Merkin Hudson Opens After April Fools’ Double-Fake-Out
Merkin Hudson, a new project from the Cafe Mutton team, offers a concise menu and casual, all-day service.
On April 1, Shaina Loew-Banayan posted on Cafe Mutton’s Instagram a photo of themself holding a red balloon, a solemn look on their face, and the words “Merkin Hudson” painted on a garage door behind them. The caption: “Not April Fools.” Which, of course, made it seem like an April Fools’ prank.
The announcement prompted exactly that kind of response: “I’m pretending this is real,” and “Stop jerkin my merkin.”
The joke was, however, that it only looked like one. Merkin Hudson is real, and it’s already open.
“I like to sow mayhem,” says Loew-Banayan. The April Fools’ post was the setup. Opening Merkin for real was the punchline. “It is genuine and good and also a deep prank.”
Loew-Banayan is the chef/owner of Cafe Mutton, the Columbia Street restaurant that has become a fixture in Hudson for its meat-forward menu and use of lesser-known cuts. A 2023 James Beard Award finalist for Best Chef: New York State, they opened in 2021, and it has since evolved into a full-service dinner and brunch spot with a loyal following.
Merkin has been six months in the making—renovating the garage, bringing it up to code—though Loew-Banayan resists the word “finished.” “It’s grungy,” they say. The concept itself came together only in the last month or so, and even then, they had to reckon with what they were actually doing. “I was afraid to admit to myself that I was opening another business.”
The name does, in fact, refer to a pubic hairpiece, and to the building’s past life, according to Loew-Banayan. “There is a trend of spots in Hudson naming themselves after the factories that previously occupied their spaces” says Loew-Banayan. “I thought that sounded like great fun. Sometimes Hudson feels like an amusement park, and it turns out that I am currently very amused.”
Ask Loew-Banayan what Merkin is, and they’ll tell you what it isn’t first. It is not a wine bar. “A wine bar is far away from me in concept and feeling,” they say. “There are certain types of things that we cannot be in this life.” What it is, they suggest, sits somewhere between a Hungarian ruin pub and the scene in Harriet the Spy where the kids eat cake with a wrench while sitting in a grocery cart. Cross those two things, they say, “and you might begin to understand what Merkin is and what is beautiful about ugly things.”
The menu is short and deliberate: a bologna sandwich with mustard, mayo, lettuce, and onion ($16); a country pâté sandwich with whole grain mustard and cornichons ($17); pig foot mortadella with caper mayo ($17); head cheese on a baguette with celery root remoulade ($17); and pickled mackerel with butter, onions, and dill ($18). There’s also a “mean, greasy soup of the moment”—recently lamb head, or sausage with potato and fermented radish—and oysters, when available. There is a selection of wine, along with beer, liquor, but no cocktails.
“Hell no,” says Loew-Banayan, when asked if they plan to add more items to the menu. “Adding more is always the problem.”
The difference from Cafe Mutton is less about what’s on the plate and more about how you experience it. Service is counter-style, a throwback to Mutton’s earlier days. “I would recommend hanging out all day and drinking wine at Merkin and reading books and writing mean and rude poetry,” they say. Mutton, by contrast, is for a full, hot meal. The two are, in their words, “in cahoots”—start at one, migrate to the other.
The most ambitious offering is the Sunday Long Lunch: a five-course, family-style meal for about a dozen strangers, served over four hours and ending with amari—small pours of spirits—after which people tend to linger. The meal moves from charcuterie to soup to a large shared main—past menus have included cassoulet or platters of steaks and marrow bones—followed by cheese and a festive dessert, with abundant wine for those who want it. “Most of our groups have departed with new friends,” says Loew-Banayan.
Merkin Hudson is open Thursday and Friday, 12–9pm. The Long Lunch runs weekly on Sundays, tickets can be purchased on Cafe Mutton’s Resy. Follow @merkinhudson for updates.
