NYC’s Top Chefs Take On Zero-Waste Dining for Mill’s 3rd Annual Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week
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With three new guest experiences, the week taps acclaimed newcomers and returning favorites to showcase sustainability in the kitchen and behind the bar.
NEW YORK, NY; September 21, 2026 — Mill’s third annual Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week brings together Michelin-recognized icons, James Beard Award winners, North America’s 50 Best honorees, and beloved neighborhood staples to champion creative, no-waste cooking across the city from September 28th – October 4th. This year's lineup welcomes exciting newcomers – like Chambers, Cynthia, Somssi, and Oberon – alongside returning favorites, including Bangkok Supper Club, Corima, and Raf’s, and debuts three new ways for guests to participate.
Guided by the mission of raising awareness around the issue of food waste, and spotlighting creative sustainable-driven cooking, Mill launched Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week in Fall 2024. What started as a local movement in New York City has quickly captured the industry's attention – inspiring top culinary leaders across the country and expanding nationally, including a pop-up dinner series in Los Angeles earlier this year.
For the first time, participating chefs and restaurants will showcase their approach to zero-waste dining across four distinct formats: a single featured dish, a curated three-course menu, an exclusive cocktail, or an artfully paired dish and drink.
Top NYC Chefs Join Mill to Take on Food Waste
Mill exists to keep food out of landfills and no one understands the true cost of wasted food better than chefs. Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week brings together some of the city's most talked-about culinary voices to change how we think about food and our routines, both in professional kitchens and at home.
Making it clean and easy for even the busiest kitchens to prevent food waste, Mill recycles food scraps overnight into nutrient-rich grounds that can be used at home, put in a curbside organics bin, or sent back to Mill to be incorporated into chicken feed. Building upon the success of its household kitchen appliance, Mill Commercial will roll out early next year offering an AI-powered system that helps commercial kitchens measure, analyze and reduce what they throw away.
During Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week, Mill proudly partners with Reclaimed Organics to offer food scraps collection to participating restaurants. Food scraps and grounds processed by Mill food recyclers will be transported to a local community garden in downtown Manhattan to be processed into compost that is used at the garden and on street trees throughout the city.
“When the best chefs and kitchens in the city treat scraps as an opportunity instead of waste, that's a signal the rest of us should be paying attention to," said Harry Tannenbaum, Cofounder and President, Mill. "Three years in, this week keeps growing and every chef is proving that there isn’t a trade-off between preventing food waste and preparing incredibly delicious meals for us to enjoy."
Where to Dine During Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week (September 28 – October 4)
Every participating restaurant has interpreted the zero-waste ethos through its own lens. The result is a diverse mix of ways to dine and drink, spanning individual signature dishes, paired cocktails, and complete 3-course tasting menus. Learn more and book your table at mill.com/mfnw.
3-Course Menu Offerings:
Corima, the Michelin-starred, James Beard-nominated restaurant named #36 on North America’s 50 Best Restaurant list two years in a row, pays homage to the Northern region of Mexico. Corima is returning for its third Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week.
Sope with Quelites, Wood Ear, Sauce Vin Jaune, Golden Osetra Caviar: In Mexico, “quelites” refers to a wide variety of edible wild greens, many of which grow naturally around milpas and agricultural fields and are often treated as weeds or invasive plants rather than valuable ingredients. In this dish, the team transforms them into a stew, served over a sope.
Hamachi Collar with Chintextle, Cascabel Aioli, Chives: Hamachi collar is grilled over the fire, taking inspiration from the Japanese tradition of zarandeado-style preparation.
Bluefin Tostada with Mango Seed Sikil Pak: A traditional Mayan sikil pak is approached through a zero-waste lens, with the typical, central ingredient of pumpkin seeds replaced by mango seeds, a part of the fruit that is almost always discarded.
Dish and Cocktail Pairings:
Chambers, the contemporary TriBeCa restaurant that named a James Beard Award Finalist for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program, and sits at #29 on The New York Times’ list of “The 100 Best Restaurants in New York City.”
Norwich Meadows Carrots: Carrots sourced from Norwich Meadows Farm in Upstate New York, served with yogurt, and topped with a carrot top pesto.
The Cornish Split: A vodka-based cocktail with preserved Harry's Berries, Daytrip strawberry amaro, and malted milk.
Ops, the James Beard Award Semifinalist pizza restaurant with beloved locations in Bushwick and the East Village.
Pizza: A corn-centric pizza topped with corn cob cream, scallion tops, espelette pepper, and young taleggio cheese – rind and all.
Peach Pit and Dried Chile Margarita: Leftover peach pits and spent chile peppers are repurposed to create this flavorful take on spicy margarita.
À La Carte Offerings:
Bangkok Supper Club, the West Village restaurant inspired by Bangkok’s late-night food scene, which has received a two-star review from The New York Times. Bangkok Supper Club is returning for its second Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week.
Botan Ebi Toast: Utilizing the shrimp from shell to head, this dish features crisp toast brushed with smoked brown butter, layered with a coconut chili cream made from the shells of the botan ebi, and crowned with raw, sweet shrimp. The shrimp head is delicately deep-fried and served separately, offering a crisp, savory contrast to the sweetness of the raw ebi.
Bar Chucho, the Lower East Side’s newly opened neighborhood bar, from Chef Fidel Caballero, Jesse Kranzler, and Sofia Ostos, the team behind award-winning Corima.
Hamburguesa: An ode to the tradition of carne asada in Northern Mexico, this dish features a dry-aged beef patty with a housemade, dry-aged beef garum – made by fermenting all of the scraps and beef bones for six months – and is topped with a burnt onion and beef bone marrow mayo, queso chihuahua, and chile toreados.
Bar Susanne, the riverfront raw bar located under the Williamsburg Bridge, and helmed by executive chef Jackie Carnesi and partner and beverage director Milos Zicawhich, was recently denoted a NYT Critic’s Pick.
Shrimp Cocktail: Served with cocktail sauce and a shrimp shell aioli, made from the shells and heads that are removed before the shrimp are poached, then gently fried in oil that has been emulsified with egg yolks, confit garlic, raw garlic, lemon juice, paprika, and a pinch of cayenne pepper.
Cleo, the New York rotisserie and recent West Village opening from Halley Chambers and Kip Gleize of Three Top Hospitality (Margot, Montague Diner).
Braised Leeks and Tabbouleh: Dish description.
Cynthia, the Michelin-recommended, intimate restaurant in the West Village which just received a glowing review from The New Yorker. From Executive Chef-Partner Sherry Cardoso (previously of Olmsted, Per Se, and Brooklyn Fare) and Managing Partner Claire DuBois (previously of Sartiano’s), Cynthia offers a seasonally-driven tasting menu that spotlights creative, low-waste culinary techniques and the best of each season.
Rosette: A bite that epitomizes Cynthia’s sustainability-driven principles, utilizing every part of the produce in a single dish. The base includes a Beer-Battered Waffle, topped with “Zero-Waste” Bearnaise that is made by roasting vegetable trim. The seasoning, Cardoso’s signature bespoke creation, is made using dehydrated scraps, before being finished with sea urchin.
Family Meal at Blue Hill, the Michelin-starred, Greenwich Village restaurant from Chef Mark Ordaz.
Fish Scale Rice Crackers: Leftover fish scales from sustainable fish company Dock to Dish are served with shaved Montauk tuna scraps, herb stems and olive oil, alongside rice crackers.
HAGS, the one-of-a-kind, queer-owned, fine dining restaurant from James Beard-nominated and Food & Wine Best New Chef 2025 Telly Justice (she/her), and Wine Director Camille Lindsley (she/her). HAGS is returning for its second Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week.
NY Rice Brioche: Housemade brioche, made with house-milled local rice from Great Joy Farms, topped with tomato haché and served with tomato water and herb oil.
Oberon, the new restaurant located within the Lower East Side’s New Museum, from the acclaimed Oberon Group.
Idle Bloom: A non-alcoholic cocktail featuring rose, pomegranate, cardamom, ashwagandha, and an oleo saccharum made from salvaged citrus scraps.
Somssi, the new neo-bistro from Ahris Kim of NA:EUN Hospitality, that blends Asian and European ingredients and recently received a stellar review in The New Yorker and The New York Times.
Gamja (Potato) Sujebi: A take on the traditional Korean hand-torn noodle soup, inspired by the remains of Somssi’s instant hit dish – Potato Potato Potato – and featuring crispy chicken skin and a potato crunch with nutritional yeast, parmesan, chives and parsley oil.
Strange Delight, the lively seafood restaurant and oyster counter in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Inspired by New Orleans and taking cues from New York City’s rich oyster culture, Strange Delight has been hailed for how it “treats the Crescent City with subtlety and studiousness, without sacrificing any fun” by The New Yorker.
Leeks Vinaigrette: Leftover leeks are repurposed for this dish, poached in olive oil, fish stock (made from fish scraps and bones), and a dressing made from the cooking liquid, garnished with littleneck clam conserva, and served with a side of toast.
Raf’s, the NoHo restaurant from the acclaimed Elizabeth Street Hospitality team, led by chef Mary Attea, a Food & Wine Best New Chef 2024. Raf’s is returning for its second Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week.
Passatelli with Parmigiano Reggiano Brodo & Oyster Mushroom: Leftover bread crumbs are used to create the pasta dough, and parmigiano reggiano rinds and oyster mushroom trim are used to enhance the brodo.
Rhodora Wine Bar, the Fort Greene wine bar that strives to be the first zero waste wine bar of its kind. Rhodora Wine Bar is returning for its third Make Food Not Waste Restaurant Week.
Leafy Green Salad: A leafy green salad with pickled radish greens, dressed in an orange and lemon vinaigrette.
The Musket Room, the Nolita restaurant helmed by Elizabeth Street Hospitality, and chefs Mary Attea and Noah Ponjuan. The Musket Room is returning for its third Make Food, Not Waste Restaurant Week.
Razor Clam, Potato, Leeks, Sourdough Soup: Razor clam shells and scraps create a rich stock and deeply flavorful clam butter for the soup’s base. Slow-cooked potatoes and leeks are added, while leftover house sourdough and potato skins are dehydrated, toasted in clam butter, and turned into a crisp, briny crumb topping for added texture.
About Mill Industries Inc. ("Mill")
Mill is a technology company combining hardware and AI to reduce waste and recover value from everyday materials, starting with food. Today, the company’s intelligent food recycling system transforms food scraps into nutrient-rich outputs to keep food out of landfills and put it to good use. Founded in 2020 by Nest alumni Matt Rogers and Harry Tannenbaum, Mill reimagines waste as a resource through intuitive technology, measurable insights, and beautiful design. Mill is a trademark of Mill Industries Inc.
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