Cena Dou

Just up the Hudson, in North Salem, lies the forest filled oasis Cena Dou, a French restaurant with both casual and fine dining concepts. The space is serene, and overlooks the tree-laden valley, with just as beautiful dishes to accompany.

The Hook

I had previously shared some photos for Superfrico, which is a restaurant adjacent to The Hook, a circus-like show, curated by Speigelworld, who hosts shows around the country, headquarted in Las Vegas. To promote The Hook and Superfrico, I was asked to photograph some of the characters from the performance (primarily acrobatic performers) in the restaurant space itself. Here are some selections from that shoot.

Giffard

Giffard is a French liquor brand who has been producing non-alcoholic spirits has partnered with distributor had a launch party at La Mercerie to showcase some of their fantastically sober cocktails. As the trend of drinking slowly declines, brands like Giffard have learned how to successfully pivot to provide a similar experience without the the alcohol content.

SoJo Spa Club

I love going to a spa. At home, when I travel, anytime. Which is why I was very excited to photograph SoJo Spa Club for The Infatuation's Winter 25 list. Although I usually don’t eat there when I visit they have a pretty full menu that pairs nicely with a cold plunge.

Bar Moga

Bar Moga, located on Houston St is a 1920’s style cocktail bar with a bevy of options to drink and eat. The Infatuation was reviewing the spot so I was asked to shoot some photos, a handful of which are below.

Visa x Bobby Flay

Certain Visa credit card holders won a contest that would include a trip to NYC and a myriad of treats, including an in-kitchen demonstration and meal prepared for and served by celebrity chef Bobby Flay. Here are some images from the evening.

Meju

Meju is a fine dining, set-menu restaurant in the back of a lovely Korean market in Long Island City. The Infatuation was in need of some photos to accompany their review, and so they called upon yours truly to do so. When I light food, I try to match the mood of the space and the vibe. As Meju is an upscale one-seating-per-evening speakeasy playing Sinatra, it gave off the vibe of a single softbox sort of aesthetic, which you can view below.

Tatiana Nike Lincoln Center Event

Back in October, Nike hosted the World Basketball Festival at Lincoln Center, home to Tatiana, a restaurant named the best in NYC in 2023 by the New York Times. Kwame Onwuachi, the restaurant’s chef and proprietor teamed with catering masters CxRA to provide a dinner for the opening of the festival with the lovely backdrop of the Lincoln Center plaza.

Superfrico

Speigelworld has produced some modern adult-driven cabaret/circus-style performances in Las Vegas and, somewhat, recently opened a location in Atlantic City, with their adjacent restaurant, Superfrico. Although there is also a Superfrico in Las Vegas, the menus varies slightly and the team was in need of photography of the dishes and the spaces below.

Iichiko x Martiny's

Having worked with Iichiko before, it’s quite clear they are strategic with who they partner, and it would make sense for them to work with Martiny’s, a cozy yet hip Japanese cocktail bar on Irving Place. Mixologist Takuma Watanabe produced a gorgeous and green cocktail for the brand which you can view below.

The US Open

As Chase was a sponsor of last year’s US Open, so too did Chase-owned The Infatuation have a hand in the event, which meant a ton of exciting and new food. As part of the Infatuation’s list of Where to Eat at The US Open, I photographed dishes from the various vendors at the “Flavors of the Open” event, some of which were household NYC names, while others were compact versions of high-profile restaurants.

Chase Sapphire Pride Event

As Chase Bank owns The Infatuation, it would make sense why the two host so many events together, including this Pride NYC 2023 event at The Bowery Hotel, which included a 10 ft mezze table and some colorful treats and guests.

Don Papa x Fandi Mata

Premium small-batch rum manufacturer Don Papa needed some help showing off its cocktails and ambassadors so we took to Williamsburg mediterranean hideaway Fandi Mata which provides an innately tropical vibe to the images.

Gilligan's

Gilligan’s is an outdoor oasis of a bar/restaurant at the Soho Grand Hotel. The client wanted their images to have a softness to them so, against my normal routine (and preferences), we shot only using natural light which did create a certain aesthetic that I’m happy to produce, but not the biggest fan of. It worked for the client, so it worked for me.

Principe Hit List Dinner

As part of a collaboration between Chase Sapphire and The Infatuation, the later has created the Hit List Dinner series hosting dinners at restaurants around the country, including the somewhat new Principe nyc, which is located in the former National Geographic museum in Soho. The space was completely revamped to host two floors of diing.

Cocktail Kingdom

Cocktail Kingdom produces tools for bartenders that are used widely in NYC and all around the country. They also happen to own a few bars in the city where we shot some of their products in action.

Mijenta x ZouZou

The tequila brand, Mijenta, has been teaming up with bars and restaurants to spread awareness of their product and inspire tequila-forward cocktails. Partnering with chic-Hudson Yards adjacent ZouZou’s, the two entities hosted a party that included an ice luge and narcotic-like dealings of caviar. View the video below.

Smorgasburg

Food deliver service ChowNow has partnered with NYC staple Smorgasburg to provide secret menu items from each of their vendors. As someone who lives not far from Smorgasburg, it was a nice feather in my cap to be asked to shoot something I’ve known and attended for years (with a quick commute to boot!).

Sundaes Best

Sundaes Best is a Korea Town ice cream fixture from the owners of Baek Jeong KBBQ . It features diverse flavors, some of which are Korean, and a cheery, pink interior. This shoot was a little difficult since the ice cream containers were covered with a glass exterior, until I realized we could open the front windows and sneak the camera into the opening. Glass and flash are not a great photographic combination!

Tony's DiNapoli

I’ve rarely worked with stylists because most often I work with restaurants where the chefs or the marketing contacts are the ones styling the foods. I was lucky enough to work with the super talented Judy Kim who elevated the red-sauce food of Tony’s DiNapoli and truly elevated my photography. I almost feel like I didn’t even take these photos because Judy was the true artist who crafted such beautiful scenes below.