The story begins in 2014, when four friends with practically zero restaurant experience between them naively decided to open a restaurant in New York City. They called the place The Four Horsemen, and they hired a largely unknown chef, Nick Curtola, to lead its tiny kitchen. Even though they did almost everything wrong at the start, The Four Horsemen now has a Michelin star, a waiting list for tables seven nights a week, and a James Beard Award for the best wine program in the United States—not to mention a global reputation as a must-visit destination in New York City. Of Curtola’s food, New York Times restaurant critic Pete Wells wrote, in a glowing review, “The effortlessly casual plates are not, in fact, effortless or casual, a realization that only dawns on you as you’re wondering why this sausage or that pickle is the best thing you’ve tasted in ages.”
In the acclaimed restaurant’s debut cookbook, Curtola explains his approach to simplicity with warmth, clarity, and more than 100 recipes. The book begins with a humorous and moving introduction by co-founder James Murphy, which sets the stage for Curtola’s writing and recipes, casual and informative essays by natural wine pioneer Justin Chearno, and appearances by Murphy and Chearno’s fellow horsemen Christina Topsøe and Randy Moon. Throughout, readers will also find suggestions related to a subject on which the four unwitting friends were experts long before they built the restaurant: how to have a bit of fun.
