Overthrow Hospitality, which operates a collection of vegan bars and restaurants in New York City’s East Village, plus one in Los Angeles, has opened a mushroom focused restaurant in its home neighborhood called Third Kingdom.
The name is a nod to the fact that mushrooms belong neither to the animal nor plant kingdoms, but are fungus — a kingdom all their own. They are increasingly popular as a meat substitute as they have natural umami flavor and a texture often seen as similar to meat. The new restaurant is next door to the space formerly occupied by &Beer, an Overthrow pop-up that also had a mushroom-focused menu.
It’s a 50-seat restaurant with burgundy walls, black banquettes and tables made of spalted maple, which is maple that has begun to decay as a result of fungus. Other mushroom-themed art graces the walls.
Third Kingdom’s kitchen is headed up by Juan Pajarito, who is also chef of Overthrow’s Avant Garden, and the wine list is curated by Drew Brady, a partner in the group, which is headed up by Ravi DeRossi, who at the end of 2006, before turning to vegan-only operations, founded Death & Co., one of the bars that spurred the creative cocktail revolution of the decade that followed.
“It’s no secret that mushrooms have skyrocketed in popularity over the past decade, and the incredible response to &Beer encouraged us to take mushroom-centric dining to the next level,” DeRossi said. “Our intention with this and all of our concepts is to offer elevated plant-based cuisine in an inclusive environment that appeals to everyone, whether they are vegan or not.”
Dishes on the initial menu include lion’s mane mushroom dumplings with daikon sauce and micro-cilantro ($19), a black pearl oyster mushroom mole enchilada with epazote “sour cream” ($28), beech mushroom with non-dairy cauliflower “cheese,” nori butter, herb mushrooms, and spiced ponzu sauce ($21), and for dessert, a chocolate lava cake with rosemary-porcini frozen dessert, candied shiitakes, and a chocolate crumble ($20).
Along with Avant Garden and Third Kingdom, Overthrow Hospitality also operates the cocktail bar Amor y Amargo, Mexican-inspired Etérea, pasta restaurant and wine bar Soda Club, tapas and wine bar Ladybird, beer-focused Proletariat, Fragile Flour bakery, and Cadence, which offers vegan soul food and is overseen by chef Shenarri Freeman, who also runs Ubuntu, the company’s West African-inspired restaurant in Los Angeles.
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected]
