What’s Cookin’: January 25

Kosher steak house Prime Grill (60 E 49 St, 212-692-9292, ThePrimeGrill.com)  will move from its current location and fill the old Beacon space on 56th Street. The wood-burning oven stays, however, and in a room separate from the soaring 360-seater, a sommelier will serve vintage Herzog kosher wines.

 

Sadly, R.I.P to R.U.B. in Chelsea. The hot barbecue spot has closed; another victim of losses incurred after Hurricane Sandy. 

 

In other, happier barbecue news, The Strand Smokehouse (25-27 Broadway, 718-440-3231) in Astoria has backyard dining, an outdoor café, a main dining room stuffed with picnic tables and a stage primed for good ol’ live honky-tonk music. Maple-and-hickory-smoked brisket, beef ribs and pork loin share the bill with charcuterie such as duck pastrami and foie gras terrine.

 

Recently opened Benares (45 Murray St, 212-766-4900, BenaresNYC.com) features fare from each of India’s culinary regions and has a greater emphasis on vegetarian and seafood dishes than its midtown outpost. Steered by executive chef Peter Beck (Tamarind), this is a trip down the Ganges that we would like to make.

 

Brookyn’s Union Market (240 E Houston St, 212-677-2441, UnionMarket.com) recently opened a new location on the Lower East Side. It’s owners claim it’s not just a specialty grocer but “your neighborhood source for fine foods,” offering a host of private label items to forage through.