How 2 Eleven Madison Park Chefs Are Going From Upscale To Casual
What happens when you get everything you thought you wanted? In the case of chef Andy Quinn and sommelier Cedric Nicaise, it would be to start all over again.
But it's not like they are starting from scratch. They were once members of an A-team — "graduates" of Eleven Madison Park, a restaurant that's received three Michelin stars and four from The New York Times and which inspired the legendary Ruth Reichl to say, "A restaurant like Eleven Madison Park is basically a teaching institution, per The New York Times. And because they carry the cooking DNA of esteemed chef Daniel Humm, their new restaurant is likely to bear a slight resemblance to Eleven Madison Park — "the best in the world."
The resemblance isn't in its outward appearance. What Now NY describes Quinn and Nicaise's new restaurant, The Noortwyck, as "an elevated neighborhood restaurant focusing on delicious food and warm hospitality." It's located in Greenwich Village's Bleecker Street. It takes up a spot vacated by a restaurant called The Loyal — described as a much-beloved bistro focused on American cuisine and cocktails before it closed. The new restaurant's much-esteemed relative, Eleven Madison Park, is located on New York's upscale Madison Avenue.
Quinn and Nicaise have opened a neighborhood brasserie
And while the two couldn't be further apart on price points, both share a commitment to sustainable practices. After the pandemic, chef Daniel Humm chose to reopen Eleven Madison Park with a plant-based menu, per The New York Times, while chef Andy Quinn tells the Robb Report that The Noortwyck is committed to working with ingredient suppliers based in the New York area, sharing that his menu will be built on the seasonality of ingredients. "Rather than getting tomatoes flown in from Mexico or carrots brought in from California, you can get some really good stuff right here on our doorstep...I want the cooks to see the product, know where it's coming from, have a respect for the ingredient because of that, and in due course, then you're taking much better care," Quinn said.
His hope is that The Noortwyck, named after a 17th-century part of New York called the North District, becomes the place "to stop in for both big, expensive birthday celebrations and a casual meal at the bar, with the same food, beverage and service experience," per Robb Report.
In 2021, chef Daniel Humm told The New York Times: "I wanted everyone who comes into contact with Eleven Madison Park to become a part of doing good." Because they're applying ethos to their new restaurant, Hamm should be proud of his former chef and sommelier.