NEW YORK (February 28, 2014). Visitors to VOLTA NY need not venture outside into the unpredictable polar vortex/early springtime weather rondo, as the Mercer Street loft's two floors host an array of enviable dining and beverage options that rival neighboring SoHo.
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Courtesy: Sara Jenkins
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Local all-stars Sara Jenkins and Tamara Reynolds team up as Er Baretto, serving rustic New Italian fare at the ground floor lounge. Jenkins defined her technique at New York's finest Mediterranean restaurants, including I Coppi, Il Buco, and 50 Carmine, and now heads East Village restaurants Porchetta (famous for its roast pork namesake) and Porsena (a pasta-focused Tuscan and Roman trattoria). She is firmly in the forefront of New York's fine Italian dining scene. Reynolds is the chef/owner of Van Alst Kitchen - A Traveling Feast in Astoria and regular on The Cooking Channel's Unique Eats. Their Tuscan-focused menu will change daily, with selections including pannino cubano (porchetta sandwich with prosciutto cotto, fontal cheese, purple mustard, and cornichons), insalata di radicchio (radicchio salad with fennel and blood orange), lasagna al forno (lasagna with pork ragu, béchamel, San Marzano tomatoes, parmiggiano), and pomegranate roasted leg of lamb (served with crispy potatoes and taziki), along with beer and wine.
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Courtesy: Everyman Espresso
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The fair's second floor fortifies with a coffee and pastries bar.
Sam Penix and the
Everyman Espresso team feature two varietals from
Counter Culture Coffee, the sustainable roasters and distributors, in a hand-crafted filter coffee service with Chemex brewers. Brewing at VOLTA NY are
Buziraguhindwa natural sundried (a naturally processed coffee from Buziraguhindwa washing station in Burundi, featuring strong aromatics and flavors of strawberry cream, dates, and spice) and
Remera (a traditionally washed Rwandan coffee, featuring crisp citrus and fruit notes, with a juicy body and a clean, sweet aftertaste). Plus, a plethora of traditional Sephardic
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Semolina cake, photo by Leetal Arazi/NYSHUK
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sweets will be served by
Ron Arazi (chef and baker) and
Leetal Arazi (pastry chef, food stylist and photographer) of
NYSHUK. The husband-and-wife team introduced their love of multilayered Jewish Middle Eastern cuisine to Brooklyn's
Smorgasburg in 2012, and beyond hosting contemporary Sephardic culinary workshops at The Brooklyn Kitchen and Haven's Kitchen, the duo produces a product line of pantry staples for home cooks - Harissa (sun-dried chili pepper spread), L'ekama (Middle Eastern spice blend in chili and garlic oil), and Tanzeya (slow-cooked dried fruit and spices medley). Their
VOLTA menu includes
hamatashen (poppyseed and raisin filled-pocket pastries enjoyed during the Jewish holiday of Purim),
oat and tanzeya squares (utilizing the couple's homemade dried fruit and spice tanzeya preserves), and
semolina cake (in rose-scented syrup with pistachios).
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Courtesy: Nicholas Winter Photography
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During VOLTA NY's public vernissage on Thursdayevening, Averna will serve two special cocktails showcasing the iconic Italian spirit brand's nuanced, bittersweet profile, poured by expert mixologist Tad Carducci, one half of New York's The Tippling Bros: the Vertigo (classic Averna, lime juice, and ginger ale), and the Shakerato (Averna Cream - a blend of cream and classic Averna and the world's first cream amaro - with Everyman Espresso cold-press coffee, a unique collaboration with our 2014 coffee vendor). VOLTA NY embraces the city's foodie culture and supports local culinary talent, and we are delighted (and famished) to share the bounty with fair visitors.
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