Thursday, January 19, 7:00 pm
Members $90, guests $115

Yes, the chef at @SQC is an alum of USC (Union Square Café, that is) and Sfuzzi. But mi scusa, please don’t take him for a moniker copycat—Scott Quentin Campbell literally put his name on the line with @SQC, the restaurant that has quashed any lingering protestations that there’s no place to eat on the Upper West Side. As Bob Lape of Crain’s New York Business wrote, Campbell is “at the top of his game” with New American cuisine that “resonates with savory savvy.”

A Michigan native, Campbell moved to New York to take on a sous-chef post at the Plaza Hotel’s Oak Room. He was mentored by Peter Kump and Madeleine Kamman, cooked at Windows on the World, Le Cirque, QV, and Montrachet, and was executive chef at Hubert’s on Park Avenue and Vince & Eddie’s. He fueled pride among Upper West Side gastronomes with his much-loved Avenue, and outdid himself with the launch of @SQC in late 2001.

Thanks to Campbell, the UWS stroller set may never believe their home turf was once a culinary wasteland. He gets ’em while they’re young, training the teething set’s palates with organic offerings, and catering to bigger kids with items like peanut butter and maple bananas on toast. The sophisticated whimsy doesn’t cease just because you’re a grown-up—items like toasted sesame seed–covered doughnuts make it easy to stop in for breakfast—and never leave. He’s “singlehandedly made brunch—the meal everyone loves to hate—lovable,” per a New York magazine writer, who noted the place appeals to “stroller moms by day,” “foodies by night,” and “hot-chocolate freaks whenever.”

To make things cozier still, the vintages on the extensive, already affordable wine list are half-price every Monday night, and this month Campbell resumes hosting celebrity sommeliers to help guests navigate the offerings. In that vein, Ron Jordan of V.O.S. Selections—an importer and distributor of artisanal wines and sakes—will be on hand to talk wine, while Campbell warms us up, @SQC-style.