The Underground Gourmet: Demand and Supply

It’s been a tough year for Wall Street, but downtown workers got an unexpected Christmas bonus almost as valuable (and rare) as a healthy 401(k): a serene spot to grab a delicious, low priced lunch. Financier Patisserie, the elegant new pastry-shop annex of the Poulakakos family’s Hanover Square complex – which already includes Harry’s and Bayard’s and is soon to add an enormous Irish Pub called Ulysses – opened last month, to the delight of viennoiserie-deprived locals. And even though pastry chef Eric Bedoucha’s danish, tarts, and seasonal specialties like exquisitely flaky galettes des Rois make a tantalizing impression, the kitchen is slowly building an equally enticing savory menu. The soup du jour, like vegetable-packed chicken barley or smoky lentil with ham, are served in deep ceramic bowls. Terrific chicken panini with goat cheese and marinated artichoke hearts come on crispy Tom Cat Bakery ciabatta. And if that garnish of mixed greens from Satur Farms, the North Fork sideline of Bayard’s executive chef Eberhard Müller, whets your appetite for farm fresh produce, buy a whole satur salad bowl, sold with Müller Asian or white-truffle dressing.

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