As part of our Q&A series, Morningsider brings you exclusive interviews with neighborhood “Insiders.” This week, we interview Leah Abraham, co-owner of Ristorante Settepani.
Leah Abraham, a native of Ethiopia, has been in the restaurant business in New York City for more than two decades. Leah and her husband Antonio (Nino) Settepani, a graduate of the French Culinary Institute, opened Settepani on Lenox Avenue in Harlem in 2000, after years of success at their flagship Settepani Bakery location in Brooklyn. Since its opening, Settepani has been an important crossroads in the community, serving a destination for innumerable “power lunches,” romantic dinners and community celebrations. Additionally, Leah serves as an active advocate for Harlem’s numerous revitalization efforts through the 125th Street BID.
1. What made your husband and you decide to open Settepani?
My husband and I fell in love with the neighborhood while driving through it late nights from the village to our home in Westchester. We owned and operated Cafe Bondi in Chelsea and Bruno Bakery in the Village and many nights we drove through Harlem and felt a Bondi-style restaurant would do well. We also had friends who lived in the area as well and thought we could create a real neighborhood spot.
2. What encouraged you and your husband to expand Settepani from just a bakery into a restaurant?
The restaurant was the original idea, but we realized as we were doing construction in 1999-2000, that the restaurant wouldn’t survive. It was a very different place and we felt we needed to create something a lot more accessible, but we were determined to build a place that would give the boulevard its due respect. We wanted to create a place that people could not only be proud to have around the corner, but also one they could afford to frequent. A wholesale bakery and cafe was the answer.
The recession and the new cafe concept, where cafes became a solitary experience, not only made it difficult for us to stay open serving our artisanal products with an espresso and great conversation, but also changed the business so much that we would have to become something else to stay afloat. We felt that rather than closing, going back to the original idea of a restaurant would be the answer.
3. Do you have a favorite item on the Settepani menu? Can you share the recipe with us?
I have many favorites! I love all the meats that we have in the winter such as the Venison Carpaccio and the Osso Bucco, but I think my all-time favorite, which I also enjoy preparing at home, is the Maltagliati delle Eolie – Settepani style (Badly Cut Pasta)
I love making this dish at home, as the kids would get really excited about helping cut the pasta and making funny shapes. This dish is traditionally prepared with the remaining bits of pasta when the shapes have been cut out.
Pasta:
2 cups flour
3 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
Salt & extra virgin olive oil
Mix all ingredients until a smooth and elastic texture is achieved (add more evoo if necessary)
Using a rolling pin roll into thin sheets and cut pasta in different sizes
Sauce:
1/2 lb. Tuna loin cut in cubes
1 md. chopped onion
1 tsp. chopped garlic
1 lb. small Italian eggplant cut in cubes
1 tbs capers
1 tsp. dry Sicilian oregano
2 tbs. Malvasia wine
Juice of 2 lemons, evoo, salt and pepper for taste
2 tbs. pine nuts
Sprinkle eggplant with lemon juice and sauté for 3-4 mins
Sauté onions in olive oil until translucent, add garlic and tuna and stir well
When tuna is half-way done add eggplants, capers, oregano, Malvasia and remaining lemon juice
Add salt, pepper and nuts
Cook pasta, drain well, add sauce and serve with an extra sprinkle of fresh oregano.
4. We heard a rumor you’re planning to open a new pizza restaurant in Harlem, can you share any details?
Well, it’s not a rumor! I very much want to work on rebuilding this part of Lenox Ave. I have spent a decade trying to, but as I stand across the street and look at the block, I feel like I missed the mark. Except for the addition of Settepani, not much else has changed. I don’t have the enthusiasm or resources I had then. I don’t have regrets. I love Harlem and the community I have become a part of, but staying open is a struggle and I don’t want to compromise what I already have. Perhaps this block is for the next generation, unless we can actually enforce the land and status, and work on preserving the beauty of what I feel is the most magnificent stretch of history.
5. How does it feel to be Vice Chair of the 125th Street BID?
It’s a lot of work and I would like to be more active! This has been a tough year for everyone and right now I have been spending a lot of time trying to keep the restaurant on track. I hope to be more active in the coming year. The new chair has been very active and Barbara Askins is truly the backbone of the organization.
6. What is your favorite part about being a business owner?
My favorite part is going to bed every night knowing that I have made a difference. Big or small, every day we make a difference in someone’s life! More importantly, I couldn’t work for anyone else (and last), so I am grateful to be my own boss!
7. Anything else you would like to add?
I am excited about all the new changes in Harlem. Perhaps I came too early and there is a huge cost attached to that, but I applaud and feel inspired by the Sylvia’s and the Lenox Lounges for having kept their doors open when the climate was even worse. I am thrilled to have people like Marcus [Samuelsson] who can make Harlem appealing to all.
Ristorante Settepani
196 Lenox Avenue at 120th Street
917-492-4806
www.settepani.com
Bad Horse Pizza, located at 2222 Frederick Douglass Boulevard at 120th Street, specializes in thin-crust, homemade pizza. While they also serve other Italian cuisine, they are best known for having some of the freshest slices in town. Bad Horse Pizza offers customers a variety of toppings for their pies, and also features unique specialty pizzas created by the owner and employees, such as: the Bad Horse (marinated skirt steak cooked to order, jalapenos, onions), Acropolis (greek feta, spinach, sundried tomatoes, kalamata olives) and the New Yorker (white pizza, smoked salmon, capers, onions, sliced tomatoes, olive oil).
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You’ll find another option for a Thanksgiving pre-fixe menu at 
