Family Table

Every night just before the dinner service, the entire staff of Danny Meyer's fiercely popular, award-winning restaurants Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, Eleven Madison Park, Blue Smoke, Maialino, The Modern, Untitled at the Whitney, and North End Grill sit down together for a meal. Special enough to please some of the nation's most discerning chefs, but simple enough for any home kitchen, these staff meals set the tone for the evening and boost camaraderie. Like all good home cooked meals, the dishes in Family Tableare easy, affordable, and forgiving. Standouts include a lasagna that Michael Romano's mother made for celebration feasts; herb-and-Parmesan-crusted chicken, a weekday hit from the three-star Eleven Madison Park; the entrancingly simple cola-braised short ribs from Maialino; spicy blackened fish tacos from Union Square Cafe; and Blue Smoke's signature oatmeal-raisin cookies. Each one has been tested and refined by Romano, a two-time James Beard Award winner.