Dominique Ansel Kitchen announces opening date
According to Eater, Dominique Ansel, perhaps better known as the creator of the legendary Cronut, has announced that his hybrid bakery concept, Dominique Ansel Kitchen, will be opening on April 29, 2015. The eatery will specialize in fresh-out-of-the-oven pastries and baked goods, as well as a few unique savory items. DAK will also include an upstairs eight-person tasting table for after-hours dessert parties called Unlimited Possibilities. Ansel announced that his former colleague from the renowned restaurant Daniel, Karys Logue, will serve as DAK’s executive pastry chef.
Dominique Ansel Kitchen
While the Cronut may have garnered Ansel mainstream attention from foodies around the world, the pastry chef had already established himself as a creative mastermind among the culinary elite. Food and Wine notes that DAK will pull items directly from the oven for customers, topping and garnishing them on the spot. This concept is served well by DAK’s design, as the limited seating faces an open kitchen that fits around 30 people. Outdoor seating will also be available.
The menu is slated to include classics such as chocolate mousse and mille feuille, but Ansel and Logue are keeping many of the items secret until DAK’s opening. Ansel adds that DAK will also include some esoteric savory items, including rather unique takes on toast. The chef posted a picture on his Instagram account of squid ink brioche toast injected with mushroom Bechamel and topped with parmesan cheese, mashed potatoes and confit egg yolks.
Logue, who signed on to work with Ansel about a year ago, told Eater, “”We’ve been crafting the kitchen concept for longer than that. It’s always been the dream to take a bakery and turn it on its end a little bit.”
Ansel has stated that his new bakery will be free of the signature Cronut, because he wants to give fans something new and avoid opening uniform enterprises.
DAK is located at 137 Seventh Ave. South, New York City.
Unlimited Possibilities
The upstairs tasting table, being referred to as the UP, is slated to open a few weeks after DAK is up and running. Logue notes that the nature of the eight-course tasting make it impossible to serve many people, which is one of the reasons for UP’s limited seating. Logue told Eater that the menu will be “fairly priced,” as it is designed for people to enjoy after dinner.
