New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
East Rock Market, opening next month, is a collaboration between local chefs and entrepreneurs offering a range of cuisines
NEW HAVEN — What once was a wire and cable company and then a warehouse has been transformed into the city’s only food hall, slated to open next month.
East Rock Market, which represents a collaboration between local chefs and entrepreneurs, will offer a full bar and six different cuisine options ranging from Mexican to Japanese.
Located inside a bright, remodeled industrial space next to East Rock Brewing
Co., the food hall is part of a brick building that Rishi Narang’s family has owned for three decades, Narang said.
Narang has brought in different businesses over the past few years, including the brewery, Activity Fitness Center and Rebel Hair Salon, but he could not find the right tenant for the full-service restaurant he envisioned.
So, Narang teamed up with John Ginnetti, who runs the cocktail bar 116 Crown, to open a food hall.
Ginnetti also co-owns the New Haven sandwich shop Meet & Co., which will open its second location at East Rock Market with a new offering: charcuterie boards.
Narang said Ginnetti, who teaches mixology at Yale, has been “leading the charge” in opening the market’s bar.
Ginnetti described Rick’s Bar as a wholly different concept from 116 Crown, with “classic” offerings that will satisfy a variety of appetites.
But he was also quick to point out he’s not the star of the show – that would be Narang’s father, after whom “Rick’s Bar” is named.
The name “shows some respect for everything that he’s done in his career and coming over here from India … with not much to show for and then getting his MBA at UConn” and eventually running a business and owning the building, Narang said.
In addition to familiar faces, newcomers to the Connecticut food industry are making their debut at the market. Stanton Lesser, a lawyer and first-time restaurateur, co-owns Panicale Pasta, which will offer pizza and, as the name suggests, homemade pasta.
To pursue the project, Lesser said he teamed up with his friend Marty Levine, who owns Martel Restaurant in Fairfield. They have a chef on board who trained in “really good Italian restaurants,” he said.
Visitors who like Italian food but want a sweeter option will be able to grab cones at Nicoll Street Gelato & Coffee, those seeking more healthful options can visit Raw Bowls & Juice.
Narang said the latter business, which also has a North Branford location, will serve up smoothies, acai bowls and salads.
At Rockfish Sushi, patrons can either eat at the counter or pick up to-go containers with different compartments for nigiri, sauce and sides.
Jason Tay, the restaurant’s head chef, showed off one box’s design, imagining what it would be like to gift it to a friend.
“They’re like, ‘oh, what is that, an Apple product or something?’” he said, referring to the gray box’s chic design and laptop-like size.
The inside of the box features photos of different types of nigiri, labeled to tell customers what’s what. Each image is of a piece of sushi Tay made, the chef said.
Sketches also give patrons instructions on how to eat the sushi. Dip the fish side in the sauce, not the rice, Tay says, because when nigiri is made right, it should melt in your mouth, so the rice would fall apart.
The kitchen and counter represent Tay’s ideal setup. He’s spent years in the industry, first in New York and then locally after moving to New Haven 22 years ago, he said, adding that he spent part of his career at the downtown sushi joint Miso.
Tay’s isn’t the only familiar face represented in the food hall.
Saul Novoa used to run Tortilleria La Michoacana, a Mexican restaurant on Grand Avenue. Now closed, it was a spot Ginnetti once frequented – and that’s part of how Novoa has ended up in charge of the hall’s taco joint, Sencilla Taqueria.
After a few years without a restaurant, Novoa said he’s excited to have a spot at the market. He hopes to include some new offerings, such as freshmade tortillas.
The scent of his cooking filled the hall this week. On one counter, platters of pork and chicken and a slow cooker full of birria, a beef-based taco filling, sat next to salsas, chopped onions and cilantro – all the ingredients the East Rock Market team members needed to make their own tacos.
Ginnetti raved about the birria.
Asked what he used to make the dishes, Novoa gave a smile, declining to reveal the secrets of his recipes.
Customers will have to go try the dishes for themselves.