Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Southeast Asian Spot Pig & Khao Now Open With Self-Serve Backyard Beer
By
Nell Casey
Published Sep 25, 2012
Modified Sep 25, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Courtesy Zandy Mangold
By
Nell Casey
Published Sep 25, 2012
Modified Sep 25, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The Fatty Crew arrives on the Lower East Side with Pig & Khao, a collaboration with Top Chef alum Leah Cohen serving shared plates that riff off traditional Southeast Asian cuisine. The restaurant officially opens tonight in the former Falai space, serving a lunch and dinner menu focusing primarily on Filipino and Thai flavors with notes from other regional cuisines.
The pork-heavy menu promises an intriguing blend of spices, herbs and textures. A crispy pata (pork leg) and picked mango salad comes with soy-sauce/five spice cooked pork shank and coriander and crispy garlic gets dipped in a "secret family recipe" of sweet and sour liver. The grilled pork neck and watermelon salad is served over toasted rice with a zesty chili lime fish sauce, shallot, chicharon and herbs. Finally, if you're not in a porcine mood, (deep breath) try the crispy quail adobo with Szechuan peppercorn, coconut vinegar, soy sauce, bay leaves, crispy garlic, scallion and a soft-boiled quail egg. A nice selection of canned beers, punch, wines and shojis will quench your thirst, but it's the "self-serve bottomless tap" serving seasonal beer in the backyard that really got our motor running.
The design fuses odes to the Lower East Side's 19th century past with elements of Southeast Asian design—a dragon-headed, hand-carved Filipino bicycle adorns a bright green accent wall, while Edison bulb light fixtures hang down from the copper ceilings. The cozy, 1,000 square foot dining area features a long row of tables and the chef's bar, where chef Cohen will nightly prepare her signature dishes. While the weather is on your side, wander out back and you'll find a few tables under trellises in the backyard garden, as well as that alluring self-serve tap (tappable for $15).
68 Clinton Street // 212-920-4485
The Halo-Halo: A Filipino dessert made with shaved ice, leche flan, ube ice cream, macapuno, and pinipig. We're told "the ice cream is really that color; it's not dyed." (Courtesy Zandy Mangold)
Tagged
fatty crew
Lower East Side
new restaurant and bar radar
pig & khao
top chef
original
Nell Casey
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Sep 12, 2026
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
Food
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Can a congressional candidate's dumpling diplomacy win over Queens’ immigrant communities?
By
Caroline Shin
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .