August 19, 2024 - American Public News

ITHACA, N.Y. — A trio of new restaurants have either opened or are set to open soon in downtown Ithaca, bringing varied new food options to the local culinary scene. All three new restaurants are locally owned and operated. The openings come during a transitional phase for the Commons and downtown Ithaca, which recently saw popular bar The Range announce its closing after eight years of business. There have also been several recent new restaurant debuts during the summer, but a noticeable number of storefronts on the Commons still remain vacant.Asempe KitchenKuukua Yomekpe’s Asempe Kitchen opened in Press Bay Alley on Aug. 2, bringing an Ithaca Farmers Market staple to the city’s downtown restaurant core.The word asempe translates to “curiosity” in Fante, the Ghanaian language spoken by Yomekpe’s maternal grandmother. Yomekpe wants Ithacans to visit her restaurant to try foods that may be unfamiliar to them.“In order to expand your horizons, you have to want to be curious,” Yomekpe said. “You have to push your boundaries to explore the other person, the other culture [and] the other food.”At Asempe, Yomekpe serves traditional West African food, all of which is vegetarian and gluten-free. She said her peanut stew — a rice-based curry made of peanuts, tomatoes, onions, ginger and garlic — has been popular at her Ithaca Farmers Market booth.Credit: Casey Martin / The Ithaca VoiceAsempe means more than the curiosity needed to try new foods, Yomekpe said — it’s also the eagerness to find out what happens “behind the curtain.” She plans on hosting weekly or biweekly cooking classes at her brick-and-mortar restaurant for those interested in learning West African recipes.Asempe is currently open from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, though Yomekpe plans to expand these hours in the coming months.Komonz GrillThe new Komonz Grill location on the Ithaca Commons. Credit: Casey Martin / The Ithaca VoiceKomonz Grill — a new restaurant serving Italian and Mediterranean cuisine — opened on the Ithaca Commons on Aug. 7. The restaurant is located in the former Waffle Frolic and BrgrHub space. Sofiane Elmahen, the owner of Komonz Grill, said he was inspired by the food served at Sammy’s Pizzeria and Souvlaki House — two restaurants where he said he previously worked. Komonz Grill is Elmahen’s first restaurant. Elmahen used to work at the former Sammy’s Pizzeria, a Commons neighbor of his new venture. “I make something special. On the Commons here, there are two pizzerias. They have the same food. I’m trying to do something different. I have some smoothies, some platters, a pastrami meat pie, [and] pizza,” said Elmahen.Elmahen said he had received a “good” reaction from the Ithaca community but hopes for more foot-traffic when Ithaca’s student population returns to the city.“I hope [we’ll be] getting more busy when the students come back,” Elmahen said.Elmahen said Komonz Grill serves 17 types of pizza and all food served at the restaurant is halal. The Komonz Grill is open Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. and all other days from 10:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.Fresh MarchéThe former Thompson & Bleecker location will soon house a new venture from owner George Papachryssanthou.Thompson & Bleecker’s trademark neon sign still hangs above its former location on the Commons, but the space has sat idle for months. That was until a few weeks ago, when a sign appeared in the window announcing owner George Papachryssanthou’s newest restaurant. Papachryssanthou, who owns Thomson & Bleecker and Chatty Cathy’s in Collegetown with his wife Milany, said he’s aiming for something fast casual with Fresh Marché. The concept, he said, is a lunch-oriented restaurant with Parisian- and Italian-style subs and build-your-own-salad options. “I just think it’s really odd that there’s nowhere someone can go, run in, build-your-own-salad, or have something that’s health-forward, but not obnoxiously,” Papachryssanthou said. “I want it to be health-conscious, but I want it to be fun. […] I’d like to find a happy medium.”Fresh Marché is currently slated to soft-launch in October, Papachryssanthou said. Thompson & Bleecker has moved to a new location at the nearby Barr Building on East Seneca Street, which opened earlier this summer. The restaurant’s successful relocation and his staff’s ability to handle the change without losing service or food quality — throughout the COVID-19 pandemic as well — has given Papachryssanthou more confidence in the new restaurant. There’s a certain amount of risk in venturing from Papachryssanthou’s proven formulas to attempting to fill a wholly different void. Papachryssanthou admitted that he has grappled with “how potentially stupid this could be,” but he sees the benefit in the risk. “That’s natural, anyone should think that way,” he said. “If you didn’t, there would be no fear, no fire, there would be nothing that would get you out of bed to make you run there and give you that purpose and make it successful. That’s in me, I don’t intend on failing.” An additional Fresh Marché location will be opening in Collegetown in the new Catherine Commons building in spring 2025 as well.The post Three new restaurants set to open downtown as summer ends appeared first on The Ithaca Voice.

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