Nura Chef Jackie Carnesi’s Favorite New York Lunch Spots

“For a while, we were going to Sapporo Ichiban almost every single Monday. It’s a little sushi spot in Greenpoint. It’s no-frills, pretty straightforward. It’s always playing the absolute worst and most unrecognizable pop music you’ve ever heard. But it’s just delicious sushi that’s not insanely priced, and you can eat your weight in raw fish. I always get this thing that I’m pretty sure is meant for two people. It’s the salmon sushi dinner ⁠— that’s what it’s called, even at lunch ⁠— and it has eight pieces of sashimi, two different rolls, and miso soup. We get a giant Sapporo. Or green tea if I’m not drinking.”

“We often find ourselves a lot at Leo. It has the best pizza in the city, no question. I always get the chopped salads and the New York pie. It’s just not this forgettable thing. Once you get through all of the toppings and you get to the crust, it’s still an exciting experience.

“The pizza crust is unmatched; it’s the sourdough and the salinity. It’s something you feel in your soul. It has such a nice chew, too. Frequently, I don’t think there’s enough salt in a lot of pizza doughs and when that happens, the crust gets left behind. But yeah, we almost always finish the entire Leo pie.

“Damian always gets a potato slice from the to-go area. It’s delicious, but he is insistent that we get it every time. I think it’s pretty incredible that I actually enjoy potato on a pizza. And I have pretty firm feelings about that. One time at a different spot, he ordered a pizza with French fries on it. I was almost irate. I was just like: ‘This is so ridiculous and unnecessary and you’re not getting anything out of this experience.’ But I will say that the potato slice from Leo does not have that effect on me. It’s very enjoyable. The potatoes have a little tiny bit of bite on them. They’re pretty thinly sliced, like a quarter of an inch, and they still have some texture to them, which is nice. It feels more like a vegetable pie. It’s a white pie and it’s one of their square pies. It’s a little bit more substantial than the New York slice or whatever. But yeah, their grandma’s slices are so, so good.”

We like to go to Chelsea Market and go to Los Tacos No. 1 and [its sister restaurant, Los Mariscos] right next to it. Their shrimp cocktail mariscos is one of my favorite things. The tomato juice is on the sweeter side. There’s a good amount of lime, and it’s just really simple poached shrimp, and avocado. So yummy. I try to get a couple of things from Los Tacos. I just love how sloppy they are. So much avocado and salsa on them. Perfect.

We also like to get halva afterwards [at Seed + Mill]. We like to try them and pick different ones every time we go — like the cashew one or the rosewater one.

“Via Carota is an all-time favorite because it just feels so special every time you go there. It feels so uniquely New York. It’s a nice place to go and have a lunch martini. It feels like a nighttime date during the day.

“The food is always incredible. It’s relatively simple but executed so well. Also, I’ve never met them, but how can you not have so much respect for Jody [Williams] and Rita [Sodi], and the empire that they’ve created? And the fact that every single one of the restaurants is a smash hit? They’re incredible chefs that I totally look up to. So, I mean, that’s part of it, too, for me.

“I think it surprises a lot of people, but I’m really a creature of habit when I go to restaurants. I like the same things, which is kind of embarrassing to say as a chef, but it’s like I completely fall in love with dishes, and I can never stop thinking about them. At Via Carota, I always get the branzino with the bitter greens, and the artichokes. And I always get a martini.

“Artichokes are one of my favorite foods, and I feel like they’re not present on a lot of menus. And the branzino with the greens ⁠— it’s the simplest dish. It’s fish, lemon, sautéed radicchio, and green olives. It’s as straightforward as can be, but every time I eat it, I feel so satisfied. The way they cook is the way that I like to eat: Really simple food, but with bold flavors. It’s something I try to emulate in the food that I make as well. At Nura, I’m using a much larger pantry of spices, and that is super exciting, but I still love being able to do draw from this place of simplicity. I’m not like overly, technically touching the food too much. Or at least I try not to.”