Sea bream at Opus.   (Photo: Zach Desart)

Opus
1574 Second Ave., nr. 82nd St.; 212-772-2220
Good news for Italian-food-loving insomniacs suffering from celiac disease (or, really, any Upper East Sider who finds himself waking up in the middle of the night feeling a little peckish). Opus, the new pizzeria-gelateria-ristorante from Giuseppe Lentini (late of Tini’s and before that Lentini), will serve its gluten-free pastas and pizzas until 5 a.m. seven days a week. Why, exactly, we’re not sure, but it may have something to do with the pizzaiolo’s having to be there to make the dough anyway, so why not? To live up to its name, Opus will also cater to those unallergic to wheat or grains, as well as non-insomniacs, with a raw bar, a bar-food menu, signature cocktails, and a wide range of salads, appetizers, and entrées that run the gamut from roasted wild striped bass to a grilled veal chop. All this and dairy-free frozen desserts, too.

(Photo: Melissa Hom)

Allegretti
46 W. 22nd St., nr. Sixth Ave.; 212-206-0555
After a pair of high-profile gigs at Le Cirque 2000 and Atelier at the Ritz-Carlton—and a short, improbable stint this past spring at the Friars Club—Alain Allegretti opens the eponymous Allegretti next week, in the former Flatiron location of Arezzo. The Nice native plans to cook whole fish in a wood-burning oven, and Provençal-inspired fare that reflects his childhood and culinary training under such luminaries as Jacques Maximin, Alain Chapel, and Alain Ducasse. Expect refined versions of classics like a quail-egg-enhanced niçoise salad, ravioli stuffed with oxtail and chard, a pan bagnat at lunch, and jasmine semifreddo for dessert. Expect, also, such Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous touches as a teak bar reminiscent of a yacht interior, and elegantly composed meat and fish entrées ranging between $25 and $38.

Related:

• Archive: “Restaurant Openings & Buzz”
• Articles by Robin Raisfeld | Rob Patronite
• Table of Contents: Aug 11, 2008 issue of New York | Subscribe!