Marky’s Caviar, the purveyor of caviar, smoked fish and other delicacies, nee Miami but from the Upper East Side, opened Friday in the front of the former L’Angolo space at Duane and Greenwich. The restaurant from Top Chef Buddha Lo — HŪSO — will take the back, and much larger, portion of the space; they will open in January. The UES location closed in September.

The company opened its first restaurant/retail operation with this model on Madison and 82nd in 2019 (the original stores are in Florida), with the boutique in the front offering all sorts of fish roe and gourmet products (Beluga, Osetra, Sevruga, domestic Hackleback and Paddlefish, as well as other delicacies like foie gras, truffles, smoked salmon and the chef’s private label caviar line, Saint Urgeon). Then in the rear is HŪSO, a 12-seat restaurant named for the Latin word for Beluga.

But Marky’s goes back way farther than that: It was (co)founded in 1980 by Mark Zaslavsky, who had moved to Miami from Ukraine “in pursuit of free enterprise.” He worked as a dishwasher, cab driver and short-order cook before he put enough money together to open a deli-grocery on Collins Avenue in Miami.

And because the store was frequented by a lot of folks from other countries, he started importing their favorite delicacies upon request — and Marky’s Gourmet then opened on 79th Street in Miami in 1983. While they initially focused on importing caviar and smoked salmon, they eventually expanded to other specialties such as foie gras, truffles, cheeses, seafood, meats, olive oils and vinegars, pastas and grains, fine wines and champagnes.

They still operate that same store in Miami (that’s 40 years!), along with three others in Florida, and Grand Central Station and Avenue X in Sheepshead Bay here in the city.

The L’Angolo space is just 1200 square feet, but the HŪSO folks said last year, when they applied for their liquor license, that’s bigger than the Madison Avenue space and will allow the chef to create a more robust culinary program. “HŪSO Tribeca will offer a multi-course [the UES restaurant has eight] tasting menu with premium ingredients sourced directly from Marky’s Caviar including its own domestic aquafarm.”

Eater reported at one time that there was a 3000-person waiting list for the 12 seats.

Lo, an Australian who grew up cooking in his family’s Chinese restaurant and then worked at Eleven Madison Park, was crowned winner of Top Chef’s 20th season in 2023, in the World All-Star Edition, as well as the previous season. He’s known for his Parker House rolls, Coddled Egg with Black Pudding, Brown Butter Hollandaise and Tomato Tea.

When it was time to close the Upper East Side location, Lo explained how it came to be, and what motivated the move south: “I took the position here because I needed a visa to stay in America and needed to know if have what it takes to make it in NYC. But this position did come with a tricky condition that I cook in a ventless retail area with a portable induction and an oven. This condition was a major challenge but it did not stop me and the team from achieving our goals and at the end of the day made me a better chef.

“I am eager to move on to a proper kitchen and larger dining room downtown, but I am also going to miss cooking for 12 guests every night (for some chefs this would be a dream). Thank you to all the guests who have dined with us for the tasting menu and thank you to all the staff that have worked along side me past and present in the evenings to make an exceptional experience for our guests. To many more memories and very special moments.”