Yoji Tokuyoshi, the former sous chef at the revered Osteria Francescana in Modena, about 100 miles south, opened Pan with the restaurateur Alice Yamada last April after the shokupan (Japanese milk bread) at Bentoteca, his Japanese fine dining restaurant in the Ticinese neighborhood, began to garner attention. Pan serves pastries and desserts made with a mix of European and Japanese techniques and flavors, like flaky miso cinnamon rolls, Basque-style matcha cheesecake and anpan, sweet rolls filled with red bean paste. There’s also lunch — and, on the weekends, brunch — with an ever-changing menu that has included dishes like avocado toast with poached eggs and spicy shichimi powder on shokupan; pappa al pomodoro, the traditional Tuscan tomato and bread stew; and omurice, a Japanese dish that combines an omelet with fried rice. The mint green interiors, designed by the local architecture firm Studio Wok, include a bar made of gridded fiberglass panels and rows of pale green textiles along the ceiling inspired by noren, the fabric room dividers commonly used in Japan. -- NYTimes
