Michael Cavaniola at the new Tribeca outpost of his Sag Harbor cheese shop.
My local cheese shop, Cavaniola’s, is closed for the week. Fortunately, we stocked up on Friday. Even better, Cavaniola’s is the keystone cheesemonger at the new All Good Things market in Tribeca, alongside Orwasher’s Bread, Dickson’s Farmstand Meats, Blue Bottle coffee and more for crowds of lucky New Yorkers.
The curated collection of vendors under one roof at 102 Franklin Street, which opened in September, has already attracted the praise of Serious Eats, Tribeca Citizen and Dean & DeLuca founder Giorgio DeLuca who marveled, “This is exactly what I was trying to do when I started.” As Nancy Matsumoto notes in the coming issue of Edible Manhattan, “To an even more extreme degree than at Dean & DeLuca, All Good Things’ edibles are edited down to a handpicked best of the best.” On my recent visit, I found Sag Harbor’s own R&R farmstand eggs, Neal’s Yard cheddar and other standbys that will be familiar to Cavaniola’s regulars, including Cook’s Illustrated editor Jack Bishop, playwright Jon Robin Baitz and others who may have migrated back to Gotham for the fall.
To round out the one-stop experience, All Good Things shoppers can pick up ice cream from Blue Marble, chocolates from Nunu, fresh Empire State seafood, and flowers from Polux Florist. Matsumoto notes a delicious “cross-pollination” already emerging at All Good Things, with Blue Bottle buying chocolate from Nunu for their caffé mochas, while bar sandwiches feature Cavaniola cheeses, Dickson’s Farmstand bacon and Orwasher’s bread. As for the restaurant–called Le Restaurant, in keeping with the literal naming of the surrounding market–it’s the creation of Ryan Tate, former chef at Savoy. While the bar will feature a tightly curated list of beers, wines and cocktails, as well as oysters and other bar eats, the restaurant will feature one set menu a day in the $70 to $90 range and a wine list of only five bottles. “Jiro [Dreams of Sushi] is our employee video,” says store founder Kyle Wittels. “You can’t pander to your customer. We’re consultants to them, advisors.”
But we already knew that, since we trust Michael and Tracey Cavaniola with our food lives. Which means you’re in luck if you’re near Franklin Street, just below Canal. And back in Sag Harbor, Cavaniola’s–as well as its adjoining wine cellar and kitchen shop–will be open again on Monday.
