Feeding Frenzy

Restaurants opening, closing and pending

by Drew Lazor

>> NOW SEATING

Stephen Starr's latest steak-fed kid opened to the public this past Monday. The '60s supper club makeover of Striped Bass was the handiwork of designer Shawn Hausman, who also designed Starr's Parc and Continental Mid-town, among others. Fat leather "Hollywood" booths and piles of polished dark wood create a toasty backdrop for chef Shane Cash's manly meat menu, which is centered around cuts like Delmonicos, dry-aged porterhouses, Colorado lamb chops, veal and pork chops and more. (Visit Meal Ticket for lunch and dinner menus and a photo tour of the interior.)

Dahlia Osman and her mother, Nemi Assaad, opened this tour-of-the-Mediterranean coffeehouse/eatery about three weeks ago in the former InFusion. Mazag — it translates to "good mood" in their native Egyptian — hits many, many Medi traditions, with menu items like stuffed grape leaves with yogurt sauce; couscous with goat cheese, almonds and veggies (heat and then add shrimp or chicken); Italian bean salads and panini; olive-laden Lebanese specialties; and fresh-baked breads and pastries. Beverage options include regular and Turkish coffees, rejuvenating hibiscus tea and sahlab (a hot drink derived from orchid root). Drop in on weekdays between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., and on weekends from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Check out photos and further details on Meal Ticket.)

Fred Eller and his sister-in-law, Lucille Marinaro, opened Teri's, named in memory of Eller's wife, close to two months back. The open kitchen cranks out breakfast and lunch specialties, primarily — crabcakes, "kick ass" omelettes, eggs benny, hoagies/steaks/sandwiches — but they also mix it up a bit with BBQ brunches, pancakes topped with roasted corn and chive butter and more. They're open Sun.-Tue., 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Wed.-Sat., 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Chef Ben Byruch, who ran international small plates restaurant Sonam at 223 South, is back in action just up the street with Coconut Grove, a 45-seat liquor-licensed space on the floor above the original Copabanana. (It's got its own entrance on Fourth Street.) The menu features tropical "tapas," ceviches and sliders — check out yucca-crusted salmon with a grapefruit vinaigrette, broiled eel with tropical fruit salsa, poached oysters with avocado and Cuban pico de gallo, etc. (We've got the full menu on Meal Ticket.)