When he’s not curating the long-running show at his eponymous West 55th Street power haunt, energetic restaurateur, art collector and farm-to-table pioneer Michael McCarty pounds the pavement with his wife, artist Kim McCarty. “Nobody walks in LA, so when we’re here we walk everywhere,” says the bicoastal bon vivant, who spends half the year in California, home to his original restaurant in Santa Monica. On Thursday, McCarty was honored at the annual benefit for Careers Through Culinary Arts Program, a nonprofit that provides opportunities for underprivileged youth. This is his New York.
1 Nello, 696 Madison Ave., at 62nd Street
“Kim and I like to sit outside in spring, summer or fall. I always have the bresaola with arugula and a glass of Prosecco, followed by the veal chop with wild mushrooms, a side of their green and white pasta gratin with peas prosciutto and a super-Tuscan. I know some people diss Nello’s, but it’s the craziest Saturday lunch scene you can imagine, full of insanely nuts people from everywhere. Last time, we sat next to a husband and wife who looked like members of a punk band and turned out to be financial enforcers for the Saudis.”
2 Lobel’s of New York, 1096 Madison Ave., at 83rd Street
“After our stop at the Met, we’ll swing into Lobel’s to eyeball their super-aged prime rib-eyes, and pick out what we want them to deliver to our apartment for our Sunday lunch barbecue. We’ve been throwing wild parties on the terrace for many years. The criteria for being invited are really simple. You’ve got to be into food, wine and art — a big eater and a big drinker. Whiners need not apply.”
3 Korin, 57 Warren St., between West Broadway and Church Street
“Our alternative Saturday morning power-walk involves heading south to see what’s happening in Chelsea’s art galleries, especially the Sean Kelly Gallery on West 29th Street. Then, I’ve got to swing by Korin, which has the city’s best selection of artisan-made Japanese knives, which are works of art in their own right and beautifully displayed here. Nothing cuts like great Japanese knives, and I love to use them in my home kitchen.”
4 La Grenouille, 3 E. 52nd St., at Fifth Avenue
“After working the crowd during the week at Michael’s, I like to take my general manager Steve Millington and our executive chef Kyung Up Lim to one of the last bastions of French haute cuisine, to share my culinary roots with them and show them how it’s done in the old-school way [McCarty spent five years living in Paris, where he trained at Le Cordon Bleu and the Hotel & Restaurant School.] I always order the Dover sole and the duck, and for dessert one of their classic Grand Marnier, chocolate or apple-and-Calvados soufflés.”
5 Whitney Museum of American Art, 945 Madison Ave., at 75th Street
“On Saturday mornings, my wife Kim and I power-walk from our apartment near MoMA north through Central Park to hit the Guggenheim, the Met and the Whitney, run by our good friend Adam Weinberg. I loved the Man Rays at the Whitney’s Real Surreal show, on now. We’ve always been involved in the visual arts — contemporary art plays a big role in the Michael’s restaurant experience, and Kim is a successful artist in her own right. When I opened the first Michael’s in LA in 1979, the food, wine and art worlds were very small. We would do trades with all these guys — Dennis Hopper, David Hockney, Billy Al Bengston and Robert Graham. They became our clients and I became theirs.”
6 Warren Edwards, 107 E. 60th St., at Park Avenue
“Their custom-made croc loafers have been my go-to shoes since the ’80s. They cost a fortune ($2,500), but they’re incredibly comfortable, which matters in a business where you’re on your feet so much, and they last forever. I used to buy them in purple, red, British racing green. Now I stick to brown and black.”
7 The Smile, 26 Bond St., near Bleecker Street
“Stopping for lunch at Carlos Quirarte’s and Matt Kliegman’s casual NoHo spot feels like a natural extension of our Chelsea galleries power-walk, since its chef is Melia Marden, daughter of artists Brice and Helen Marden. Kim and I like to see what creative things she does with her salads and sandwiches. After that, we’re ready to see what’s happening at the New Museum on Bowery. Its director is Lisa Phillips, a former Malibu neighbor of ours.”
8 Agata & Valentina, 1505 First Ave., at 79th Street
“On Sundays, I’ve got those great steaks from Lobel’s waiting to be grilled for lunch. During the day, to complete the menu, I’ll walk over to this gourmet market, which not only has incredibly good ingredients but also feels like I’ve been transported to old-time New York. They’re full-service, and at this time of year I know I can pick up great Nantucket Bay scallops and Florida stone crab claws, always prepared with the king of my cooking partners, Martin von Haselberg, his wife Bette Midler, their daughter Sophie and our daughter Clancy. And to top it off, after the barbecue, we run across the street to hit the latest show at MoMA before it closes at 5:30.”