Do you think Giuseppe Cipriani knew that when he answered an ad in 1918 for a chef de rang position, it was the first step to creating an empire beloved by the royal, rich and famous?
He was young and obviously ambitious; immersing himself in the hotel business, learning everything about “old school service”, and within twelve years embarked on his own place with Harry Pickering. The infamous Harry’s Bar opened in a small Venetian warehouse on Friday, May 13th, 1931, and soon bestowed the world with Bellinis & Beef Carpaccio.
Fifty years later Cipriani’s son, Arrigo, traveled to New York to open Harry Cipriani’s, an upscale restaurant set in modern Manhattan, but with all the European flair and plushness of the Venetian location. Giuseppe, Cipriani’s grandson, joined the family business, and helped launch multiple luxurious and grandiose restaurants and real estate ventures. Somewhere around the middle came Cipriani Le Specialita, a great, casual little place where Italian shoes, couture scarves, frothy cappuccinos and tasty tramezzini happily collide.
A Tramezzino (trah-mehtz-TZEE-noh), literally meaning “in between the middle”, is a delicious, crustless sandwich with simple, lovely fillings; not unlike an English tea sandwich. Cipriani’s serves several including: egg & salmon, chicken salad, egg & Prosciutto Cotto, and my favorite, smoked salmon & asparagus. Now, if Cipriani Le Specialita just served Bellinis with the tramezzini, you could sit outside and watch the world go by in true Venetian tradition.
Cipriani Le Specialita
110 East 42nd Street between Lexington & Park Ave
New York, New York 10017
212.557.5088
212.557.5089 fax
They put shaving cream on the cappuccinos? yuk.
Posted by: | June 13, 2007 at 10:51 AM