New York's Il Buco Celebrates 20th Anniversary

Donna Lennard's rustic Italian restaurant on Bond Street in New York, il Buco, celebrated its twentieth anniversary last week. In commemoration, the restaurant hosted an outdoor Sagra del Maiale (festival of the pig) on Sunday, September 21, led by chef Joel Hough and famed Argentine chef Francis Mallmann. A ticket bought each guest a plate filled with Flying Pigs Farm's pork slow-roasted on an infiernillo presented four ways alongside farmer's market panzanella, pasta Genovese, and ricotta fritters. The iterations of pork were rich cuts of the belly, succulent slices of the shoulder, porchetta panini on bread that had a crisp outer crust and a wonderfully soft and bubble-filled inside, and well balanced housemade apple-pork sausages.

The week prior to the festival, from September 15 to 21, the restaurant welcomed back its acclaimed chef alumni for a series of special dinners. On Monday, September 15, Jody Williams was the guest chef; Tuesday, September 16, it was Sara Jenkins; on Wednesday, September 17, Justin Smillie presented his dinner; Thursday, September 18, saw Joel Hough and Roger Martinez team up; Friday, September 19, Christopher Lee came back to cook dinner; Saturday, September 20, Ignacio Mattos was the guest chef, and after the pig roast on Sunday, September 21, Francis Mallmann soldiered on to present diners with a taste of his fare.

Kate Kolenda is the Restaurant/City Guide Editor at The Daily Meal. Follow her on Twitter @BeefWerky and @theconversant.