This café and restaurant in the Lower East Side comes from a 19-year-old chef.

Gem is the first venture from chef Flynn McGarry, the teenage prodigy who has been mastering his culinary skills since the age of ten and has been running pop-ups in LA and NYC. 

His restaurant, in a pair of narrow storefronts on the Lower East Side, consists of the Living Room, an all-day cafe serving coffee, tea and pastries from morning until 5 p.m., as well as the Dining Room where $155 (including tip) set-menu dinners will be served. The aim is for the restaurant to have a homey feeling, a bit like a dinner party. The idea is that the rooms complement one another: guests begin in The Living Room with snacks and champagne, before being seated in the Dining Room to enjoy a multi-course menu, consisting of small plates, large family-style dishes and dessert.

Dishes include King Crab with leeks, grapefruit and rose, a series of dishes called the Lamb Feast, peanut Ritz crackers with foie gras, agnolotti filled with chicory and petits fours to finish. A wine pairing is available for $100 and wine, beer, sake, and cider are available by the glass and bottle.

Ideal For

A dinner party out

Signature Dishes

Peanut Ritz Crackers with foie gras, king crab with leeks and grapefruit, and slow-roasted sunchokes with pumpkin seed oil and apple.