JSS Cocktail Competition 2023

The Japanese Sake and Shochu Makers Association has been throwing a cocktail making competition each year, for the last few years, and I was hired to create a video of the event. Five contestants from around the country were flown in to produce their best cocktail featuring a Shochu and the winner received a free trip to Japan.

MareLuna

MareLuna is a multi-location restaurant specializing in Italian/Mediterranean cuisine. At the time of writing this, social media is the fulcrum of much of the content created for restaurants and, as video is on the rise, clients like MareLuna try to create engaging content with these little stop motion animations that I created from a series of photos. You can view more in the motion page of this site.

Chambord

I’ve done some work in the past with Chambord , including their collaboration with The Standard Highline hotel but I was asked to highlight their ambassador program, as well as their push for low ABV cocktails that can be made with Chambord which only has a 16% ABV. Also, (some BTS!), the table top used in most of these images was actually a cutting board!

Anto

Anto is a Korean steakhouse in the Upper West Side that serves premium meats and dishes of Korean influence. The interiors blend a beautiful steel and dark, but placid, shadows. In addition to the food and interiors, I also shot some portraits of owner and restauranteur, Tony Park in the beautiful space.

Mialino

Nomad’s “Italian soul food” restaurant Mialino was positively reviewed by The Infatuation and I was there to shoot the restaurant, which occupied the old space of Vini e Fritti which I also happened to shoot some years back when I had clearly had no idea how to shoot food, judging by the photos! It’s always humbling to look at one’s earlier work.

KJUN

What begin as a pop-up sprouted into its own brick-and-mortar location of KJUN - a fantastic mix of creole meets Korean cuisine, two cuisines I love separately and together. See some photos below from a review by The Infatuation.

Eli's Table

Eater ran a piece on the re-opening of Eli’s Table, from Eli Zabar of the famed uptown markets, and I shot the space, the food and the man himself, which are below.

Barney's Greengrass

The Infatuation tasked me with shooting a handful of deli’s for a write-up on pastrami sandwiches. Barney’s Greengrass yielded, in my opinion, the prettiest dishes which you can see below.

CxRA at Javits Center

The wonderful catering group, CxRa, had me photograph an event they catered at the Javits center. Below are photos of some of the seated menu, as well as passed dishes and the beautiful work they did on the space itself.

Rosevale

I’ve previously shown images of my work with Rosevale, at the Civilian Hotel, but I was also hired to shoot some dishes that the chef was experimenting with using for their opening. Here are some images of those plates.

53

For The Infatuation, I photographed 53, a gorgeous midtown Chinese restaurant with a stunning interior and beautiful shared plate dishes.

Lucia Pizza

Eater NY did a multi-faceted piece on how TikTok effects the restaurant industry and one of the restaurants featured, was Brooklyn’s Lucia Pizza. The assignment included shooting, not only the food but the kitchen process, and most importantly the owner’s relationship with TikTok and his use of it in the kitchen.

Department of Culture

As part of Eater’s Best New Restaurants of 2022, I photographed Department of Culture, a Nigerian restaurant in Bed-Stuy. Although the staff was super helpful, the shoot was quite difficult as the space is quite small and the shoot happened during service. I was forced to rely on a single light source without any diffusion and my abilities to position the food and lighting where I could shoot both still life and the atmosphere (real life) in quick succession.

IT'SUGAR

These are some interior/exterior photos of the opening of the massive Time’s Square location of candy-chain IT’SUGAR.

Rosevale Kitchen

Rosevale is a restaurant at the Civilian Hotel in Times Square and I have previously shared some beverage photos from their cocktail menu but I also did a shoot for them in their kitchen, as they were first opening up and testing dish ideas. It’s very tricky to shoot in a kitchen because, as a photographer, you’re always in someone’s way but luckily the kitchen had not yet fully been open and there was just the chef and sous-chef in a very large space, which gave me free reign and the opportunity to take these below photos.

Cantina Rooftop

Not far from the water, in the west 40s is Cantina Rooftop. A festive Mexican restaurant and canteen which cooks up almost any Mexican classic you could consider. Not only do they have tacos but they have “The Big Ass Taco,” which lives up to its name. Check out some images below, including one very large taco.

Chop House

No surprise to anyone that the pandemic has wreaked havoc on the global population as so much on local businesses. From hole-in-the-walls to restaurant palaces like Chop House, Covid delayed constructions, openings and even the existence of restaurants. At the time of this writing, Chop House has yet to open and completed construction in Dec of 2020. Hopefully it will see a new life as the interiors are strikingly beautiful.

Ina Garten at La Mercerie

In one of my more unique assignments, Eater NY hired me to shoot the barefoot contessa herself, Ina Garten, as she dined with friends at Soho’s La Mercerie. I was just a fly on the wall as she and her trio of dining compatriots sampled food, chatted with the chef, and had a good laugh. As I was instructed to be as discreet as possible, I was forced to rely strictly on natural light so you can bet I made sure Ina sat right across from the largest window possible. Here are some samples from the shoot.

La Duree x Bagatelle Atmostphere/Exteriors

The third element of this shoot, which I have showcased in two other entries was to capture the space and atmosphere. The team at Bagatelle was very specific about the style and tone of the images, and, as you can see, they all carry a very specific style that is a departure from how I usually shoot.

Madame George Interiors

Down the steps of Midtown staple, Valerie, you’ll find a new, quite large speakeasy known as Madame George. Despite the lack of natural light, the space feels verdant and open despite its subterranean position.