The chef happened to be Alex Lee. The Milstein family's fortune comes in large part from banking and real estate ventures in New York City. The restaurant takes its culinary cues from the timeless dishes and preparations of the classic French bistro and enlivens them utilizing modern techniques and bold flavors. Then another Move: Carbone takes out one of the cigars gifted to him, looks me in the eye, and lights it as Sinatra hits the last high note in My Way. Torrisi is standing nearby, downing a glass of wine. My dad loves it. This quickly became one of the most applauded and sought-after hospitality complexes in America, earning praises and accolades such as "Best Restaurant in America" from numerous national publications. A hundred employees fritter around, trying to turn two closed restaurants into open ones. Carbone Las Vegas was a no-brainer, so by 2015 there was an edition at the Aria. Ad Choices. The Zalaznicks declared the home their domicile in October, marking their official relocation from New York. Follow NYT Food on Twitter and NYT Cooking on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Pinterest. For a lot of reasons Carbone Beach seemed particularly hubristic. Get regular updates from NYT Cooking, with recipe suggestions, cooking tips and shopping advice. It should be us. How Jeff Zalaznick Built the Major Food Group Empire Jeff Zalaznick flew to Saudi Arabia to pursue the possibility of opening his companys first restaurant in the Middle East. Carbones gone-Hollywood version of cooking linguine with clams arrived right as Instagram began to take off. Most importantly, it had drama. Zalaznick declined to provide further details about the locations. Legendary in the family for her cooking, the Brooklyn-born Cameron, serves as inspiration for the eaterys menu. Brooklyns further than three hours away! Carbone says. A Carbone in the Mansard Riyadh, a Radisson-backed hotel in the capital of Saudi Arabia, will open later this year. So they started looking around. And we will be the ones to do it right. , Lambert eventually came around and had her 90th birthday in the space. After a spell serving sandwiches at lunch to modest returns, some press accompanied one of their first dinner services, and soon they were drawing lines around the block. People in this city love Italian American food so much that theyre willing to eat it badly, but they dont care. This is really the evolution of what has been the building of an incredible restaurant business, Zalaznick said. fans, eclectic furniture, and lush greenery, nods to Havana, bringing a distinct Miami flair to the Carbone experience. That was a huge coup, said real estate lawyer Jonathan Mechanic, who used to frequent the Four Seasons. From there, Zalaznick began to collaborate with Torrisi and Carbone, and his impact was immediately felt. When Zalaznick told . Torrisi describes it as the trios oh shit moment. So we would watch all things Bobby Flay and just talk about shit, Carbone says. Q&A: Major Food Group Debuts ZZ's Club in Miami Design District Soon it was nine cases, then 14. The critics came around too. But its taken on a new dimension of late. Its a simple ribbed white tank for guys that has been called a wife-pleaser.. Several Dallas-based art collectors Id met over the years appear at the Carbone grand opening, and they introduce me to a number of young museum trustees, who introduce me to socialites, who introduce me to the scions of AT&T executivesAll of Dallas seems to be here, says one investor as servers whip around with trays of negronis and that ever-present spicy rigatoni vodka. Shes the only one in the family, before me, that could cook, Zalaznick said. glamour with an Italian-American twist, brought to life by the inimitable Ken Fulk. Expansion of a global nature has, unsurprisingly, been an entire chapter of the Carbone playbook almost since day one. July 22, 2022. In the end, he went with the upstart Major Food Group, further aggravating the restaurants devotees. Zalaznick soon quit JPMorgan and went to work at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in guest relations, which gave him a frontline seat to the hospitality business, before turning to his own ventures. The group had also branched out to new markets, with properties in Las Vegas, Hong Kong and Paris. Halegua and Zalaznick headed over to Thompson Street and stopped in front of Roccos, one of the longest-running Italian restaurants in the city, known by its distinctive neon sign. Kevin Kim, Jeff Zalaznick, Mario Carbone, Masa Ito -- the team behind ZZ's Sushi Bar, landing in [+] Miami Design District this month. NYC restaurant barons ride Florida pandemic wave to open new spots By the time COVID-19 broke out in 2020, the restaurant group had already expanded its book of businesses, adding a range of playful, glamorous and extravagant eateries, including seafood bar ZZs, brunch spot Sadelles, and steakhouse Dirty French. We saw this jewel box restaurant turn into an overnight success, Kulp said. The three young chefs served their interpretation of classic Italian deli sandwiches for lunch, and a seven-course prix fixe dinner in the evening, in a dining room that could barely seat 20 people. Its this sort of amazing thing that happened along the way, theres no way to put the pieces together to create that as a result, he says. The first Move is a meta one: leading us past the main dining room with tiles reminiscent of those in the restaurant in which Michael Corleone accepted his destiny in The Godfather, through the kitchen la Scorseses direction en route to the best table at the Copacabana in Goodfellas. He then struck out on his own and conceived, developed and sold two highly-influential restaurant websites. Art dealer Vito Schnabel curated the work in the space, commissioning a series of paintings by the critic and poet turned artists artist Rene Ricard. Jeff Zalaznick, 32 Managing partner, Major Food Group Tweet More Jeff Zalaznick may appear to be the business brains of Major Food Grouppartners Rich Torrisi and Mario Carbone are chefsbut. That went back to their early days together. And we can make shit happen on the fly.(Nota bene to the rich and famous: Advance warning is key. And he just started showing up at Torrisi.. ), Try as he might to not confirm A-list fans by name, Carbone was at times unable to not mention celebs who have transcended from regulars to family. It received a glowing two-star review from The New York Times and was named one of GQ's Most Outstanding Restaurants of 2015. Of Major Food Groups more than 20 restaurants in several cities, the only New York locations that are open and have been during the pandemic are Carbone, Sadelles and two of the Parms. The cocktail party becomes a full-on party, Ol Dirty Bastard and Biggie Smalls blasting on the speakers, and eventually Carbone joins Torrisi and Zalaznick by the front, and they tell me that the place is booked out already for two months. In the week before the opening, the place got more press than a visiting pope. The Carbone trio enlisted Zac Posen to design the captains tuxedos. Exclusive: Inside the S--tshow That Was the Trump-Biden Transition. Several South Florida projects are forthcoming in Brickell and the Miami Design District, so we can expect a flurry of news from the group through the rest of 2021. In Miami when youre hot youre hot, and when youre not youre not. First order of business was finding a space for their dream restaurant, their temple to Southern Italian comfort food as slick as a summer blockbuster. This is a BETA experience. I dont know if youd get in too much trouble, but I have some Our Lady of Rocco gear. It just felt so right.. He was born and raised in New York City and is a graduate of Cornell University. Major Food Group did just that at the Seagram Building, mixing an obsession with the past and a flamboyant twist on the future in their take on the space, which was divided into The Grill and The Pool Lounge. It was chip-on-your-shoulder cooking, like, all these other restaurants have twice as many cooks, all this new equipment, and were gonna fucking outcook them with nothing but our sheer will and technique.. "No one has done that," Zalaznick said. Eaters Ryan Sutton made The Grill the rare nontasting menu in the city with four stars. Together, the trio formed Major Food Group (MFG), a new breed of restaurant group seeking to operate restaurants that are respectful of the past, exciting for the present, and sustainable for the future. And then, for the remainder of the day, he has an apron on, watching TV, gardening, doing something outside, actually cooking, Carbone continues. Then there was the little issue of the cost. To date, MFG has received 2 nominations for Best New Restaurants in America by the James Beard Foundation, holds 18 New York Times Stars and 3 Michelin Stars. He grew up in a sophisticated environment where he could dabble, and go to places that he loved, said real estate mogul Aby Rosen, owner of RFR Realty, who would later partner with Zalaznick at the Seagram Building. Zalaznick had one thing the friends lacked: bona fide generational wealth. Restaurants seldom accomplish this successfully. The establishment opened its doors in March 2013 to much acclaim per The New Yorker, an impossible reservation almost instantly cementing the reputations of the already lauded restaurateurs. Its like, This space is closing. Ardent Carbone fans will recognize menu favorites with subtle updates like stone crab from the raw bar or coconut-lime confections for a local touch. They are masters of showmanship. Phyllis Lambertthe daughter of Seagram president Samuel Bronfman, who commissioned the building in the 1950swrote a blistering op-ed for The New York Times about the restaurant swap, saying Mr. Jeff Zalaznick Net Worth. About as intimidating a human being as youre going to find, Carbone says of Lee. We drove here just for a chance to meet you. To revist this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. And its like, Were going to do it. In 2011, MFG opened Parm, a casual dining experience that celebrates classic Italian-American food. The outdoor patio feels more laidback, with rattan ceiling fans, eclectic furniture and lush greenery as a nod to Havana, bringing a distinct Miami flair to theCarbone experience. In January of 2015, MFG opened Santina, a coastal Italian restaurant located underneath the High Line in a structure designed by renowned architect Renzo Piano. Torrisi and Carbone knew the guy, they had grappa after tasting-menu meals at the restaurant sometimes, so it wasnt all that strange. Hes yelling at other French chefs in perfect French. May we all be rich enough to eat here more often.. Carbones like a MOVIE SET, where every waiters like an actor, says Daniel Boulud, who ONCE EMPLOYED Carbone and Torrisi at his own Caf Boulud. by FameRanker April 3, 2022, 1:11 am 2k Views. Torrisi was this real juggernautit was a sandwich shop, it was this incredible multicourse restaurantand they were beside themselves with enthusiasm, says Ben Leventhal, a cofounder of Eater who went on to cofound the popular reservation service Resy, on which youll be hard-pressed to find a table at a reasonable hour at Carbones flagship anytime soon. After a beat, the younger guy walks up. Designed by the architectural giants Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Philip Johnson, it featured soaring 22-foot-tall windows, walnut paneling and an indoor pool. Its laid-back aesthetic, consisting of rattan ceiling [+] fans, eclectic furniture, and lush greenery, nods to Havana, bringing a distinct Miami flair to the Carbone experience. Inside Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner's Gilded Florida ParadiseFar My grandfather would wake up, hed get dressed, and part of getting dressed, hed put an apron on, Carbone tells me. "And they're all quite significant.". The property features a guesthouse, 100 feet of deep water frontage with a dock and boat lift, a pool and wet bar. These are not my people. We walk into the kitchen, where young guys in oil-slicked chefs whites are hammering away at their stations. Even deposed princelings Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner were there, enjoying a rare night out insulated from sneering restaurantgoers who cant afford to drop three stacks to get into dinner. But it seemed as though all the young guys in Carmellinis kill-or-be-killed kitchen were comers, content to sweat out the rough times and earn the scars needed to open their own places. Another Move is a capitan greeting the table in a tuxedo, handshakes all around, launching into an antipasti assault: gratis salami from down Bleecker Street; a Brobdingnagian basket of various carbs topped with a square of grandma bread the size of a stop sign; oily, pepper-flecked cauliflower giardiniera; and fist-size chunks of Parmesan. Someones got to do it. Major Food Group is changing the Miami restaurant game and fast. Theyre capturing lightning in the bottle over and over again, said chef Eli Kulp, who worked with Major Food Group in its early days. They were a part of this fuck-you generation, they were ready to do anything to get ahead, they were so ambitious.. Out comes the tableside-tossed Caesar but also a tire-size platter of extra-rich beef carpaccio speckled with ant-size chives. In the 1980s, the brothers developed a Madison Avenue building for Bank of America, were instrumental in revitalizing Times Square, and branched out into finance, acquiring the Emigrant Savings Bank New Yorks oldest savings institution. and Alex Von Bidder, the Four Seasons was a bastion of power in New York, where the whos who of media, finance and politics mingled, and regular guests could count on being courted. Main content starts here, tab to start navigating. Torrisi eventually went to work at A Voce, the first bote helmed solo by Carmellini. Is it any wonder he and the former president are already locked in a 2024 cold war? When I started thinking about what kind of brand partner we would want to have to develop this building with us, I immediately thought of Jeff, Stern said. Only one item on the menu is a direct recipe that Sadelle herself made, and thats the coleslaw. The family of Nelson Mezerhane has owned it since 1984. And, always willing to play with the intersection of food and experience, Major Food Group had several collaborations on its roster. Run by Julian Niccolini and Alex Von Bidder, the Four Seasons was a bastion of power in New York, where the whos who of media, finance and politics mingled, and regular guests could count on being courted. I was gonna do it, and I was gonna do the shit out of it.. Carbone is very significant, because its the food of the poor immigrants, and its fighting against the Northern Italian disdain, said Ray. The Milstein empire started with Morris Milstein, an immigrant who founded a flooring company in 1919, then went on to lay the floors of New York City landmarks such as Rockefeller and Lincoln centers. I said, Not only is this gonna be Carbone, I know how were gonna get this open in the fastest time anyones ever opened a restaurant.. Mario Carbone photographed for Vanity Fair, 2022. Alongside glossy write-ups in the Times and New York, though, there were early press pieces bemoaning Carbones maximalist approach as pastiche. Design-wise, the sprawling dining room transports you to Miami in the 1950s lush mid-century Miami glamour with an Italian-American twist, brought to life by the inimitable Ken Fulk. In looking for a replacement, Rosen needed someone who respected the space architecturally, and could take it in an exciting direction that wasnt too dramatic in its changes, retaining its classic elegance. Rich Torrisi, Mario Carbone and Jeff Zalaznick will open a restaurant in the Puck Building loosely based on Torrisi Italian Specialties. He also said there is enough space for them to expand their fund-raising effort, Major Good, a series of dinners and other events to benefit Robin Hood, which they have been running from the original Torrisi location. With The Grill, we fucking put our balls on the table, Carbone says. Throughout the trip, murmurs of a contagious virus spreading in China began to percolate. The drift from hospitality to real estate is a natural one for Major Food Group, whose other name brands include Parm, ZZs Clam Bar and Dirty French. I had dinner at Carbone on the first Sunday of May, and the main takeaway, apart from the relentlessly euphoria-inducing fare, was something like: This is an unapologetically self-aware way to go out for a meal. Carbones like a movie set, where every waiters like an actor, says Daniel Boulud, who once employed Carbone and Torrisi at his own Caf Boulud. Caf Boulud was intentionally difficult, Chang told The New Yorker in 2008. Major Food Group is a New York-based restaurant group founded by Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi, and Jeff Zalaznick. Jeffrey Zalaznick is 39. Within hours of dinner, the Daily Mail and @deuxmoi had each reported that Rodrigo had been at Carbone on the night before the Met Gala, complete with Thompson-Street-as-runway snaps of her in a see-through chain-mail dress. And Carbone is perhaps best seen as video streaming on an app, capturing this Sinatra-washed rigatoni fantasia, one that unfolds as if on a New York back lot in an L.A. movie studio filling in for Greenwich Village. Just three months after signing the lease, Zalaznick and his partners, chefs Rich Torrisi and Mario Carbone, were hosting A-list celebs, New York expats and real estate bigwigs including Barry Sternlicht, David Grutman, Craig Robins and J.P. Perez for a preview night at Carbone. One last Move: placing a Tesla-size basket of chestnuts and other unidentifiable shells on the tableThis is a nutcracker, and ladies, you only use them on these nuts.. We dont have to be those guys, were these guys now. I was like, I dont shine shoes no more. . Ive never seen anything like it. It was rampant in Westchester. We believed it was missing from the fabric of New York., When I asked Carbone to explain the X factor that brings in boldface names more reliably than any eatery on earththis is based on inexact science, to be sure, but its believed to be true by many experts of A-lister rubberneckinghe slipped into a pose that was maybe knowingly clueless, trying not to sound disingenuous while also protecting the discretion of his clientele. I get so excited when someone sends me a picture of their burger or something because I feel like all I post is Carbone.. Piazza and his wife also own a unit at the Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach, which they acquired in 2019 for $5.6 million, according to property records. The NIMBY crowd was particularly incensed that Carbone had a hand in elbowing out of New York the very element to which it was supposedly paying homage. When he got back to the States, he thought he had the stuff to make it in the kitchens stacked with chefs who would come to define the next two decades of restaurants in New York. No idea what came next. Heres what Zalaznick was proposing: What about opening what would become the greatest, fanciest red-sauce joint the city has ever seen? All rights reserved 2023 The Real Deal is a registered Trademark of Korangy Publishing Inc. Watch: Developer Patrick Carroll "spits" on restaurant manager, L&L, Mitsubishi default on Plaza District office tower, Hall of Famer Mike Piazza lists Miami Beach estate for $18.5M, Major Food Group expands to South Florida, New York restaurateurs decamp to South Florida. Jeffrey C Zalaznick, New York Public Records Instantly Im not gonna lie, I dont really know anything about Dallas, Carbone says, sitting in the not-quite-finished dining room at the end of an oblong parking lot in the Design District of the Texas metropolis, 1,551 miles from Greenwich Village. Then in Seattle. They are planning to open a new restaurant in the fall just a few steps from their original Torrisi Italian Specialties, an ode to Italian-American food and delis that Mr. Torrisi and Mr. Carbone, alums of Daniel Bouluds restaurants, first opened on Mulberry Street in 2009. Jay-Z and Beyonc came in early and often, as did other celebrities. Zalaznick began searching for second-generation restaurant space, so that Major Food Group could move quickly. So we drove three hours, the younger man says, stuttering a bit, clearly nervous. We already have four projects under construction and we'll be quickly adding more.. The role that space plays for Major Food Group properties goes back to the beginning, to the tiny storefront where Torrisi and Carbone joined forces to open an Italian eatery that quickly became the talk of the town. That was our space. It has to be us. That was our thought process back then. Major Food Group and JDS Development Announce 'MAJOR' As The