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Not only is there life at Mars, but it's about to get a whole new identity. At least for a month, that is.
Café Mars, one of Brooklyn’s most inventive restaurants, is about to get a full-blown identity swap when it transforms into an Italian izakaya starting May 6. For it, the space will reimagine its menu, décor and overall vibe around Itameshi cuisine, which blends Japanese ingredients and techniques with Italian cooking.
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If that sounds niche, well, yeah, it is, but the whole thing is also having a moment. And Café Mars, which has built a reputation as “an unusual Italian restaurant” in Gowanus, is going all in with neon katakana signage, chopstick holders designed for rigatoni and even a Suntory “Divine Foam” draft system behind the bar.
The concept builds on the restaurant’s popular “Global Italian” series from 2025, when the team hosted one-off collaborations spotlighting how Italian cuisine has evolved across regions from New Orleans to Argentina. But one of the standout installments was its Japan-focused weekend with chef James Mark, which helped spark the idea for a deeper dive.
The upcoming Itameshi menu will boast playful, boundary-pushing dishes like fluke cured in parmesan and white miso, a “pepperonigiri” (yep, pepperoni sushi), giardiniera-spiked potato salad with Slice Spice Pringles and pan-fried tortellini-gyoza finished with bergamot ponzu. It’s the kind of mashup that looks chaotic on paper but seems so wild that it has to work.
The new menu will run Wednesdays through Saturdays during dinner service beginning May 6.
New York is certainly not lacking when it comes to fusion restaurants, but this kind of concept-driven, temporary transformation feels rarer and very up-to-the-minute, in line with how the city truly eats. It also taps into a broader fascination with Itameshi, which has been gaining traction among chefs and diners alike. If nothing else, it’s a reminder that in NYC, even a neighborhood Italian spot can reinvent itself overnight.
Reservations are now open and, given the limited run, you’ll probably want to snag one early. For more information and to book your table, click here.