It’s well over two and a half years since I last visited my son Linden Pride and his family in New York. My youngest granddaughter Millie was just 10 months old and pulling herself along the floor when I departed. When I returned, I was running after her as she scooted along the footpath.
My fondest memory was of her older sister Gracie unpacking the Christmas baubles under the tree and of Millie struggling to pull them off the lowest branches.
The Covid pandemic and closure of national borders thwarted any thoughts of international travel from January 2020 to July 2022.
I’d been fortunate to spend a month with them at the end of 2019, arriving just before Thanksgiving and returning to a smoky black Sydney on New Years Eve 2020.
We’d celebrated Thanksgiving early in the evening with a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings followed by a sumptuous pumpkin eggnog at their acclaimed restaurant bar, Dante NYC in Greenwich Village.
Linden and his partner Nathalie Hudson purchased the 100 year old Caffe Dante, a much-loved Italian coffee house in Macdougal Street Greenwich Village in 2014 quickly turning it into the go-to place in New York for an aperitivo. Their obsession with the negroni, a simple bitter mix of equal parts Campari, sweet vermouth and gin, led to establishing their hugely popular award-winning Negroni Sessions.
It wasn’t long before it was on several lists of best bars in NYC and in 2019 won World’s Best Bar and Best American Restaurant Bar at the Tales of the Cocktail convention in New Orleans.
Dante’s sensational Garibaldi
Although I’m not a cocktail drinker, I admit to being addicted to Dante’s Garibaldi, a modern take on the classic Italian mix of Campari and orange juice. The secret to Dante’s version is the fluffy orange juice: peeled oranges are pushed through a very high speed juicer which pushes air into the juice, creating a frothy, velvety, fluffy texture.
Their plans to open a second restaurant Dante West Village on the corner of Hudson and Perry Streets, a 15 minute walk from the original Dante, were well under way when I visited in December 2019.
They’d set the date for mid-March 2020. But on March 16, the then New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo restricted all restaurants to takeout and delivery only and they had to push the opening back three months to late June.
This meant they couldn’t show off the glamorous interior of the new restaurant – with its hand-carved marble bar clad with shiny green tiles, its green velvet banquettes, vintage lighting and bespoke pineapple wallpaper by The Great Gatsby set designer Catherine Martin – as indoor dining was strictly forbidden.
One little person did get to enjoy it though and that was Gracie, then 4 years old, who was homeschooled there during the pandemic and given babychinos and bowls of pasta and steamed broccoli for lunch by the staff.I remember being with her in early December when the new stainless steel Mibrasa wood-fire grill and charcoal oven were being installed. They’d arrived a few days before and Linden needed to check some of the fittings.
I’d never seen these impressive Spanish outfits before and realised then that the new Dante was taking a step in a different direction. While the original Dante was renowned for its stunning cocktails and delicious Italian food, Dante West Village would be a chic, elegant restaurant serving Mediterranean-style dishes and a tantalising new range of cocktails. Linden was keen to reproduce the fabulous flavours he’d tasted at Etxebarri ,the famous grill restaurant run by chef Victor Arguinzoniz in the Basque region of Spain and to reinvent famous cocktails from the 1920s and 1930s.
Fast forward to July 2022. It’s a hot humid summer evening when I arrive at Dante West Village. The outdoor tables, draped in garlands of flowers, are packed. Elegant glass dividers, rimmed with gold and claw-footed separate their outdoor booths, some of which are inscribed in gold writing with “How about we get started with a martini?”
Inside, it’s really pumping. The bar is packed, and I can see only one empty table. In the background I catch the words and tune of a familiar song:
The city’s glamour can never spoil
The dreams of a boy and girl
We’ll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy!
The lilting sounds of Dominican singer Marie-Claire float through the chatter and laughter.
Marie Claire singing her heart out at Dante West Village
I decide to order one along with a Spicy Fresca cocktail which Linden has suggested I try.
The hamburger is everything my friends raved about: the meat, a mixture of brisket and chuck, is juicy with a smoky flavour and topped with their house-made tomato sauce, lettuce, tomato, pickled beetroot, smoked bacon, Swiss cheese and enclosed by a soft housemade brioche bun.
The real secret of course is the flavour imparted by the wood-fire grill (a mix of maple and oak), not something readily reproduced in the kitchen of a small New York apartment.
The cocktail, an exotic mix of Mezcal Verde, El Tequileno Blanco, Galliano, fluffy grapefruit juice, San Pellegrino Pompelmo, agave and smoked jalapeno, goes straight to my head. It’s absolutely delicious. And I really like the aleppo salt around the rim of the glass.
While some of the signature cocktails offered at the original Dante are on the menu at Dante WV, the focus here is on a variety of spritz and martinis.
For dessert, I order the Peach Melba, a new addition to the menu courtesy of Aussie chef Mary Bartel. It’s a luscious combination of ripe summer peaches, fragrant raspberries and Caffe Panna’s creamy vanilla ice cream.
Mary’s Peach Melba, referencing the Aussie connection
Originally from the Abruzzo region of Italy, he trained at IPSSAR culinary school in Pescara for four years and went on to work in numerous hotels around the Mediterranean (Sardinia, Portofino) and then at Cipriani hotels in Ibiza, Wall Street, Las Vegas, Miami and Mexico City.
His ability to thrive in high pressure environments, experience in restaurant openings, friendly personality, flexibility and passion for food make him a perfect fit for Dante.
He’s kept most of the best selling Dante WV dishes including the hamburger, the tasty succulent chicken alla diavola, the wood-fired bread with smoked butter and the peach and tomato salad on the menu and has since added a few new ones.
“There are a lot of vegans around this location so I’ve introduced a vegan-based chocolate mousse made with chickpea water, grapeseed oil and vegan cream. The clientele here is more female and very focused on what they eat.”
Corn on the cob dusted with chipotle powder and pecorino Toscana and served with a wedge of lime inspired by his time in Mexico, and a delectable Himachi crudo with pineapple and jalapeño salso are a couple of his new additions.
“The food here is Mediterranean-inspired, with a few Australian dishes, whereas Caffe Dante is more Italian-American,” he says.
“Caffe Dante is close to New York University and the crowd is younger and more into cocktails.”
The sourdough flatbreads there are a standout and have been on the menu since 2015. Recently Stefano introduced a new topping of mortadella, stracciatella, toasted pistachios and rosemary.
Stefano’s Flatbread with Mortadella, Straciatella and pistachios
“In Italy we’re very proud of our Mortadella di Bologna,” he says. “Unfortunately it has a bad association here with one called bologna. The Caprese with pomodoro, mozzarella, basil and chilli remains as does the Verde with spicy lamb sausage, mozzarella and arugula.”
He’s also introduced a fennel salad which comprises thinly sliced fennel with avocado, grapefruit, dill and parmigiano with a grapefruit dressing.
Dante Chefs Stefano and Mary
Of interest to Aussie readers is 20-something executive chef Mary Bartel who hails from Albury in New South Wales. Mary did her apprenticeship at Box Hill TAFE in Melbourne whilst working at the legendary Di Stasio’s in St Kilda, Melbourne, and later at Rosetta Ristorante (Rockpool Group) as chef de partie for two years.
She arrived in New York four years ago, started at Dante soon after and is now executive chef at both restaurants. Sweet and reserved in manner, she’s a real powerhouse. Together with Stefano, they’re a great team.
While she worked at a wood-fire grill and oven at Rosetta, the difference between working with fire and a gas or electric stove top is huge.
“With fire you have to pay attention to how much fuel you add, the heat of the fire and how that affects the product you’re cooking, and it takes practice to be able to use it instinctively. With a regular oven or stove top, you are able to select an automated heat and it will be consistent – which is easier, but much less fun,” she says.
The Grilled Bruschetta with Eggplant and Baby Heirloom Tomatoes
One day when I was there she sent out a grilled bruschetta topped with pureed eggplant, baby heirloom tomatoes, basil leaves and soft goats cheese for Linden to try. It was so delicious we fell about and it was on the menu the next day.
I think that was the day Deborra-Lee Furness happened to walk by.
Her husband Hugh Jackman is currently appearing on Broadway in The Music Man and is a regular guest at Dante WV. She smiled when she saw Linden and stopped to have a chat.
My son Linden Pride with his partner Nathalie Hudson
Over the years, numerous celebrities have visited Dante including Aussie film director Baz Luhrmann and his designer wife Catherine Martin, actors Rebel Wilson and Jessie Tyler Ferguson, Matt Damon, Leonardo di Caprio (a huge Negroni fan) and Rami Malik.
But for me the real stars are my son Linden Pride, his partner Nathalie Hudson and their children Gracie and Millie.
In the words of the famous song:
If I can make it there
I’ll make it anywhere
It’s up to you
New York, New York
The bar at Caffe Dante where it all started
A beautiful read Sheridan, thank you so much
I certainly remember our time in New York when I played “Peep-O” with Gracie whilst you and Jan shopped.
What an inspiration you have been to your Son Linden …..and to all the little “budding” chefs you encounter in your workshops ‘Dont stop in Sydney . Our world needs inspiration through like you,
Wow
Wonderful article/review
Congratulations to you all
Fond memories of a young Danton at the Bend of the River – Jerrys magic garden
Thanks for sharing
Beautifully written story of an enterprising couple who have made it big in NYC no mean feat! Great adventure …but then he is your son Sheridan and he no doubt has some of your taste, talent & verve, your industriousness and classy eye for detail. Keep up your writing!
As a large fan of both Dante locations, every word of this thoughtful article is true. The restaurants are great, and the amount of community service (food) the owners provided each day during the hardest part of the early pandemic lock down speaks volumes about their generosity.
Thank you, Marianne
Thanks Mary for acknowledging their community service work delivering throughout the pandemic in New York.
Sheridan
Thank you Janice – Linden and Nathalie are a dynamic team
Sheridan
A young Danton? 🙂
And now Linden has created his own magic 30 years later in New York.
Sheridan
Very interesting Sheridan. Almost makes me want to move back!!.
I remember when Linden was working at a place in the Rocks and he served us cocktails. He certainly has come a long way. Very well done. The food sounds really delicious and your writing brings it alive.
Is there a cookbook in the air?