THE DRAFT: 5 PERFECT THINGS FROM RITA SODI & JODY WILLIAMS
THE DRAFT is RUN-A-MUCK’s Friday list of everything we think is perfect — the shows we binged, the songs on repeat, the objects we’d never redesign, the ideas and experiences that don’t need improving. This is culture without revision — no edits, no notes.
Rita Sodi and Jody Williams are the life and business partners behind beloved New York restaurants including Via Carota and Commerce Inn, both in the West Village. This is their edit:
[01] HOME COOKING
We love to cook for each other at home — like Rita’s Tuscan fried chicken and potatoes. (The secret is whole garlic cloves in the skins, fennel pollen and sage.) Or something simple and healthy, like Jody’s Caldo de Pollo. It’s chicken soup with charred tomatillos, tortilla, avocado, radishes, cilantro and lime juice. Those are our perfect meals for each other.
[02] UNION SQUARE FARMERS MARKET
Picking the season’s first strawberries and last tomatoes, the joys of the Union Square Farmers Market.
[03] FIREWOOD
The satisfaction and challenge of chopping, splitting and stacking firewood in upstate New York — usually a blend of oak, maple, cherry and ash.
[04] DOLCE FAR NIENTE
Sidewalk aperitivi with no plans and no decisions — maybe just what to order next. For us, it’s likely salatini: olives, chips, nuts.
[05] FIRE ISLAND FERRY RIDES
Summer ferry rides at the Pines, Fire Island — stars and crashing waves, beach bonfires and lobsters (the best lobster salad is always made at home).
Justin Moran is a creative director and the editor of DRAFTING W/ RUN-A-MUCK. This is his edit:
[01] DISCO BIRDIES
Like an adult Wendy’s, this Clinton Hill, Brooklyn restaurant offers a perfectly simple menu: either a burger or chicken sandwich, fries (with the option for caviar on top), champagne and soft serve if you want dessert. Disco Birdies’ room is intimate with limited seating and a ’70s soundtrack. I go alone once a week after work.
[02] “BLOW MY MIND”
Released from Robyn’s forthcoming album Sexistential, “Blow My Mind” feels perfectly at home in 2026. The song first appeared on her 2002 album Don’t Stop the Music, but two decades later she returned to the material, reimagining it as a sleek electro-funk ode to her three-year-old son. In this new form, the track has room to breathe. Robyn’s vocoded voice exhales over bubbling pop synths — tender but propulsive.
[03] HARDBODY
Gabe Gordon’s Spring 2026 collection explored our relationship with cars — and the indie brand’s latest fragrance, HARDBODY, extends that idea. It smells faintly of gasoline, like stepping into an auto shop, with notes of latex, metal and leather. I spray it onto my leather jackets to double down on the scent. People always ask what I’m wearing.
[04] NICOLA TYSON
Now on view at Petzel, Nicola Tyson’s NEED marks the British artist’s return to charcoal for the first time since the ’90s. The exhibition explores relationships and interdependence — animal and human — circling the idea of self-portraiture. Her work here is abstract, strange and quietly funny, with moon-like faces and expressions that feel both haunting and playful.
[05] FUTURE FORMS
Created by partners Erez and Tanguay, Future Forms blurs the line between rave and choreographed dance. One moment you’re sipping cocktails as electronic music plays — the next, you’re inside the show itself. I saw it at National Sawdust in Williamsburg and left inspired.
caldo de pollo >>>>>>>>>