In the Bronx, Some See the Next Dining Destination

Nov. 3, 2015 5:01 p.m. ET

When Douglas Rodriguez was scouting locations for his first New York restaurant in more than 10 years, he looked at all the popular neighborhoods, from Manhattan's Flatiron District to Brooklyn's Williamsburg.

In the end, the James Beard Award-winning chef , often considered the force behind "Nuevo Latino" cuisine, opted for an area he considers the next hot spot: the Bronx.

Within the next year, he plans to open two Latin-themed restaurants as part of a new residential and retail complex in the burgeoning South Bronx neighborhood of Mott Haven. He concedes that for some, the borough still suffers from its '70s-era "Bronx is burning" reputation, but he believes that change is coming.

"It's always good to be the pioneer," Mr. Rodriguez said. "I feel safer walking in the Bronx than in a lot of areas in Manhattan."

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The Bronx has long taken a back seat to the restaurant-packed parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn, but Mr. Rodriguez isn't the only chef staking a claim on the borough as a worthy dining destination. In the same Mott Haven complex, a gastropub-inspired sports bar, a beer garden, a wood-fired pizzeria and an offshoot of the Harlem coffee shop Filtered Coffee are also in the works.

That is in addition to a growing list of Bronx-specific food events, including a restaurant "week" called Savor the Bronx that kicked off Monday and runs through Nov. 13, as well as the recent one-year anniversary of the Bronx Brewery's South Bronx tasting room and facilities, an all-day affair that attracted 700 revelers.

A decade ago, the Zagat restaurant guide listed no more than a dozen Bronx spots, a point of contention to some locals. It now features 33, though that still puts the borough well behind Manhattan (with 1,723 Zagat-rated restaurants), Brooklyn (324) or even Queens (129).

The Bronx, said guide co-founder Tim Zagat, is "a place where we could see a real breakthrough."

The growth of the Bronx restaurant scene is perhaps best exemplified by the growth of Savor the Bronx, organized by the Bronx Tourism Council. This year, it attracted more than 30 participating restaurants, its biggest lineup ever.

The council's executive director, Olga Luz Tirado, said the goal is to show the world that "we have some legitimate, white-tablecloth restaurants." But she resisted the idea that the Bronx is trying to mimic other places.

"When people say the Bronx is going to be the next Brooklyn, I say the Bronx is the Bronx," she said.

Among the event's featured restaurants are Bistro SK, a French restaurant in City Island that aims to bring a bit of European flair to a waterfront area primarily known for casual seafood joints, and Charlies Bar & Kitchen, a South Bronx bistro whose brunch menu includes Jacksborro Chicken Benny, a version of eggs benedict with the key addition of Texas-style fried chicken.

Also on the list: the Hudson Garden Grill, the new restaurant at the New York Botanical Garden. It was created by Starr Restaurants, the Philadelphia-based hospitality company whose New York projects include the Japanese restaurants Buddakan and Morimoto.

Morgan Bedore, vice president at Starr Restaurants, said the company saw Hudson Garden Grill as an opportunity to bring high-level dining to the borough and offer visitors to the botanical garden "a reason to stay for the whole day."

Charlies Bar & Kitchen proprietor Charles Said, an art director by day, said it is "a no-brainer" that high-end restaurateurs would turn to the South Bronx since affordable space is so limited in many Manhattan and Brooklyn neighborhoods.

"The city only grows out," he said.

A Bite of the Bronx

A look at some of the borough's noteworthy dining and drinking destinations:

Bistro SKNeighborhood: City IslandCuisine: FrenchSignature offerings: French onion soup, coq au vin

Bronx BreweryNeighborhood: Port MorrisCuisine: Brewery with tasting roomSignature offerings: Pale ales in a variety of styles

Charlies Bar & KitchenNeighborhood: Mott HavenCuisine: New AmericanSignature offerings: Jacksborro Chicken Benny, the Manson cocktail

Hudson Garden GrillNeighborhood: Located inside New York Botanical GardenCuisine: American with Hudson Valley tiesSignature offerings: Hudson Burger, cheese board with Hudson Valley cheeses

La MoradaNeighborhood: Mott HavenCuisine: MexicanSignature offerings: Mole in many varieties

Mike's DeliNeighborhood: Arthur AvenueCuisine: ItalianSignature offerings: Eggplant parmigiana hero, fresh mozzarella

Patricia'sNeighborhood: Morris ParkCuisine: ItalianSignature offerings: Spaghetti Frank Sinatra, extensive wine list

Mr. Said declined to provide specifics about his lease, but others say commercial rents in the South Bronx now run about $25 to $35 a square foot. By contrast, restaurateurs say prices for comparable spaces in Manhattan can reach $300 a square foot.

Not that high-end restaurants will be the only ones defining the Bronx dining scene. Tameika Lawrence, author of the Bronx Food Blog, said that mom-and-pop places, where "you can get rustic, homestyle food," will be just as critical.

A case in point: the six-year-old South Bronx Mexican restaurant La Morada, which specializes in the cuisine of the Oaxaca region and is known for its varieties of mole, the Mexican sauce that features chilies and ingredients ranging from chocolate to pumpkin seeds.

Bronx restaurateurs who embrace tradition are also finding ways to update their approach and potentially reach new markets. In the Italian-American enclave of Arthur Avenue, Mike's Deli, a neighborhood fixture with roots going back more than five decades, continues to serves its homemade mozzarella and eggplant parmigiana heroes.

But deli owner David Greco became a partner in the Bronx Beer Hall, located just a few steps away within the Arthur Avenue Retail Market. The idea is to blend the Old World with style-conscious New: The two-year-old beer hall serves Bronx-made brews in Mason jars, the hipster vessel of choice.

Observers of the borough's restaurant scene expect more cross-cultural collaborations. Shelley Olson, co-author of "The Bronx: The Ultimate Guide to New York City's Beautiful Borough," published this year, said she wouldn't be surprised to one day see a Bronx hoagie made with Italian bread but filled with Latin ingredients like beans and rice, or African ones like Ghanaian peanut sauce.

As much an authority as she has become on the Bronx, she added that, like many New Yorkers, she is still learning about it. Until she moved there seven years ago, she said, "I never stepped foot in the Bronx."

Write to Charles Passy at cpassy@wsj.com

Source: In the Bronx, Some See the Next Dining Destination