Gourmand Heavyweights Plan Williamsburg Brasserie
By Chava Gourarie September 13, 2019 1:50 pm
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The co-owner of Tribeca’s Batard restaurant, John Winterman, and chef Chris Cipollone, of Piora fame, are opening a brasserie in Williamsburg.
The dream team signed a lease for 3,969 square feet at Caspi Development’s 134 Broadway, a historic six-story building at the corner of Bedford Avenue, according to information from Murro Realty, which brokered the deal. The site is a block west of the well-known Peter Luger Steak House, near the base of the Williamsburg Bridge.
The yet-to-be-named restaurant will occupy the entire ground floor of the commercial property, which is undergoing a full restoration. Asking rent was $120 per square foot.
Winterman, a longtime New York restaurateur, is best known for being the co-owner of the Michelin-starred Batard, and Cipollone was the head chef at the Michelin-starred Piora, which he opened with Simon Kim in 2013 and closed in 2017.
The concept of the new brasserie will be European-inspired and provide “real cooking,” Food & Wine first reported. The menu will play to Cipollone’s strengths and include “products such as braised meats, homemade pastas, roasted vegetables, and whole animal butchery,” Winterman told Food & Wine.
Murro Realty’s Jarrett Sharp and Declan Devlin represented both the tenant and landlord in the deal.
Devlin said the location, near Peter Luger and a large variety of quality restaurants, was a big draw for Winterman and Cipollone. “Both the chef and the managing partner are very familiar with the neighborhood, they’ve been eating at Peter Luger’s for more than a decade, and they were excited to begin their concept here,” Devlin said.
The brasserie is aiming for a spring 2020 opening.
