Eight to twelve spices make up the various dry rubs on the smoked meats at Three Little Pigs BBQ of Hawthorne (481 Commerce St, Hawthorne 914.747.2480), a new counter-service barbecue eatery co-owned by Marc Mazzarulli who previously owned Opus 465 and Marc Charles Steakhouse in Armonk (both now shuttered). On the menu: smoked chicken wings, fried pickles, five-spice pork belly, house-made bratwurst, rotisserie chicken, jumbo turkey legs, and pickled veggies served with every entrée. Various dessert jars (mud pie, banana pudding, blueberry cobbler) are the end-of-meal sweets.
New menu items have been added at Blue Moon Mexican Café, the Metro-area five-restaurant chainlet that includes a location in Bronxville. The new dishes include cauliflower tacos; Modelo-beer-battered cod tacos topped with nopales (prickly pear cactus pads); grilled shrimp tacos Verano with pico de gallo, sliced avocado, pumpkin seeds, and cranberries; and the half-pound burger Loco topped with pulled pork, fried onion straws, sliced jalapenos, and queso sauce.
The Hastings-on-Hudson Village Crawl takes place December 2 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.; cash-only “passes” ($20 for a set of 5) can be used at any of 14 participating restaurants including The MIll, Center Restaurant, and Sakura.
The second county location of Bareburger (50 Purchase St, Rye 914.305.4036) has opened in the space that formerly housed Zona Fresca. The New York-centric international chain, which also has a Hartsdale location, serves responsibly sourced, antibiotic- and hormone-free burgers, including those made from bison, elk, duck, wild boar, and sweet potatoes.
Gyro Kitchen (2 Central Ave, Hartsdale 914.468.6900) is now open, serving traditional Greek taverna fare, including souvlaki, falafel, mousaka, and pastitsio. Open daily until 10 p.m., curbside pickup and delivery are offered.
Set to have opened by the start of this month in the space that previously held McArthur’s is Vela Kitchen (14 Washington Ave, Pleasantville 914.769.2980), a New American restaurant co-owned by Michael Madden, who runs Larchmont’s Vintage 1891 Kitchen.
NewYork-Presbyterian/Hudson Valley Hospital (www.hvhc.org) has announced Emilie Berner is the new chef and coordinator for its Chef Peter X. Kelly Teaching Kitchen in Cortlandt Manor. The Teaching Kitchen is a community program that supports healthy eating habits. Berner’s responsibilities include managing the kitchen, teaching cooking classes, leading a Young Chefs program, running the hospital’s Organic Healing Garden and overseeing a farmers’ market. Previously, Berner was lead chef and instructor at Bhagavat Life, a holistic-living nonprofit based in the East Village.