The buzz: Following the success of his inventive Thai restaurant Le Du, chef Thitid Tassanakajohn has teamed up with his ex-classmate from the Culinary Institute of America, chef Tatchapol Choomduang (formerly of Tribeca) to open a new joint. Tatchapol takes the helm, here, but the focus on breakfast and brunch-y dishes also allows Thitid to come over during the day, before heading to Le Du.

 

The decor: The ground floor of Taper’s relatively small shop-house is dedicated to an open kitchen where all the cooking happens. There are also a few counter seats as well as some tables by the window. The mezzanine level has a more intimate feel, with space for about 20 people in a room decorated in copper and cream colors. The aromas wafting up from the kitchen make for a homey, warm ambience.

 

The food and drink: On top of staples like eggs Benedict (B260-320) and granola yogurt (B225), the chefs have also created their own Asian-inspired breakfast and lunch recipes. The popular Vietnamese banh mi sandwich (B290) is served here with duck confit and spicy duck mayo in Maison Jean Philippe’s carbon bread. Apart from this, the chefs try to cook everything in-house, from the freshly baked biscuits to pasta, which is served in Asianthemed dishes like salted egg carbonara (B290) and Isaan sausage olio (B290). Le Du’s pureed brown rice congee is on the menu, too, served with sous-vide egg, a thick chunk of bacon and fried ginger. They haven’t done much on the drinks front yet, but brunch cocktails are on their to-do list.

 

Why you should care: Chefs specializing in breakfast are popping up like crazy, but this is one of the few places that actually goes beyond eggs Benedict to create some really inventive dishes—and pulls them off.