fish sauce and different ferments included into sure dishes. Colonia Verde was initially centered round open-fire grilling and rustic steak dishes; against this, Comodo could have a extra experimental, formidable menu. “The backbone is the same — you might recognize one or two items from back in the day on MacDougal — but it’s been an evolution of almost 10 years and seeing what dining means today,” Donnelly says. One of the most well-liked dishes at the unique Comodo is again. Gentl and Hyers/Comodo To that finish, for dinner, they’re bringing again their fan-favorite Comodo sliders on pao de queijo (a Brazilian cheese bread); right here, they’re offered as sliders with lamb-cranberry meatballs and a chipotle crema. Other dinner gadgets at Comodo embody wild mushroom al ajillo tacos on Sobre Masa tortillas and a beef tartare with guajillo adobo, anchovy, tobiko, and chicharron. For dessert, there’s a chocolate tamal with smoked guajillo ice cream and a gooseberry tart. When the restaurant opens tomorrow, there may also be a slim-but-growing breakfast menu. Eventually, it should function Donnelly’s play on hollandaise: An arepa with pork stomach that’s been cooked in hoisin and a yellow Peruvian sauce generally known as huancaina, completed with an egg on high. Likewise, they’ll serve Mexican-style in a single day oats with cacao, in addition to conchas sourced from La Newyorkina. Brunch will finally observe. A number of dinner gadgets at the brand new Freehand Hotel restaurant. Gentl and Hyers/Comodo The wine checklist shall be significantly larger than at Colonia Verde. “The neighborhood is home to a lot of old world wine connoisseurs but the hotel is definitely younger,” says Rofe. “We want our menu to be a mix of things for everyone.” In addition to Comodo’s personal wine picks — which has been described by the staff as “honest” and “expressive” — the menu may also function French wines from Bordeaux and Burgundy that have been left within the house from the earlier operators. “It was kind of haunting to enter the space; there was an exodus after March 15th,” says Rofe. “We kept finding things like shoes and open bottles that were left.” On the cocktail aspect of the menu, there’s an espresso martini dubbed The Party Upstairs, a nod to the forthcoming lounge with dancing opening at the resort within the former Studio at the Freehand house. What’s clear is {that a} splashy Manhattan restaurant opening was not one thing the duo had sought out. “We had no intention of opening up another restaurant during the pandemic,” Rofe tells Eater. “But our industry colleague, [Matt Kliegman, behind, among other projects, the Freehand’s Smile To-Go outpost] urged the hotel to reach out to true neighborhood spots, rather than big restaurant groups from Midtown that were initially on their list.” The concept of not having to construct out a complete new house was interesting. “We had talked so much about not jumping back in the hamster wheel [of New York City], but we couldn’t say no. It was a dream come true,” says Rofe. “The mission of the hotel is being social and having fun, and we are a social restaurant.” Right earlier than the pandemic, in November 2019, Rofe and Donnelly had opened Cosmico , a wine bar positioned contained in the Williamsburg music venue National Sawdust. With live shows on indefinite maintain, the staff scrambled to pivot the nascent operation into Disco Tacos this previous summer time. “Thank god everyone likes tacos at all times,” says Donnelly. Though the post-concert wine bar by no means had an opportunity to takeoff at National Sawdust, the Freehand’s upstairs nightlife challenge has Rofe and Donnelly excited to host a nightlife crowd, too. The “Party Upstairs” espresso martini. Gentl and Hyers/Comodo