STIRRING THE POT: FLORENCE FABRICANT & ANDREW CARMELLINI

Florence Fabricant, a food and wine writer for the New York Times, contributes the weekly Front Burner and Off the Menu columns, is a member of the wine panel and writes the pairings column for the wine tastings. She frequently writes features that appear in the Food section and also covers food and travel elsewhere in the Times. She has written 13 cookbooks. This spring, her latest, The Ladies Village Improvement Society Cookbook: Eating and Entertaining in East Hampton" to celebrate the 125th anniversary of LVIS was published by Rizzoli. Other books include Wine with Food, based on the New York Times pairings columns and written with Eric Asimov and The City Harvest Cookbook, both published by Rizzoli. She actually began her career as a food writer in East Hampton, contributing the column In Season to the East Hampton Star. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Smith College, she has an M.A. in French from New York University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. She holds L’Ordre National du Mérite from the French government, is on the Board of Trustees of Guild Hall in East Hampton, N.Y., and is a member of Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America. (New York, NY). She lives in Manhattan and East Hampton, N.Y., and has two children and two grandchildren. 

Photo: Fred Conrad for The New York Times

Andrew Carmellini’s cooking is soulful and flavorful, rustic and refined. It’s a style that reflects his American roots, his work in some of the best kitchens, and his travels across the globe. He started working in restaurants at age fourteen and before making his way to New York, Carmellini worked in some of Europe’s finest restaurants, including Michelin two-star San Domenico in Emilio-Romagna. In New York, he worked at Lespinasse and Le Cirque, followed by Café Boulud in 1998 as the opening Chef de Cuisine. During his tenure, he was awarded twice by the James Beard Foundation and named one of Food & Wine Magazine’s “Best New Chefs,” among many other accolades. Members of his kitchen brigade would also go on to become some of today’s brightest culinary talents, leaving Andrew’s own set of prints on the era that followed.

In 2009, he opened Locanda Verde in The Greenwich Hotel, which earned two stars by The New York Times and a James Beard Foundation nomination for Best New Restaurant. In 2011, Carmellini opened The Dutch, a roots-inspired American restaurant in SoHo, which was named as The New York Times’ Best New Restaurant of the Year.

The following decade brought the opening of Lafayette, a French grand café and bakery, and Bar Primi, a casual pasta shop, in the heart of NoHo, in addition to Leuca, a Southern Italian neighborhood restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn and Carne Mare, an Italian chophouse in New York City’s historic South Street Seaport.

In 2023, when Carmellini opened his signature restaurant, Café Carmellini, it was the first of his career with his name on the door. Café Carmellini marks his return to fine dining while distilling his 30-year New York City career into an extraordinary culinary experience. The restaurant earned a spot on New York Times’ Best New Restaurants and The 100 Best Restaurants in New York City, as well as Esquire’s Best New Restaurants in America, among other accolades. Located within The Fifth Avenue Hotel in NoMad, a luxury property awarded two Michelin Keys, Café Carmellini debuted alongside The Portrait Bar, an elegant cocktail bar with sophisticated drinks and refined bar fare. In 2025, The Portrait Bar was recognized on North America’s 50 Best Bars list.

Carmellini is also the author of two cookbooks: Urban Italian and American Flavor.

andrewcarmellini.com.

Photo: Nicholas Karlin