The “slow-cooked, fast-serve” movement is growing — fast.
Tres Carnes, the Texican eatery that opened its first location at 688 Sixth Ave. in the Flatiron District last April, is cooking up two new locations.
The first opens later this month at 101 Maiden Lane. At 1,400 square feet, the mostly takeout format will have 19 seats
The food has caught on quickly: a combo of slow-smoked Texas barbecue merged with modern Mexican food and creative beer cocktails.
The second move will bring Tres Carnes to 954 Third Ave. sometime in mid-March. It will be 1,200 square feet with 18 seats.
The new restaurants will be designed in the same modern rustic style by Josh Held, whose wife, Sasha Shor, happens to be Tres Carnes’ executive chef.
The owners are Michael Sinensky, of Funbars.com, Shor and Mike Rodriguez, formerly of Salt Lick.
–
Cucina Ciano, at 181 E. 78th St., is also in expansion mode.
The casual Italian eatery has been booming since opening in November. It replaced Ciano, which closed in the Flatiron district last spring. This past weekend, it launched its brunch menu.
A cozy private dining room seats 18 in the wine cellar downstairs.
The restaurant comes from Stratis Morfogen, of Philippe Chow, which also recently opened in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Unik Ernest, a veteran of Bijoux and Merkato 55.
Morfogen tells Side Dish the team is preparing to launch three more Cucina Cianos in the next “15 to 18 months” — one in the Upper 90s on the East Side, one on Columbus Avenue in the 70s, and the third in the Meatpacking District.