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Cafe Maud has opened its doors at 1640 Second Avenue (corner of 85th Street), which was previously home to Five Mile Stone. The bar and restaurant, whose original East Village location opened in 2024, was “inspired by the iconic Union Square Coffee Shop” and serves an all-day menu with a popular brunch and creative cocktail list. The menu comes with a selection of pizzas, salads and bowls, shareable dishes like chicken lollipops and shrimp crudo, a smash burger and fried chicken sandwich, and a variety of breakfast sandwiches and platters. Cocktails are priced between $15 and $17, and after 5 p.m., the second floor of the Upper East Side location will become The Domino Room, a speakeasy-style bar and restaurant inspired by London’s Café Royal Hotel. Read the full Five Mile Stone saga here.
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Birley Bakery recently opened at 20 East 69th Street (between Madison and Fifth avenues). The London-based, French-inspired bakery occupies two floors of the building, replacing Italian café Poppi and a nail salon. “[Birley] offers a collection of handmade pastries, sourdough bread, cakes, biscuits, and chocolate, prepared using time-honoured methods and thoughtfully sourced ingredients,” state’s its website. “Many of Vincent’s recipes have taken years to refine.”
A new Mediterranean restaurant called Dear Margo will be opening this fall at 961 Lexington Avenue (corner of 70th Street), according to its Instagram page. The space was previously home to Neil’s Coffee Shop before it closed in 2023. According to a Community Board 8 meeting held earlier this year, Dear Margo comes from restaurateur Dean Pashalis.
IKYU has announced that the soft-opening of its second Upper East Side location–at 1475 First Avenue, on the corner of 77th Street–will be taking place between September 4-7. The sushi and Asian fusion restaurant’s original location at 1718 Second Avenue (between 89th and 90th streets) opened in April 2023 (read our review) and has since gotten mostly positive feedback.
A new Chirping Chicken has opened at 1764 First Avenue (between 91st and 92nd streets). The casual chicken joint has another location at 1560 Second Avenue (at East 81st Street) in addition to two outposts on the Upper West Side.
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