Egg Shop's Nick Korbee Preps For Spring With New Cocktails and a Cookbook

It’s about much more than eggs at Nolita restaurant Egg Shop. Although the eggs happen to be outstanding, it’s the cocktail program paired with the delicious dishes that keeps us coming back.

A hit since opening in summer 2014, Egg Shop and chef Nick Korbee have been serving their signature egg-centric dishes to a very pleased audience ever since. Standouts include the Poached Burrata, yolk stuffed creamy cheese with crispy chickpeas and truffle toast, Buttermilk Biscuits served with Honey Butter, Eggs Caviar, with soft scramble, salmon roe and fresh dill and – of course – the Hot Chix, spicy fried chicken, sunny up, pickled carrots and chili aioli, which Korbee rightfully dubs “the bomb.”

Image: David Malosh

As evidenced by the menu, and in Egg Shop: The Cookbook (available in stores and online on March 21st) Korbee likes to have fun in the kitchen. And why not get creative with the cocktails, too? Created by Korbee himself (he worked as a chef at Tribeca’s Smith & Mills and picked up some useful skills from the bar team, Employee’s Only alums) the drinks are playful yet thoughtful, a well-curated list of creative concoctions that don’t take themselves too seriously.

“When we started we wanted to use the cocktail list to shave the preverbal mustache off the downtown cocktail scene,” explains Korbee. “Egg Shop is not about moody sex appeal, or creating the vibe of another time and place. Our vibe is about being in the moment and having a good time right now.”

With the mantra: “Eggs All Day, Eggs All Night,” Korbee has been successful in reshaping the way people enjoy both dishes and drinks generally enjoyed at a certain time of day.

Image: Hannah Schneider

“We want to bring easy going brunch vibes to a dinner service, and pull margaritas off the happy hour/cocktail shelf and put them dead center of your morning routine,” says Korbee. “For this reason, our list features our favorite party drinks with a focus on mezcal and tequila. And classic cocktails like the Negroni, whiskey sour, or a Spritz get slight twists to help lighten the mood and pair across all menus. Finally, we had to create a place where you could have a great Bloody Mary at dinner because nobody puts baby in the corner!”

Looking forward to spring, Korbee is looking forward to “the building excitement for warmer weather and an easier better more relaxing lifestyle. I like sour and bitter to remind that life gets sweeter over time, and that winter may not be over just yet. For that reason, I can’t wait for rhubarb and first of the season strawberries.”

Some of the cocktails, including the Smoke Show, the Rosemary Negroni and the Tequila Honey Bee are here to stay, Korbee is adding some new ones, too.

Image: Katie Foster

“I’m working on a turmeric-infused vodka in a yuzu lemonade and a super light whiskey sour which gets sour from fresh passionfruit,” Korbee tells Thirsty.

And while the Egg Shop Bloody Mary is delish, Korbee plans to retool it for the season, too.

“It’s an everything-in-bar Bloody Mary, but for spring and summer it’s too heavy,” he explains. “I’m lightening it up with fresh heirloom tomato juice and jalapeno. Super fresh, it’ll be the lightest Bloody Mary of all time.”

As for the wine menu, expect it to evolve for spring – “I’m pulling the Grenache-syrah which is so awesome and weird but not spring-y, and am crushing on Pet Nats, Austrian Rose, and Hungarian Orange Wines right now,” admits Korbee – while maintaining an emphasis on organic and biodynamic varietals.

Image: Katie Burton

“We chose to focus on Organic and biodynamic wines for a few very simple reasons,” explains Nick “First, we use organic ingredients as much as possible in our cooking and when it comes to our eggs, we are exclusively organic. We found it only fitting to seek out organic wines to fit our food philosophy: better ingredients, better food.”

As for more spring and summer-centric options, “We have a really beautiful dry Reisling coming on the menu and that will give way to a broader rosé and sparkling wine program,” says Korbee.

“We really plan to become the home of breakfast wine,” concludes Korbee. “It’s a real thing and we believe that eggs are good all damn day and deserve a good pairing.”