Coolest kids
Matilda, Strange Delight, 144 Freeman, Total Tennis, Le Violon Montreal, Broadway last chance, best holiday wreaths, MORE
GETAWAYS • Catskills
Roaring success
The Backstory: Six months after bowing inside the new Henson hotel in the Catskills, Matilda has unquestioningly upleveled the Upstate New York dining scene. The restaurant is the latest project from NYC chefs Jeremiah Stone and Fabián von Hauske Valtierra — known for their warmly industrial aesthetics, minimalist plates, and puffy cream-engorged doughnuts at the Lower East Side’s Wildair and Bar Contra. Here, the longtime culinary partners have joined forces with local hospitality mavens Ely and Danielle Franko in building this cool kids destination in the shadow of Windham Mountain.
The Experience: On a recent fall visit, the restaurant checked all the boxes: cozy roaring fireplace, earthy-modern farmhouse motif, seasonal and local ingredients. The chefs rely on nearby farms even more than they do in New York City, a focus readily apparent in Matilda’s offerings.
To eat, brown butter poached honeynut squash covered in a blanket of microplaned Comté and black truffle is a dangerously addictive (and rich) indulgence. In an umami-spiked salad of radishes, potatoes, and turnips, the anchovy vinaigrette-dressed ingredients are sliced into wedges of the same proportion, making it impossible to know which you’re eating. But the showstopper is the chicken, an ultra-juicy Amish bird that’s been semi-deboned and slow-roasted until its skin becomes crisp as a potato chip. It’s served in slices, to be savored with one of a selection of excellent natural wines or a cocktail from sciencey drink-designer Dave Arnold’s inspired list.
Why It’s FOUND: Matilda is arguably serving the best food anywhere Upstate, reason enough to make the two-and-a-half hour drive from the city to the Catskills. –Kat Odell
→ Matilda (Hensonville, NY) • 39 Goshen Rd • Thurs-Mon 5-10p • Reserve.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Inside the Waldorf Astoria’s reimagined makeover • Springs General Store to remain closed in 2025, eyes 2026 reopening • JetBlue plans new ‘Mini-Mint’ first class starting next year… but slashes more routes at JFK • American’s AAdvantage changes for 2025: nothing bad is good! • Anticipated St. Regis Cap Cana sets April opening in the DR • The tribulations of being an American diner in London • Planning the perfect Africa trip.
FOUNDLISTING • 144 Freeman Street
Prime North Brooklyn
THE NEXT GENERATION OF GREENPOINT LUXURY: Townhome 1B at 144 Freeman is a stunning two-bedroom, 2,300-square-foot duplex, showing off an optimal layout with open living space bathed in natural light — seamlessly connecting an expansive private garden through floor-to-ceiling windows. This impeccable new development gem delivers curated designs with smart home technology, elegant finishes, and stylish sophistication. It’s located on a quiet tree-lined block between Franklin Street and Manhattan Avenue, two vibrant retail corridors with everything from Michelin-starred restaurants to some of the city’s most respected record stores.
→ 144 Freeman St, TH1B (Greenpoint), 2BR/2.5BA, 2295 SF condo • Ask: $3M • located near NYC Ferry and G train • Agent: Tom Le, Corcoran. [spon]
Interested in advertising in FOUND? Drop us a line at sales@foundny.com.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: Picture it, a pedestrian-centric Fifth Ave • 80 Clarkson St’s twin towers begin to rise in West Village • RAMSA’s 255 East 77th St grows on Upper East Side • Confessions of Upper West Side holiday tippers • East Hampton mulls new maximum home size formula • How to futureproof your castle.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Friday Routine
Big swings
ANOOP PILLARISETTI • proprietor • Strange Delight // vp technology • Momofuku
Neighborhood you work and live in: Fort Greene
It’s Friday afternoon, how are you rolling into the weekend?
Friday can hit like a Monday sometimes. Other times, it hits like a Friday. This Friday, it hits like Groundhog Day (the movie). I've been covering at Strange Delight for many nights — and now, some days (plug our new lunch service plug plug) — which means I've lost all sense of time entirely.
This does have its benefits: The friends show up and my night becomes shaking hands and kissing babies, both real and imaginary; the team does such a good job of running the ship that I can sneak down to the basement to snack on shrimp remoulade and fried saltines when I need an escape. I've been tinkering with a couple of new drinks as well — SD Bloody Mary service, your choice red or green, plus an unofficial Pat O'Briens Hurricane x Ghia mash-up called a Ghiacane. All coming soon… maybe.
Any restaurant plans this weekend?
Every weekend, I say I'll do the following:
Saturday Lunch at Four Horsemen in Williamsburg, a goated NYC experience that deserves all of the continual praise, justifiable long waits, and hype. Four Horsemen is my sanctuary, especially the seat at the corner of the bar by the windows where you can close your eyes and nestle your head into the potted plant you’re sharing counter space with, while meditating on the deliciousness in front of you.
Saturday night at Bamonte's with the homies. At the bar. A martini, or an old fashioned, in one of those teeny glasses. An order of fried calamari arrabiata. If you’re lucky, you'll meet some priests from the local church, and they’ll serenade you while questioning your religious/spiritual identity.
A sunday burger at Peter Luger. Even when they aren't firing on all cylinders, this is my #1, and when the stars align, the boundaries between the spiritual and physical deteriorate. If Four Horsemen is my sanctuary, Sunday Luger is my church service. Don't tell the priests.
These things rarely happen, but other special things often do: a wine and a snack at Fradei, a hot breast at The Commodore, a chicken al diavolo at Romans. And more frequently than one would expect, a vegetable-heavy dry pot with my partner at MaLa Project.
How about a little leisure or culture?
Saturdays kick off with a little tennis at the beautiful, always perfect campus of the National Tennis Center in Flushing. The site of so much of my awkward gliding across the court, searching for that great shot that comes after about 72 mediocre ones. I get back to Fort Greene around 930a, spend anywhere from 15-45 minutes looking for parking, then hit the farmer's market for the following week's sundries and provisions. If I'm not working service and the scheduling gods allow it, I'm hoping to see my partner perform.
Do you get away anywhere regularly for the weekend?
Total Tennis, upstate in Saugerties, with the buddy James. It's a 2-3x a year trip at this point, and we’re thinking about adding a winter indoor version just because it's so good (though nothing compares to my favorite time there — peak July, 10+ hours of tennis over two days while it's 92 and sunny). Stay hydrated.
What was your last great vacation?
Had a fun and wacky couple of weeks in July, framed by two beautiful weddings in Vermont that happened to fall on back-to-back weekends. A highlight of that definitely was a trip to Montreal — it’d been a minute since my last trip and I hit a few classics — Joe Beef, Au Pied du Cochon (shout out the most insane seafood plateau in the history of seafood plateaus), while trying out the new, excellent Le Violon from chef Danny Smiles.
A little further north of Montreal, I got to play a little tennis at a camp in Mont Tremblant (shoutout weird empty ski towns in the summer!) and had a 10/10 spa experience at Scandinave Spa Mont Tremblant. Being able to duck out in the middle of a restaurant opening and reset for a few short days was a real privilege and blessing. And for what it's worth, I came back to the city and immediately ordered Sichuan from Park Slope's hidden gem, Authentic Szechuan (of 5th Ave).
CULTURE & LEISURE • Broadway
Final bows
Four Broadway shows closing in the next 30 days:
→ The Hills of California (Broadhurst), a drama by Tony Award-winning, Olivier-award winning British playwright Jez Butterworth following the Webb sisters and their mother with a narrative that shifts between the ‘50s and ‘70s. Themes include family, memory, motherhood, and the pursuit of fame. Tickets from $74 per, closes 12/22.
→ Suffs (Music Box), Tony-winning musical by Shaina Taub about the fight for women’s suffrage in the early 20th century, featuring a bold score, powerful performances, and an all-female and non-binary cast. Tickets from $79 per, closes 1/5.
→ Stereophonic (Golden), three-hour masterpiece by David Adjmi about a Fleetwood Mac-esque ’70s rock band recording their seminal album. Winner of 2024 Tony for best new play, it blurs the line between play and musical, featuring songs by Will Butler (formerly of Arcade Fire), performed live by the literal band of actors. Tickets from $48 per, closes 1/12.
→ Swept Away (Longacre), dark, captivating musical about a shipwreck, scored by The Avett Brothers, involving four men confronting their fates in the wake of a devastating storm. Tickets from $46 per, closes 12/29. –Phoebe Fry
CULTURE & LEISURE • Festive Season
They Might Be Giants • Kings Theatre (Flatbush) • Fri @ 8p • section 2, $85 per
Filthy Lucre • A Burlesque Christmas Carol • Lips (Midtown East) • Fri @ 930p • VIP, $38 per
Wassaic Project’s Holiday Party for Artists & Lovers • The Invisible Dog (Boerum Hill) • Tues @ 6-9p • $35 per
CULTURE & LEISURE LINKS: NYC Film industry stuck in low gear • MoMA screening entire 24 hours of The Clock on Dec 21 • Met unveils design for new wing by architect Frida Escobedo • Most memorable things at Miami Art Week • TikTok stunt-casting on Broadway: It works!
GOODS & SERVICES • The Nines
Holiday wreaths
The Nines are FOUND's distilled lists of NYC's best. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@foundny.com.
Soho Trees (Upper East Side), choose from 5 different varieties of greenery for wreaths up to 6ft in diameter