When the pandemic forced the barely opened cozy Italian/French Brooklyn restaurant Fradei to close, the owners, including one transplant from Venice and another from Brittany, France, were devastated. But soon, they connected with two American chefs who had been cooking at acclaimed restaurant Septime in Paris and were stuck in New York because of the pandemic. They combined forces and when they reopened the Ft. Greene, Brooklyn restaurant in March, they decided to only offer a set five-course menu. A couple of months later, they received a glowing review in The New York Times. The catch at Fradei is that no one can see the menu beforehand, or even at the meal. Each menu lasts for three weeks, and it’s only shared after that particular run has ended, on the restaurant’s Instagram account. Previous dishes have included Ricotta Cavatelli with Preserved Lemon, Pickled Green Garlic, Pistachio, Herbs, and Ricotta Salata, and Homemade Ricotta on Sourdough with Spring Greens and Marigold Vinegar.
Italian co-owner Simone Finotto tells La Cucina Italiana about how he came to open a restaurant in New York and how Fradei has thrived since its reopening.
How did you come to work in restaurants in Italy?
I’m from a little town close to Venice, called Jesolo. We started to work when we were young, like 14, every summer as a bartender, and we worked in the kitchen. We learned how to do everything. In college, I decided to study law, but then changed my mind and went to Venice to work as a sommelier. I worked for two years at a place called Mascareta, the best wine bar in Venice. The sommelier there told me that if I went to school to be a sommelier he would fire me because he said they teach all the wrong things. He was the guy that created the movement of natural wines in Italy. He taught me everything.
Photo: Courtesy of Sam Schwarz
How did you end up in New York City?
One day, Frank Prisinzano, the owner of Lil’ Frankies in the East Village, said, “Come work for me.” I was 26 at the time. I had just finished a large project on gin and tonics, a list of 30 different kinds of gin and 30 different kinds of tonics for this bar, but it was finished so I said, okay let’s go. I worked for Frank for four years. I was the manager of Frank and Supper and I did the wine and cocktail lists.
So how did Fradei come about?
I always wanted to open my own place, and I saw this place for sale and that was it. My partner and I both worked at established places and we were tired of working in places that were too consistent, always doing the same stuff. So even before the pandemic, we had a weekly menu with at least two new dishes. We wanted something less traditional and less intimidating. In the beginning, we had one chef who was doing everything—fresh pasta every day. The place was doing good and we were happy.
What happened during the pandemic?
We had to close. Our chef left; he became a private chef. But after about three months we wanted to open for take-out and outdoor dining. We found these two guys that had been cooking in France and then got stuck here. So we just said, Okay, let’s do something together, something with a small menu, good wine, and just outside at our five tables. We started slowly, using products from farmers from the Hudson Valley and New Jersey that we could partner with that work in a completely natural way. The menu was changing every two or three days because they were running out of things, so every time the farmer couldn’t provide something we had to create a different dish. We work the same way with winemakers, only directly, not through importers. We only serve natural wines and we change the wine list every week, even the wines by the glass. We’ll have three sparkling, five orange, and two rosé. We never show the list, by the glass or by the bottle, because we want to go over to the table and ask the customer what he wants. We’ll go to the table with like three or four bottles and let them try them all and then let them pick what they want.
Photo: Courtesy of Sam Schwarz
What’s the food like then, if the chefs are American and cooked in France, and you’re Italian?
It’s really just what we like. We always have at least one pasta on the menu. Right now it’s a five-course tasting menu plus an amuse-bouche. After the amuse-bouche, there are two appetizers, a pasta, a main dish with a protein, and dessert. And the menu changes every three weeks. We have touches of Italian and touches of French, but pretty much it’s working with the natural products that we can find around here and work based on that. For example, in May we had a dish with fava leaves and flowers because the fava beans weren’t ready here in New York yet.
Why a tasting menu?
Everyone loves the tasting menu and it’s way easier on the prep. We have everyone reserve in advance so we know exactly how many tables we’re going to have, so it’s zero waste all the time. No waste of food and no waste of money. Because of Covid, we had to close for pretty much a year, so it’s good to be paid now! And this is also the best way for us to represent ourselves because, in five dishes, you can understand what we’re doing. It’s the full experience. You don’t know the menu, we don’t tell it to anyone. You just sit down, tell us if you have any allergies or intolerances and that’s it. We take care of everything.