Inside Daniel Boulud's Newest New York Venture: Boulud Sud

Boulud Sud in the first week of May.

It will be his seventh spot in New York City — a big, gorgeous space that's practically across the street from Lincoln Center. A few notes and observations:

• There's a bar at the front. Said Boulud, "One of the biggest complaints about Bar Boulud was that there was no bar [laughs]. So we made sure to leave one third of the space in the restaurant for a bar so no one can complain."

James Beard award-winning designer Thomas Schlesser. Boulud: "The Publican, Blackbird, Avec, maybe you can stop winning awards for Chicago and bring some here." 

• As at DBGB, there's an open finishing kitchen. This one is along the wall facing the street. It runs parallel to huge arched windows that will give grand views of the street. It should be a pretty dynamic restaurant with lots to observe: street, kitchen, bar. Said Boulud, "DBGB we had no choice we had to make the kitchen into the dining room, or the dining room into the kitchen [laughs]. Here it's the same thing. Also, the space is so big so we kept one quarter of it for the kitchen and 60 percent for the dining room."

Café Boulud), executive pastry chef is Ghaya Oliveira (executive pastry chef Bar Boulud), and Épicerie's executive chef is Jonathan Kinsella (executive sous from Bar Boulud).

• They've also tapped Anne Saxelby to provide the restaurant with artisanal cheese, who noted her excitement about being able to feature American cheese. Boulud, "Yes, but you say they're American, but they're actually French-engineered [laughs]."

• When pressed, which dish is he most excited about? "Baby goat. It's a spring dish with pasta. I'm most excited that I'm going to put garlic in food here like I've never put it on my food before. I've been scared in the past. No need to be scared about that here. No pork, no cream, no butter."

• The most exciting thing to him about his next new project, Maison Boulud in Montreal? "It can encompass all of the things from my restaurants from Daniel to DBGB and ride along."

The Daily Byte is a regular column dedicated to covering interesting food news and trends across the country. Click here for previous columns.