Like any sage mentor, Hoffman has been grooming successors for years. He’s installed one of them here, shifting his Back Forty protégé Shanna Pacifico across town to help run the new spot. Her menu of small and large shareable plates is unconventionally laid out by delivery medium, with snacks and starters to consume with your “hands,” “spoon & ladle” soups and stews, and “fork & knife” proteins and vegetable sides. The duplex space has been reconfigured to fit the anything-goes format, trading in Savoy’s upscale polish for a much more rustic look, with rickety shelves on the ground floor across from a wall stripped to its concrete base, and upstairs a sentimental hodgepodge of homey mementos (crafty ceramics, mismatched paintings, a decorative quilt).
Start your perfect Saturday or Sunday in leisurely fashion at one of Soho’s best brunch places. Head to airy café Jack’s Wife Freda for globe-trotting offerings for $10 or less, or if you want to splurge, Balthazar serves nearly a dozen egg dishes alongside French classics. Afterward, hit the neighborhood’s shops or attractions.
RECOMMENDED: Full guide to Soho, New York