Carmine Favuzzi is the new head chef at Grotto Ristorante at the Golden Nugget Casino, Hotel & Marina in Atlantic City. Favuzzi, who is originally from Molfetta, Italy, studied at the Culinary Institute of Bari and has worked at several five-star hotels in Italy and held several chef positions for Italian restaurants in New Jersey and Indiana. His revamped menu focuses on seasonal ingredients and Northeastern Italian cuisine, which can be paired with more than 200 varieties of wine, 70 percent of which are Italian. Three guest favorites will remain on the new menu: bruschetta, the Grotto salad, and the tomato basil soup. Several new dishes include pepperoni arrostiti Siciliani, arugula salad, rigatoni Siciliano, fileto di branzino, scarpariello di pollo, and pizzas made in the wood-fire oven. Reservations: 609-441-8475.
CHARLIE YEH
Charlie Yeh is the chef at 128 West State Café, 128 West State Street, Trenton (609-392-5900). Open Monday through Friday, 7 AM to 4 PM. His family owned Banzai on Quakerbridge Road in Hamilton for years, and he co-owns Sumo Asian Cuisine and Viva Gelato Café in Pennington.
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