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Coming Soon

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This Robert DeNiro–backed Tuscan hot spot, with locations in West Hollywood and South Beach, is opening an outpost in TriBeCa's forthcoming Downtown Hotel – a six-story luxury property at Greenwich and North Moore streets – in May.

Bar Boulud

Daniel Boulud's Upper West Side wine bar (1900 Broadway) now has a name, and its simplicity belies its serious food-and-wine program (even if it is casual by Boulud standards). The cellar will boast some 500 wines, and "reverse pairings" will match the Burgundy-heavy list with a New French menu showcasing homemade artisanal charcuterie. Look for a September 2007 debut.

BLT Market

Laurent Tourondel's latest NYC location is still on track for a spring opening, likely in May. Housed in the former Atelier space in the Ritz-Carlton Central Park (50 Central Park S.), it will offer a rotating seasonal menu that could change as often as once a month. The breezy, elegant setting will feature paintings of figs, heirloom tomatoes, pomegranates and other market bounty, large windows that open onto the street in classic bistro style, outdoor seating and a separate exterior entrance on Sixth Avenue.

Insieme

In other naming news, Hearth chef Marco Canora has settled on a sobriquet – it means "together" in Italian – for his forthcoming project in The Michelangelo hotel (152 W. 51st St.). It's a nod to the old-world-meets-new-world menu, in which fairly straightforward preparations will sit side by side with more experimental dishes merging Italian cooking techniques with seasonal, less traditional ingredients. The opening is now scheduled for April.

Mercat

Like Boqueria and Casa Mono, this newcomer will marry Catalan cooking and a hip setting, to include an open kitchen and a downstairs tapas lounge; it's set to debut in Noho (45 Bond St.) in mid-March.

Southern Hospitality

Justin Timberlake is reportedly opening this BBQ restaurant on the Upper East Side.

Also Coming Soon

B.R. Guest Restaurants confirms it has taken over the former Park Avenue Country Club space (381 Park Avenue S.) a few doors up from Dos Caminos, where it plans to install a steakhouse in fall 2007.

The deal to open Park Chinois with London restaurateur Alan Yau having fallen through, Ian Schrager is now negotiating with chef Yuji Wakiya of Tokyo's Wakiya Ichiemicharo to partner on an upscale Chinese restaurant in his Gramercy Hotel (2 Lexington Ave.)

Good Deals and Other News

Boathouse

The outdoor patio of this Central Park oasis is reopening for the warm-weather season on April 15th; new additions include an outdoor grill and live music in the evenings.

Bouley

In the fall, David Bouley will move his flagship restaurant across the street to 161 Duane Street. At that time, the 120 W. Broadway space will become Bouley Bakery and, over at the current Bouley Bakery & Market space at 130 W. Broadway, his Upstairs eatery will expand to include the ground floor.

Cité & Cité Grill

Both of these Midtown eateries will permanently close on April 2nd.

15 East

Marco Moreira's Japanese restaurant in the old Tocqueville space debuted in December with just a sushi bar; now, a cooked menu is also available, including the likes of prawn tempura ($18), wild salmon three ways ($26) and sirloin of Colorado Kobe beef ($45).

Gramercy Tavern

Chef Mike Anthony's new menu includes signature dishes such as suckling pig and flat-iron steak with short-rib ravioli ($76 for three courses).

Kobe Club

In protest of his recent zero-star New York Times review, restaurateur Jeffrey Chodorow took out a full-page Times ad on February 21st lambasting critic Frank Bruni; Chodorow has since launched a blog to swipe back at Gotham restaurant critics.

London Bar

A prix fixe menu is now available at Gordon Ramsay's small-plates eatery; the two- and three-course menus ($25 and $31, respectively) include choices such as chicken liver and foie gras parfait and risotto of sweet corn and basil, served from 11 AM–6:30 PM daily.

Miriam

A new Cobble Hill branch of this Park Slope Israeli-Med has opened at 229 Court Street, where it boasts a full liquor license and bar, as well as weekday breakfast and weekend brunch hours.

Patina Restaurant Group

Through March 11th, purchase any bottle of red wine and receive 25 percent off and a "Pocket Guide to Wine" from Wine Enthusiast Magazine; the "Savor the Reds" offer is available at all Patina Restaurant Group restaurants, including Brasserie 8 1/2 and Sea Grill.

Russian Tea Room

Star chef Gary Robins is no longer in the kitchen of this Russian revivalist, which recently began serving weekday breakfast and lunch, as well as weekend brunch.

Shorty's

The Philly cheese steak specialist formerly known as Tony Luke's now goes by this new name.

Smith & Wollensky

Smith & Wollensky Group Inc. will merge with Patina Restaurant Group (Patina, Sea Grill, etc.) as part of a $79.5 million deal that will leave the steakhouse chain's six NYC restaurants – including Park Avenue Cafe and Quality Meats – in the hands of founder Alan Stillman. Patina says it will expand the Smith & Wollensky brand outside of NYC. Earlier this year, the Texas-based Landry's Restaurants Inc. (owner of the Chart House and Rainforest Cafe chains, among others) had launched a hostile takeover bid of the steakhouse chain.

Strip House

Speaking of steakhouses – on Sundays, this voluptuous West Villager takes 20 percent off roughly a dozen bottles on its wine list.

• Acqua Pazza
• Amici Amore I
• Baluchi's (1565 Second Ave. branch only)
• Basso Est
• Flor's Kitchen (First Ave. branch only)
• Honmura An
• I-Chin
• Ollie's Brasserie
• 7 Square
• Sipan
• Table XII