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“The Harrison”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	New American	Tribeca	Moderate	Great

MY DINNER AT THE HARRISON

It was the week of September 10th, 2001, and Jimmy Bradley and Danny Abrams were quite busy. They were getting ready to open The Harrison, a follow up to their Chelsea neighborhood favorite, The Red Cat. The Harrison was conceived as a more evolved version of the Red Cat, with a touch more refinement, and a new American menu to match its warm and sophisticated New England country house decor. And then came that Tuesday morning. And our world changed; all of us changed. But for Jimmy and Danny, that was the reason for the restaurant—to provide constancy in a time of fear and uncertainty; to shelter their wounded city with comfort in the form of food.

One month later, in October 2001, in the shadow of a gaping, still smoldering Ground Zero, Jimmy and Danny opened the doors to The Harrison, praying that people would come. They did. I was one of them. I spent many nights at the bar with friends, eating perfect piles of fried clams with crispy slices of thin lemon while flirting shamelessly with Peter, Craig, and Jared. (Peter broke many hearts when he got married. Jared is about to do the same.)

Three years went by, and The Harrison thrived. Soon it was time for the boys to open another restaurant. And when Pace was born, and The Harrison’s chef Joey Campanaro moved over there, Jimmy and Danny began a search for a new chef. They pulled a surprise move when they hired a guy with a serious pedigree, Brian Bistrong—he’d worked with David Bouley for six years and was executive chef at Citarella the Restaurant at the time. They decided (wisely I might add), that he was the right guy for the job. Clearly, three stars were in their sites. And so, as we all do in life, The Harrison said goodbye to the past, and started a new chapter.

It is a chapter that has been filling pages for a year and a half now, and I am sorry it has taken me so long to get back there to check out what Brian has been doing. I had dinner at The Harrison last week with my friend Stacey and her boyfriend Marcus, a couple who had their first date there, a year and a half ago. They now live together on Murray Street, just a few blocks away. They dine there often ... [more, click below]

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Posted: January 29, 2006

Other restaurants in Tribeca :
+ Lunchbox Food Company--Closed   + 66: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED   + Ola-- Closed   + Bouley   + Dominic   + Landmarc   + Pace-- Closed   + EN Japanese Brasserie   + Centrico   + Cercle Rouge   + The Harrison   + Turks & Frogs Tribeca   + Devin Tavern   + Dani-- Closed Now   + Bacaro/Smith & Mills   + The Harrison   + Matsugen, By Guest Reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Forge   + Macao Trading Company   + Harbour   + Review text tbd...   + Mehtaphor   + Brushstroke   + Jung Sik   

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