'Top Chef' Semifinalist Nears Opening Of Upper East Side Restaurant

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Creola, a new restaurant from Top Chef semifinalist Lana Lagomarsini, is nearing its opening on the Upper East Side.

The signage for the restaurant at 1261 Park Ave. between East 97th Street and East 98th Street recently went up, according to the restaurant's Instagram.

The restaurant will open in the space previously occupied by O Cuisine, a catering and culinary studio.

Prior to finishing in sixth place on Top Chef's 22nd season, Lagomarsini, a Bronx local, also competed in Netflix's Pressure Cooker, where she came in eighth place.

She was also a participant in the 2024 James Beard Chef Boot Camp for Policy and Advocacy, and prior to that, worked at Gramercy Tavern, Daniel and Momofuku Ko.

Throughout her career, her work has explored African and American foodways, exploring rich, complicated histories through fine dining.

Lagomarsini's restaurant will feature a five-course tasting menu, "built around seasonality, memory, and inspiration," she wrote on Instagram.

So far, dishes include Elk with blackberry jerk and plantains, ramp ranch with seasonal crudité, lamb, tamarind BBQ and chow chow, and crab rice-stuffed quail with sauce américaine.

"My hope is to bring the feeling of the best supper club you’ve been to, where you make friends and leave with warm memories," she wrote.

The restaurant will open in September, but an official opening date has not yet been announced.

Know of a business opening or closing on the Upper East Side? Email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.