"Chef and prolific restaurateur Andrew Carmellini now has his very own namesake restaurant: Café Carmellini opened this week. It’s a grand entrance in Nomad, which is shaping up to become one of the most ambitious restaurant neighborhoods in the city. Café Carmellini is the addition of a significant New York chef-driven restaurant, with a personal menu that nods to the Carmellini family roots in Tuscany. The 5,000 square-foot Café Carmellini anchors the area’s newest place to stay. The Fifth Avenue Hotel opened in September in a rehabbed McKim, Mead and White building. Prices on the first week’s menu range from a raw and cured section with dishes between $20 to $32; first and second courses in the $20 to $35 range; to mains from $45 to $88. The menu reflects Carmellini’s history — a veal tongue Castelluccio hints at his family’s roots in Tuscany; dishes like Sole Normande and squab en croute are reminiscent of his stints at New York’s Lespinasse, Le Cirque, and three-Michelin-starred L’Arpege in Paris. Chef de cuisine Kyle Goldstein runs the kitchen, joined by pastry chef Jeffrey Wurtz. Hours of operation are Tuesday through Saturday, 5 to 10 p.m." - Melissa McCart