Four new businesses have opened at the World Trade Center mall. First, there’s Épicerie Boulud, chef Daniel Boulud’s prepared-food restaurant/shop. You’ll find baked goods; a coffee bar; grab-and-go salads, entrées, and sandwiches; and a menu of sandwiches, soups, quiches, and entrées. The seating is certainly welcome, but the place is smaller than I expected; what I thought was one storefront is actually two (no word on what’s coming to the second one). I think it’s open seven days a week—it’ll be especially handy on weekends, when the area lacks decent casual food.

Over near (in?) 4 World Trade Center are K. Minamoto and Beer Table. K. Minamoto sells very pretty Japanese sweets, while Beer Table sells beer and a bit of chocolate. I was surprised to see draft beer available, so I went in and asked where exactly one would drink it. The thinking is that you’d take it on the PATH train (where you can’t drink) to New Jersey Transit (where you need to). Anyway, if you like interesting beer, you really should check it out. The store is neither as dark nor as green as the photo below indicates.

Last and possibly least, Aesop has opened another store. Which reminds me…. I heard that the one on W. Broadway—in Tribeca, as opposed to the one on W. Broadway in Soho—has a very short lease, because Aesop is testing the space before committing to it, which explains the minimal build-out.