SOHO — A new maritime-themed restaurant from some old hands dropped anchor at 137 Sullivan Street this week.
Navy is the latest venture by Matt Abramcyk and Akiva Elstein, partners at Smith & Mills. The pair separately own several other restaurants dotting the Village, SoHo and Tribeca: Elstein owns Macao Trading Co. and Employees Only, and Abramcyk is behind MaisonO, Tiny's & the Bar Upstairs and Warren 77.
The pair collaborated on the World War II-inspired decor, with curtains made from antique Japanese cloth and walls papered with French linen and vintage military canvas. It's fronted by windows that will open out onto the street in warmer weather.
The eatery seats 51 people and aims to be a cozy neighborhood spot, though its look is hardly casual, from the detailed design to the bartenders and servers' custom-made, vintage-inspired Lady and Butler jackets and dresses.
The dinner menu, crafted by Executive Chef Camille Becerra (formerly of the shuttered restaurant Paloma in Greenpoint), offers seafood and vegetable dishes that include a uniquely crispy gnocchi with roasted pumpkin and poached egg, and an ocean troute en croûte meant for two. Becerra sources much of her produce from Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative in Pennsylvania.
Becerra has added unusual and homemade touches to the typical raw bar offerings of clams and oysters: house-cured fish and caviar are served with housemade blinis, housemade seedy crackers for sardines, as well as uni toast, a bruschetta made from sea urchin.
For now, Becerra is only offering dinner, but plans are in the works for a lunch menu of simpler fare and a breakfast service that will offer pastries made in house and Brazilian coffee from a new Brooklyn roastery, Kitten Coffee Roasters. A raw bar menu will be available between lunch and dinner.
Navy: 137 Sullivan Street. 212-533-1137. Dinner hours: Sunday through Thursday 6 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Friday and Saturday 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.