With Labor Day, and the end of summer, fast approaching, the food world is preparing to rev up for the new fall season. Here's a taste of what's to come in September.
While continuing as chef at Keith McNally's Morandi, Jody Williams is prepping the opening – permits willing, sometime soon after Labor Day – of Gottino, an Italian wine bar on the same block as her alma mater, Gusto (52 Greenwich Ave.; 212-633-2590).
Tony Fortuna's take on the steakhouse, T-Bar & Lounge, will replace his Upper East Side eatery Lenox Room shortly after Labor Day. Chef Ben Zwicker's menu will include a raw bar (1278 Third Ave.; 212-772-0404).
The chef of the popular East Villager I Coppi will open a new restaurant of her own in mid-September named Matilda, combining Mexican and Tuscan cuisines (647 E. 11th St.).
Gray Kunz's long-awaited small-plates spot, Grayz, will debut the week of the 17th (13-15 W. 54th St.; 212-262-4600), while Steve Hanson's Primehouse New York will open its doors on the 21st (381 Park Avenue S.).
Going against the usual "close/renovate in August" grain, Flatiron staple Mayrose closes today for "at least" six weeks of renovations. It will reemerge as Lunetta, a sibling to the Italian-American restaurant in Boerum Hill (920 Broadway; 212-533-3663).
Similarly, Park Avenue Summer will close on September 23rd; it will reopen on October 1st as Park Avenue Autumn, boasting a new seasonal look and menu (100 E. 63rd St.; 212-644-1900).
Of course, a number of restaurants will spring into action in September. Fiamma reopens on the 17th with new chef Fabio Trabocchi at the helm (206 Spring St.; 212-653-0100). Midtowner Gilt returns from summer break on the 5th with an entirely new fall menu from toque Christopher Lee (455 Madison Ave.; 212-891-8100). And early in the month, Alex Ureña will reopen Ureña as Pamplona, a bistro specializing in Basque cooking (37 E. 28th St.; 212-213-2328).
Finally, two oft-delayed bars are claiming post–Labor Day openings: Blue Seats, the American sports bar set to debut at 157 Ludlow Street, and Pacific Standard, a microbrew specialist at 82 Fourth Avenue in Park Slope.