Take a first look at Eataly’s honey-themed rooftop restaurant

It’s a beehive you’ll want to step into.

Today, Eataly NYC Flatiron’s seasonal rooftop Serra by Birreria transforms into Serra D'Autunno with a honey and harvest theme that oozes with local and Italian honeys. The timing hits just in time for fall as farmers harvest their bounty of produce and vineyards finish collecting their grapes.

The honey theme touches every part of the restaurant, from the creative decor to a menu focused on local ingredients as well as Italian specialties. 

For Michael Nogera, the executive chef of Eataly NYC Flatiron, it was a chance to geek out on pairing honey with different ingredients. For one course, he picked cheeses from regions throughout Italy that a nomadic bee keeper sourced from for his products.

“When you think of bees, you may think of spring,” says Nogera. “But the harvesting of the honey also goes with grains and wine this time of year.”

From antipasti (a roasted honeynut squash is finished with house-made Stracciatella cheese, hazelnuts and honeysuckle honey) to main dishes (a shareable portion of braised pork shank that’s glazed in Italian honey), there’s no part of the menu left behind.

There are at least half a dozen cocktails that incorporate honey. Beverage Director Randall Restiano’s menu features gin and bourbon, among other spirits, mixed with honey for riffs on the seasonally-appropriate Hot Toddy. The Bee’s Teas is a customizable beverage option where you get to choose a tea, honey and spirit of your choice. For the more adventurous imbibers, there’s idromele (or mead), which is an alcoholic beverage made from fermenting honey and various fruits, spices, grains or hops.

As Nogera notes: “The honey is warming us up for fall.”

There’s also a charity component to the seasonal restaurant this time around. Eataly will donate 10% of the net proceeds from the sale of each honey-themed dish to the Bee Conservancy’s Sponsor-a-Hive program, which works with community organizations to install honeybee hives and native bee homes throughout parts of the U.S. and Canada.  

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