King feels like the kind of neighborhood restaurant you might call your own if you lived in Bologna, Italy, or Roussillon, France, where a windfall of shellfish winds up in a Provençal stew paired with charred toast and garlicky aioli, and where the first peas of spring pop with mint and toothy ribbons of mandilli pasta.

His restaurant's fare was big-city fine dining meets cucina povera, the Italian cooking tradition born of necessity that elevates humble ingredients into dishes fit for a king.I asked him about the restaurant's tightrope walk between high and low.

"What is luxury?Luxury to a few is foie gras or truffles," he says."But the ultimate luxury is time and space.

Those are the two most expensive things on the planet.Ribollita is such an expense of time.

It's the ultimate luxury."

Especially when you've spent 17 years searching for a proper recipe.. — Hunter Lewis.and rum-spiked strawberry molasses.".

Joanne Chang, Chef/Owner, Flour Bakery + Cafe."I plan on making a brown sugar.

with lots of chopped rhubarb and a few eggs and a tiny bit of cream to make it a little custardy.I also love rhubarb in a. simple muffin.