Westchester Magazine: Small, Loud…and Excellent
Dobbs Ferry’s The Cookery puts the gastro
back in gastropub.
Chef Dave DiBari, formerly head of Zuppa’s kitchen and now chef/owner of The Cookery, seems to have learned something about achievable goals. While other trendy chefs pursue personal ventures with fine-dining aspirations, DiBari’s smart Cookery is almost stridently pretense-free. It’s reasonably priced, minimalist, and exactly what its name suggests.
“A modest, streamlined interior, a value-conscious menu, and superlative fare can be found at Dave DiBari’s The Cookery.”
The dishes of DiBari’s inspirational landscape, Italy’s dairy- and pork-soaked north, can be overwhelmingly rich if approached with less finesse. DiBari sidesteps these traps with ease. A fluffy, béchamel-based lasagna is leavened with whipped ricotta and a restrained use of house-made mozzarella: the whole is studded with heavenly wild mushrooms, haunted by truffle oil, and given a final crunch with coarse breadcrumbs.