On Monday, New York entrepreneurs Matt Kliegman and Carlos Quirarte flung open the doors to The Smile To Go. The little sister of the cozy Bond Street restaurant The Smile, this new spot is set on kicking take-out food up a notch in a city where it's lacking. With co-owner and executive chef Melia Marden and Brenna White (formerly of M.Wells) whipping up the pastries, Matt and Carlos, who also run the show at the Jane Hotel Ballroom and own The Westway, get it right once again, but this time, they're right across the street from OC. Thrilled to have dishes like roasted butternut squash with blood orange and dandelion greens at our doorstep, I sat down with the boys to talk about how they got their starts and more.
Sofia Cavallo: Is the difference between The Smile and The Smile To Go just the tupperware?
Matt Kliegman: Well, we've had The Smile for three years now––this month is actually our anniversary–– and we wanted to get more into catering. The Smile has catered a lot of different events, so we're bringing back some of those dishes but also expanding them. Also, this kitchen is definitely The Smile 2.0. There's no gas there, it's all electric. So this is a real kitchen.
Carlos Quirarte: Yeah, the kitchen there is probably as big as these two tables combined [laughs]. We're hoping to use this space as an expanded kitchen.
SC: What made you guys choose this location?
MK: There's a youthful, exciting energy here. Walking down Crosby Street is really lovely––it's a nice little nook in Soho.
CQ: Actually, we found out recently that there used to be a bar at 2 Howard Street in the 1850s called The Smile.
MK: Oh yeah, so bizarre. Our architect happened to do a Google search and found an archive article from The New York Times. Some guy was arrested there in 1854 for using a fake Spanish quarter.
SC: That's nuts. I've also heard that Howard Street was one of the last streets in New York to get street lights. Apparently, the mob would come down to dump dead bodies––no one wanted to be down here.
CQ: Yeah, I remember hearing that story from Carol [Lim], Olivia [Kim], and Humberto [Leon] ten years ago when Opening Ceremony first opened and they had a party in the store space, with nothing there except Pabst Blue Ribbon and a garbage can.
MK: Even this building has a history––Carol actually used to live here. I like to refer to the landlord as a modern-day Medici, supporting young creative people. There's not only Carol but also Rogan Gregory of Rogan and the Surface to Air guys, too.
SC: It seems like all of the locations you choose have a backstory. For example, Melia's parents––the artists Brice and Helen Marden––used to live right above The Smile in the 70s, and The Westway is a former strip joint.
CQ: The Jane Hotel also has a history, it's been around since 1908, and once housed Titanic survivors. Its architects actually also designed the main building at Ellis Island.
MK: Yeah, the hotel's story is kind of strange. It was built by this wealthy woman to give sailors a place to go and hang out and do what sailors do.
CQ: But they weren't allowed to have sex or drink there––there was a priest on-site.
SC: That's incredible. Can you tell us about these Hanna Liden photographs on the wall?
CQ:
Sofia Cavallo: Is the difference between The Smile and The Smile To Go just the tupperware?
Matt Kliegman: Well, we've had The Smile for three years now––this month is actually our anniversary–– and we wanted to get more into catering. The Smile has catered a lot of different events, so we're bringing back some of those dishes but also expanding them. Also, this kitchen is definitely The Smile 2.0. There's no gas there, it's all electric. So this is a real kitchen.
Carlos Quirarte: Yeah, the kitchen there is probably as big as these two tables combined [laughs]. We're hoping to use this space as an expanded kitchen.
SC: What made you guys choose this location?
MK: There's a youthful, exciting energy here. Walking down Crosby Street is really lovely––it's a nice little nook in Soho.
CQ: Actually, we found out recently that there used to be a bar at 2 Howard Street in the 1850s called The Smile.
MK: Oh yeah, so bizarre. Our architect happened to do a Google search and found an archive article from The New York Times. Some guy was arrested there in 1854 for using a fake Spanish quarter.
SC: That's nuts. I've also heard that Howard Street was one of the last streets in New York to get street lights. Apparently, the mob would come down to dump dead bodies––no one wanted to be down here.
CQ: Yeah, I remember hearing that story from Carol [Lim], Olivia [Kim], and Humberto [Leon] ten years ago when Opening Ceremony first opened and they had a party in the store space, with nothing there except Pabst Blue Ribbon and a garbage can.
MK: Even this building has a history––Carol actually used to live here. I like to refer to the landlord as a modern-day Medici, supporting young creative people. There's not only Carol but also Rogan Gregory of Rogan and the Surface to Air guys, too.
SC: It seems like all of the locations you choose have a backstory. For example, Melia's parents––the artists Brice and Helen Marden––used to live right above The Smile in the 70s, and The Westway is a former strip joint.
CQ: The Jane Hotel also has a history, it's been around since 1908, and once housed Titanic survivors. Its architects actually also designed the main building at Ellis Island.
MK: Yeah, the hotel's story is kind of strange. It was built by this wealthy woman to give sailors a place to go and hang out and do what sailors do.
CQ: But they weren't allowed to have sex or drink there––there was a priest on-site.
SC: That's incredible. Can you tell us about these Hanna Liden photographs on the wall?
CQ: