On a busy night, White Plains’ Mamaroneck Avenue mimics a lively, young Gansevoort Street in Manhattan’s meatpacking district or the bar-and-restaurant row on Third Avenue in Murray Hill.

All three neighborhoods cater to the nightlife-savvy urbanite that throughout the late 1990s and into the early part of the 21st century moved into and established roots in areas that “once were.”

White Plains’ ushering in of a retail renaissance over the last decade has dramatically changed the face of its downtown – the Recession did the same.

Just two years ago, plenty of visible vacancies – it’s estimated the rate was over 10 percent in the central business district – left landlords, brokers and business owners in a state of uncertainty.

The tide may be turning for tenancies.

“We’re getting real, viable calls now and a huge amount of interest from established restaurateurs and other tenants to come into downtown White Plains,” said Bonnie Silverman, president of Silverman Realty Group, a commercial real estate brokerage and property management firm in downtown White Plains. “I attribute it to all of the new residents coming into town with the new residences: Trump Tower, The Ritz-Carlton, The Avalon… I just think it’s a vibe.”

Silverman Realty Group’s latest lease signings include: Energy Kitchen, 2,050 square feet, 40 Mamaroneck Ave.; Delicious Licks frozen yogurt, 60A Mamaroneck Ave. and Milonga Arepas & Tapas Grill, a 1,383-square-foot space at 74 Mamaroneck Ave., which will be operated by the same owners of Milonga Wine and Tapas Restaurant on North Broadway in White Plains.

“We’re seeing chains come in or additions to successful businesses,” said Rick Ammirato, executive director of the White Plains Business Improvement District, who at press time was completing his last week at the BID before relocating to Florida. “If you have a bar or restaurant, those people are opening second or third spaces. They’re well-capitalized and nimble enough to take advantage of the market.”

Prophecy nightclub on South Broadway, which operated first as Coughlan’s in 2003 and became event-and-party space Prophecy in 2007, has hired on restaurateur Salvatore Callarame as managing partner and introduced an affordable tasting and wine-pairing menu through Prophecy Restaurant.

Prophecy’s event bookings have been strong; the venue hosts bar mitzvahs and business groups on back-to-back weeks.

But it hasn’t been easy for the area as a whole to make it through the downturn unscathed.

Just down South Broadway, upscale Italian eatery Antipasti shuttered, as did Via Quadronno and Peniche Tapas Restaurant.

“We had the events and the nightlife that we could fall back on, but I think the White Plains area did take a big hit,” Callarame said. “There’s always something to be said about every place and so many stories going out there, but if you don’t run a business properly? It can fail. People have a bad experience? They talk.”

Silverman said patrons are looking for quality and a good price-point “whether it’s independently operated or a franchise.”

You’re seeing numerous microchains that have garnered success in busy, urban areas open up, such as Serafina, which opened in Via Quadronno’s space and Sofrito Puerto Rican Restaurant, which Callarame said will fill Peniche’s vacancy.

More restaurants have moved in, including Pranzi-Enoteca Ristorante at Trump Tower, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Cheeburger Cheeburger and Impulse Hibachi.

There is talk of hotspot Butterfield 8 Restaurant and Lounge opening, which has New York City and Stamford, Conn., locations.

“I believe they’re coming to the Kinkos spot (147 Mamaroneck Ave.) on the corner,” noted Ammirato; calls to the landlord were unreturned.

Without hesitation, Callarame nods “no,” that new competition will not disrupt his venue’s flow of business.

That’s the thing about nightlife. Spillover business from neighboring establishments creates somewhat of a culture of congeniality – and a progressive party atmosphere.

“It’s like a giant family of restaurants,” he said. “God forbid I run out of an alcohol or a food, I can call a ton of restaurants in the area and ask them if they can help me. Since we are a nightclub, we do carry a lot of liquor and we do have a lot of locations that call us asking for liquor and as common courtesy, we’ll supply to them and they’ll return the favor to us.”
Original story,
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Prophecy Restaurant(15 S Broadway, White Plains 914-285-0900; prophecywhiteplains.com), which originally opened as a nightclub/party venue and pays homage to the look of a medieval castle’s great hall, has a new partner and revamped menu. Besides new à la carte dishes, mostly Italian and Spanish influenced, the restaurant now offers a 14-course chef selected tasting menu paired with wines for $75 plus. Mains to try include homemade pappardelle with a pork shoulder ragù, baby lamb chops, and Atlantic salmon in a roasted garlic sauce. Entrées range from $16 to $27. Prophecy is open Tuesday through Saturday for dinner. The new partner, Salvatore Callarame, was once co-owner of the now defunct Baci in Larchmont.

By JBT with Dana Leshem

View the full article...

    Readers of these Eaminer newspapers might know me as The Home Guru, but like
everyone else I know in the real estate industry, I have a back story of another career,
based on what I did "before" and still do.  And such is the case with Salvatore
Callarame too. 
    I first knew Sal as a mortgage broker when I attended a seminar sponsored by his firm. I took an immediate liking to him and hooked up in a couple of deals in which he served my seller and buyer clients like family.
    Only later did we discover that we both have extensive backgrounds in the restaurant industry, he as an operator and I as a publicist. He had owned Baci in Larchmont and a second unit in Mahopac and several other restaurant concepts before that. I have represented such iconic brands nationally as Ruth's Chris Steak House and Marie Callender's and, locally, such enterprises as Good-Life Gourmet Sandwich Shops and Frankie & Fanucci's. 
    While it came as no surprise when I got a call from Sal last month saying that he was opening up a new upscale restaurant in White Plains, what did surprise me was the location: Prophecy, which I had been told was known as Westchester's premier nightclub and special events venue or, as one review said at its opening, "the hottest spot north of Manhattan and east of Las Vegas."
    Wow, I thought. A fine restaurant in a "hot spot" nightclub? How would that mix?
I had to find out.
    When Prophecy Restaurant opened its doors last week, I was one of its first guests.
While I am not a reviewer, I invited a friend with me who is a sometimes cantankerous
food blogger and can be caustic in his reviews, but is always "right on" as to the
essence and success potential of new restaurants.
    As I might have suspected, its décor was unlike any I've ever seen in a fine restaurant. As decorated by Prophecy's owner, Daniel J. Coughlan, its theme is based on
the prediction of the future, complete with crystals in chandeliers, signs of the Zodiac, and design elements from tarot cards. In one way, it seemed like an anomaly and in
another, it lent a certain counterpoint excitement to being there.
    My critic friend and I had the choice of ordering from a moderately-priced, easy to
understand a la carte menu with an Italian/Spanish fusion focus, but what intrigued us was a tastings/ wine pairing menu of 14 courses, accompanied by four perfectly matched wines, all for only $75.00 per person. We went for the latter, and it was quite a gastronomic trip, orchestrated by the dual team of Sal (the Italian influencer) with Executive Chef Alberto Cano (the Spanish).
    We started with three featured appetizers on the menu: Shrimp Ceviche in a citrus
marinade; Twisted Calamari, tempura battered with a spicy Thai sauce; and Imported Mozzarella, with roasted peppers and arugula. My friend and I agreed that the calamari is destined to become a classic signature dish and Sal confesses that it is a secret recipe from the creative prowess of Chef Cano.
    That was followed by two pasta courses, Farfalle, the bow-tie pasta, with pesto sauce and Sal's own family's recipe of Spaghetti with fresh diced tomato, spinach, onions and marinated baby eggplant with ricotta salata.
    The chef's choices for the three entrée presentations were: Baby Lamb Chops with
chimi churri sauce and garlic mashed potatoes, Skirt Steak, and Chicken Parmigiano,
all perfectly prepared and arranged on a large oblong plate.
    By the time the entrée plate was picked up, I was certain that there was no room for a sweet ending to this meal, but the delivery of a three-tiered cornucopia of mini indulgences was my downfall.
    The a la carte menu features appetizers ranging from $10 to $12; salads for $7 or
$8; and entrees from $18 to $27. A large selection of small sides are $5 each, with
three for $13 and five for $20.
    As this goes to press, I received a call from Sal saying that the outdoor furniture
had arrived and that sidewalk café dining is now offered. While he was on the line, I made two more reservations for this week and next. I guess I'm going steady with this
new venture by a good friend.

Days and Hours: Tuesday through Saturday from 4:30 to 10:00 pm.

Reservations suggested.
For further information: Call the
restaurant at: 914-285-0900, or visit the
website: www.prophecywhiteplains.com.


By Bill Primavera
Covering All Towns in Mid-Westchester, Upper Westchester and Putnam County
June 14, 2011 SMALL NEWS IS BIG NEWS

By William Primavera | Email the author | June 7, 2011
From its opening, originally as Coughlan’s in 2003, Prophecy in downtown White Plains has been Westchester’s premier night club and special events venue. Now it becomes a new fine restaurant as well, to be known as Prophecy Restaurant

Just opened this week, Prophecy Restaurant is the brainchild of Salvatore Callarame, a veteran restaurateur who has been involved in the development of a number of restaurant concepts in New York City, Westchester and Putnam—most recently as a partner in Baci of Larchmont, and a second unit in Mahopac.

“I’ve had a special concept in mind for some years that I will fulfill at Prophecy Restaurant,” he said.

Daniel J. Coughlan, owner of the facility, added, “We have always had fine food at Prophecy because we wanted it to support the level of quality that we project in our night club and special events venue, but with Sal’s concept, we take it up a big notch!”

With a fusion of Italian/Spanish cuisine, Prophecy Restaurant offers two options for dining:  an a la carte menu and a ”tasting/pairing” menu.

The a la carte menu features appetizers ranging from $10 to $12; salads for $7 or $8; and entrees from $18 to $27.  Small sides are $5 each, with three for $13 and five for $20. There is also a meat platter for $18; a cheese platter and a fruit platter, each for $15.

The “tasting/wine pairing” menu offers 14 different tasting experiences chosen by the chef, paired to four different wines, at $75 per person.

“Our tasting menu is a sampling of dishes from our a la carte menu,” Callarame explained.

A typical tasting menu might include such dishes as Shrimp Ceviche in a citrus marinade; Twisted Calamari, tempura battered with a spicy Thai sauce; and Imported Mozzarella, with roasted peppers and arugula, all offered with the first wine.

With a second wine two pasta courses are offered: perhaps Farfalle, the bow-tie pasta, or the Callarame family’s recipe of Spaghetti with fresh diced tomato, spinach, onions and marinated baby eggplant with ricotta salata.

“Both our Spaghetti and our Thai Calamari are sure to become our signature dishes," said Callarame.

The pasta is followed by a salad. Then a sorbet to cleanse the palate. Chef’s choices for the three entrée presentations might be: Baby Lamb Chops with chimi churri sauce and garlic mashed potatoes, Skirt Steak, and Chicken Parmigiano, offered with the third paired wine.

 “Then we present a three-tiered cornucopia of mini indulgences, with the fourth wine. I think that we offer something truly unique in this region,” Callarame concluded.

Alberto Cano, who has been with Prophecy since its original opening, is the executive chef, having come from several restaurant operations owned by the Vuli restaurant family.

The design of the facility, elaborately fashioned with emblems of predicting the future – crystals in it chandeliers, signs of the Zodiac, tarot cards – looks much like a medieval castle’s great hall. The main dining room seats 90 people, and a sidewalk café offering en plein air dining.

Prophecy Restaurant is open Tuesday through Saturday from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Reservations are suggested. For further information, call the restaurant at: 914-285-0900, or visit the website: www.prophecywhiteplains.com

       Usually when you find places that try to do two things at once, the results are mediocre at best, like restaurants that serve Chinese and Japanese food or Chinese and Mexican, I once had the displeasure of eating at a Thai restaurant with a built in Dunkin Doughnuts.  When some places try to change an aspect of their business you can sometimes be pleasantly surprised, and such was my experience at Prophecy last week.

Prophecy, located on south Broadway, has been a low profile player for a while, recently depending on private parties and its club business during the recession.  With the addition of Salvatore Callarame, Prophecy is proudly serving dinner as well.

But according to my earlier statement this is still a nightclub right?  So if you order dinner you would get “club food” the higher priced cousin to “bar food”.  Just so you know this is definitely not the case at Prophecy.

Usually when I eat I am quiet, I enjoy the taste and wait until after the meal to make any comments about my impressions out of respect to the chef.  I found my meal to be quite different than what I had expected, most of the time when I see high end food it’s the service or the presentation that really strikes out at me, but Prophecy is different. From the very first I noticed the European influence of the dishes, using an artichoke stem in a dish is something considered unfashionable in this country.  The next thing I noticed were the bold flavors in the foods, this is always hard for the chef as people have different tastes, and what one person may enjoy another may hate.

The food:

We started with three appetizers, shrimp ceviche, stuffed artichoke, and a simple antipasti made with mozzarella, roasted peppers, and raw tomato sprinkled with minced parsley to give it a light fresh taste. The stuffed baby artichoke was the perfect medium dish, not bland, but not overly spiced, the vegetable was tender and the stuffing had a slight earthy taste (mushrooms not dirt). The ceviche was the perfect dish for me; bold citrus from large slices of orange mixed with a heavy cilantro taste were mellowed by chunks of avocado and just a touch of tomato for body.

Next came a pasta course, one old Callarame family recipe and one bowtie pasta with fresh pesto provided contrast to make it more than just a plate of pasta, the taste of eggplant and fresh cheese was compared to the taste of basil and garlic.

The salad came alongside the main course, a panko crusted chicken Parmigiano, baby lamb chops, and Prophecy’s signature skirt steak.  The chicken had an unknown complexity for such a widely used item, and the tender skirt steak was well marinated and perfectly tender, but yet again I was amazed with the lamb, the flavors were citrus and pepper as they had been cooked with chimichurri a seasoning local to Uruguay.

Last came a dessert sampler, Gelato, apple strudel, crem brulee, cheesecake lollipops, warm crepes filled with peanut butter, and the most decadent chocolate lava cakes. There is not much I can say about this without sounding like a total pig, yet I will admit after trying at least one of everything I had the urge to slip the rest into my bag for later (which would have been very messy).

I recommend this place for foodies, aspiring foodies, the few people who constantly cover places I have already covered(you know who you are), first dates, anniversaries, and anyone who likes good food.

www.Prophecywhiteplains.com
Prophecy is proud to introduce our very first blog forum. Here at Prophecy we cater all events from corporate parties to 50th Anniversaries. Specializing in Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, with our new Kosher caterers New Roc Glatt. Our parties are UNIQUE and CUSTOM TAILORED to your every need.

Please contact Josh at (914) 285-0900 for more information.
Email For More Info: info@prophecywhiteplains.com