The transformation of the Oddfellows Building, once the subject of great controversy,

The transformation of the Oddfellows Building, once the subject of great controversy, continues to be a subject of great excitement with the opening of another new restaurant, this one from Century Ballroom owner Hallie Kuperman. Tin Table serves affordable cuisine (most items are under $15)–like shoestring frites with truffle salt and Thai pork ribs–designed by chef Bo Maisano (formerly of Madison Park Cafe and the defunct Bistro 1200). Kuperman says the name comes from a lucky discovery made during renovations: “There were these old, galvanized sheet-metal doors that we found in the walls of the building. They were old fire doors that looked like tin.” She cleaned them up and had them set in resin, then turned them into a large communal table and bar top. As at the old Century Ballroom Cafe, interested guests can still watch the dancers in the early part of the evening–but there’s no obligation to join them. “We don’t say it’s the Century Ballroom’s restaurant,” says Kuperman; “You can meld them if you want to, but I won’t do that for you. This way we won’t scare off people who are not interested in dancing.” (We just heard boyfriends all over the city breathe a sigh of relief.)Find restaurant gossip like this plus local food events and great date ideas in our Big Bites e-newsletter, sent out every Tuesday. Sign up here and we promise we won’t send you a bunch of spam.