Spotlight Feature: Gina Bruno
the art of the dinner party + an exclusive summer pasta recipe!
if you don’t already know Gina Bruno, it’s time you do! Gina is a Brooklyn-based chef, event producer, and the woman behind Frank’s House, one of the most special and beautiful spaces in New York City. she trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and she throws the kind of dinner parties that people talk about for weeeeeks. I’ve been lucky to attend, and I was totally stunned by the venue, tablescape, and menu. I left so inspired.
Gina also happens to be one of the coolest moms and brings so many people together through her parties and podcast, Campers, where she talks to people in the culinary industry and cooks for them in her gorgeous house. She is so much fun, and I love hanging out and eating with her
we’re covering all the good stuff today— how Frank’s House came to be, motherhood (and the challenge of feeding kids), and her fave unhinged flavor combos. AND she is sharing an exclusive recipe with us that I already want to make immediately – Brown Butter Corn Pasta with Mint and Basil. YES.
let’s get into it!
xo,
e
Q&A
Eden: So happy to have you here!! You wear a LOT of hats. For anyone who doesn’t know you yet, how would you describe what you do? And what’s your favorite part?
G: Technically, I’m a chef, host, event space owner + event producer, a content creator, and a mom. But that’s an annoying mouthful, so when people ask, I usually just say I work in food.
The honest answer is that everything I do lives at the intersection of food and community. Whether I’m catering a private dinner, hosting a panel about postpartum feeding, or hosting my podcast about food people, it all comes from the same place. I love feeding people. I love bringing people together. And I love that I’ve built a career where those two things are basically the whole job description.
My favorite part is the moment right before an event or the show starts, when the music is on, the candles are lit, the food is plated and waiting, and you can feel everyone about to walk in. That fifteen seconds of quiet is the entire thing.
E: I know the feeling of not being able to summarize what you do easily. I also use “I work in food” lol
Frank’s House is such a special space. What inspired you to open it up as an events and production space? What is your favorite thing about the house?
G: Frank’s House started 4 years ago. Its my second go at a space. The first one was a trial and error agenda and paved the way for Franks. I knew I needed a big, beautiful kitchen and the ability to seat 20+. Frank’s House is located in my father’s brownstone in Clinton Hill, and his name is Frank. He bought the building when he was 32. He lived there, I lived there, and my brother still lives there. It’s a real family affair. 4 years ago, my husband and I took over the parlor floor and essentially gutted and restored it. I wanted the interior to feel as if you were going over a friend’s house, the kind of friend who happens to have a beautiful kitchen, nailed the interior vibe completely, has soft music playing, fresh flowers everywhere, and something already in the oven. Yanno, casual Tuesday energy.
My favorite thing is probably the way the light moves through it during golden hour. There is simply nothing like the golden hues flooding the entire space, top to bottom.
E: You definitely achieved that vibe – it feels very special.
So, you do the most and I’m so impressed. Do you think there’s a special key to balancing motherhood, career, and relationships? Any advice? (asking for a friend…)
G: If I told you I had a key, I would be lying. There is no key. There’s only doing the thing, then doing the next thing, and occasionally sitting on the kitchen floor in silence.
The most honest advice I have is to stop trying to do all of them well at the same time. Some weeks, the work gets the best of me, and the laundry doesn’t get folded, and dinner is cereal. Some weeks, I’m a really present mom, and my inbox is a horror show. Some weeks, I actually call my friends back. Those weeks are rare and beautiful, and you should not chase them; you should just enjoy them when they happen and then return to the regularly scheduled chaos.
Also: ask for help. I genuinely could not do any of this without my part-time-ish team, without other mothers, without my people. The idea that you’re supposed to do it alone is one of the meanest lies women keep telling each other.
E: YES to asking for help. I truly think that’s the key to the juggle. What do you make that your daughter actually eats/loves? Cooking for the kiddies is so hard.
G: Mars is a real one and will eat almost anything, especially if it has a sauce for her to dip in. Pasta with butter and parm is the eternal champion. A soft scrambled egg with a little cheese folded in. Cucumbers with vinegar and salt. And sardines out of a tin.
The trick I’ve learned is that toddlers want to participate, not just consume. If she helps me crack the egg, stir the pot, or sprinkle the salt, she’s much more likely to eat it. If I just hand her a finished plate, she looks at me like I’ve insulted her ancestors.
The other trick is that “no” today is not “no” forever. I keep offering things she rejected last week, and sometimes she’ll eat them like it’s the greatest discovery of her life. Toddlers contain multitudes.
E: Omg yes, my daughters are also more open to trying food that they helped make. You have been such a fresh voice in the motherhood/food space in NY. Any plans to further that part of your brand?
G: Yes, so many. Latching On has been the most exciting thing I’ve built in a long time. The first event was about pregnancy, birth, and the fourth trimester. The second was about postpartum and toddler feeding. There is so much more to talk about (mental health, sleep, SEX after baby, the actual food we eat as new moms, the way our bodies change, how to feed a family without losing your mind), and I want to keep building that platform until every mother who walks in feels like she has people.
I’m also working on something on the show/content side that I’m not quite ready to announce, but it’s coming. And very soon there will be something called Petite Chef something, that’s all i’ll say, but it’s coming in hot this summer <3
E: So fun, I can’t wait to learn more! You’ve said the New York food world is “a bit messy, very relentless, and a little toxic at times.” What do you think is the biggest misconception people have about the food industry?
G: The biggest misconception is that it’s glamorous. From the outside, it looks like long dinners, and pretty plates and openings. From the inside, it’s mostly emails. So many emails. It’s logistics, negotiating, paying invoices, chasing payments, hiring and firing, loading a van at 6 AM, standing in front of a sink at midnight in shoes that hurt.
The other big one is that you have to know everyone to make anything happen. Honestly, you just have to show up, do the work, and be kind to people. The food world is small, but it’s not actually that closed off. The people I’ve gotten closest to are the ones who DM’d me, the ones I cold-emailed, the ones I met in a hallway at someone else’s event. The mythology of who’s in and who’s out is mostly just mythology.
E: What’s a food opinion or flavor combination you love (or hate!) that might surprise people?
G: I have two combos that I eat fairly often, and most people shake their heads. I’ve even gotten a ‘gross’ from a complete stranger. To that person, don’t yuck someone’s yum!
Combo 1: Tuna salad with jam on bread.
Combo 2: blueberry bagel with egg, cheese, and ketchup.
SUE ME. I like what I like.
E: I’m so excited that you’re sharing an exclusive seasonal recipe with our readers! Tell us about the recipe you selected and why.
G: This recipe is for early - late summer in New York, and it only gets better. When corn is stacked at every market, and you start to feel a little sad about September. I make it when I want something that feels special but doesn’t require thinking – brown butter, sweet corn, and two herbs that don’t usually share a pasta. The mint is what makes it interesting. The basil is what makes it familiar. They balance each other, and you’d be surprised how much.
I serve a version of this when I want to feed a lot of people quickly without it feeling like a weeknight. It scales up beautifully, and it’s just as good warm as it is at room temperature, which makes it exactly the kind of pasta I wish more people would bring to a dinner party.
Brown Butter Corn Pasta with Mint and Basil (serves 4-5)
Ingredients
1 lb short pasta (shells, cavatelli, or campanelle)
4 ears sweet corn, kernels cut off (about 3 cups)
6 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large shallot, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Zest of 1 lemon, plus juice of half
½ cup fresh basil, torn + more to finish
¼ cup fresh mint, torn + more to finish
¾ cup finely grated parmigiano, plus more to finish
½ cup fresh ricotta, for serving (optional but recommended)
Good olive oil!!!!! *buy the good stuff*
Flaky salt, black pepper, chili flakes
Method
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it heavily. It should taste like the sea. Cook the pasta to just shy of al dente and reserve a full cup of pasta water before draining.
While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a wide skillet over medium heat. Let it foam, then keep going until the milk solids turn deep golden and it smells like toasted hazelnuts, about 3 to 4 minutes. Don’t walk away. Brown butter goes from beautiful to burnt in about ten seconds……
Add the shallot and a pinch of salt. Cook for 2 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds more, just until it smells good.
Add the corn kernels and another generous pinch of salt. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the corn is tender and starting to take on a little color in spots. Add a pinch of chili flakes if you like a little heat.
Pour in about ½ cup of the pasta water and let it bubble and reduce for a minute. Add the pasta directly to the skillet with tongs. Toss everything together with the lemon zest, lemon juice, and most of the parmigiano. Keep tossing, adding pasta water by the splash, until the sauce is glossy and clings to every piece.
Pull the pan off the heat. Fold in the torn basil and mint at the very end so they stay bright.
Plate in shallow bowls. Top each one with a soft dollop of ricotta, a drizzle of olive oil, more cheese, cracked pepper, flaky salt, and a few whole herb leaves on top. Eat immediately, ideally outside.
Where can you keep up with Gina?
Instagram: @itsginabruno, @campers.show, @thisisfrankshouse
Podcast: https://www.campers.show/
Substack:
***COMING SOON***
