Blenheim review

August 15, 2014 / Roger Hyde / 1 Comment

Manhattan’s “farm-to-table” restaurants have become so claustrophobically commonplace, they are practically their own cuisine: “American New-age”, “Southeast Asian”, “Asian Fusion”, “Californian”, “Farm-to-table”… the trendy moniker barely sounds like the rigorous ingredient discipline it used to be. The idea of toques only using seasonal produce ripped from the earth this morning, from less than 100 miles away has become SO one hour ago. Don’t get me wrong, I worship the concept, but it’s one thing to be a farm-to-table restaurant, and quite another when the restaurant owns both the farm and the table!

Such is the case at Blenheim, the West Village’s charming conduit for the enjoyment and nourishment of their very own harvest of sustainably grown fresh greens and humanely raised animals. Brainchild of the Smörgas Chef cofounders Morten Sohlberg and his partner Min Ye, their family farm in the Catskills is home to beehives, maple (syrup) trees, a hydroponic greenhouse for year round salads and veggies, dark barrels for mushrooms and a host of rare and heritage breeds of cattle, sheep and pigs. Enter multiple Michelin star honoree, chef Ryan Tate and suddenly you are faced with the best of all possible worlds on the plate in front of you – and I’m just talking about the BUTTER!

The Blenheim butter

I could quite easily sit here and write an entire review just about the Blenheim butter (and I would, were it not for all the other star-studded weapons in chef Tate’s arsenal). But if I did, here’s how it would go: Restaurant bread and butter are the most overlooked, unsung heroes to ever exit the kitchen. They are as expected and ubiquitous as the battery-operated flickering candle, the lonely and lifeless nine-day-old stem in a waterless vase, the empty salt and clogged pepper-shaker or that dishwasher-proof, 2^nd hand crust on a dull knife. And thanks to the low-carb diet craze, some restaurants wont even bring you bread and butter anymore.

So when our waiter gave us the choice of cheddar crusted white or red fife brown dinner rolls, and then placed a jar of what looked like a rich wedge of dark lemon curd topped with coarse chunks of Sel de Mer on the table, we were plausibly beguiled.

“Is this…butter?” I asked as I tore into a golf-ball-sized cheese puff, covering the exposed bread with a generous smear of the soft and shiny, ochre-colored paste.

“Yes.” replied the waiter. “It’s from one of our Herefords on the farm. All she does is produce butter for the restaurant.”

And then we tasted it. What followed was a bit of a blur. The two of us fell into a happy and nostalgic cloud of déjà vu. Not only was this what butter used to taste like, but I vowed right there and then – with God as my witness – never to eat or serve factory butter again. All my partner could utter was: “Bring me that cow!”

King Crab Legs

The modest menu of six app’s and six mains sounded like the ingredients of a farmer’s basket: Cauliflower soup, Roasted beets, Heirloom salad greens. Just reading it felt healthy. As the dishes started arriving, Tate’s signature plating style revealed itself as the Christmas wreath. The King crab legs were layered in a carousel of flavor amongst chanterelle mushrooms and an assortment of sea plants on the most deliciously buttery squid ink sauce.

Sockeye Salmon

The subtle taste of the cured Sockeye Salmon paired beautifully with the trail of nasturtium blossom puree (a first for me) and sea buckthorn pearls and crisps.

Roasted Trumpet Mushrooms

The mains covered all bases with a hanger steak, a pork loin, a guinea hen and a couple of fish. The ultra-crispy Striped bass was paired perfectly with coffee-roasted carrots (whole and pureed) and the odd blueberry in a scrumptious sea urchin sabayon sauce. The rich and hearty-as-a-filet-mignon Roasted Trumpet Mushrooms (from the aforementioned dark barrel), were surrounded by a bed of homemade sauerkraut, shaved fennel, and (not nearly enough of) the most wonderfully crispy roasted Spätzle ever.

The desserts are an equally interesting blend of farm fresh ingredients with Tate’s personal spin, like buckwheat crêpes and buttermilk sorbets, but the Apricot and Popcorn Crémeux is definitely the highlight.

And so if it is indeed true that “you are what you eat”, then go ahead and call me a farm-to-table Blenheimer!

http://www.blenheimhill.com/reservations/

Obicá review

August 13, 2014August 13, 2014 / Roger Hyde / 1 Comment

Obicá. The Grand Palace of Mozz

Silvio Ursini is probably not a household name amongst New York foodies, but one of Bulgari’s top creative executives for their Hotels and Resorts division just so happens to have also founded the world’s first Mozzarella bar a decade ago. The concept behind Obika was to create a restaurant around several different varieties of fresh gourmet Mozzarella, milked exclusively from water buffalo in the Campania region of Italy, and thereby earning the much coveted, but seldom seen, “Protected Designation of Origin” certification.

Caprese Classica

I vividly remember been blown away on my first visit to the bar in Rome’s Parlamento district, by the creamy sweetness of each of the four cheeses, complemented by their feather-soft texture from skin to center. (I should have a penny for every time I’ve had to plough through “so called” Mozzarella di Buffala, that was either tight, runny, hard, crumbly, sour, chalky or ho-hum.)

Ursini’s little idea turned into a global brand with eighteen mozzarella bars worldwide. To celebrate their tenth anniversary, they just opened their newest location and renamed the brand Obicá, which means “here it is” in a Neapolitan dialect. And so if you stand just off the northeast corner of Broadway and 21^st, you too can say “Obica!”

Bufala Beet Salad

The battleship gray, sleek interior with mirrored surfaces and discreet lighting feels more like a Japanese designer boutique than the Grand Palace of Mozz, but the four brine-filled tanks housing the baseball-white puffs of goodness flown in twice a week is unmistakably why the place is so crowded. The “Classica” is what all mozzarella dreams it could be: sweet, smooth, silky, light and ever-so-slightly salty. The almost caramel colored “Affumicata” has a sharp and distinctive hay-smoke bite to it. The “Burrata” is the runnier, cream-centered version of the classic, and it’s brother “Tartufo” is infused with black summer truffles.

Bufala in Carrozza

You can order them solo, with Salumi or Antipasti, on Bruschetti, deep fried (In Carrozza), on pizzas or in several salads (the Caprese Classica is a cheerful collage of multi-colored tomatoes, and the Beet salad has roasted pine-nuts and string beans for crunch).

Pappardelle al Ragú di Anatra e Arancina

Unlike their lunchtime bar in the IBM building on 56^th street, chef Enzo Neri’s menu elaborates way beyond the Mozz to include more substantial dishes like his signature homemade pastas, pizzas, seafood and vegetables. The Rosemary flavored Pappardelle al Ragú di Anatra e Arancina has an incredible Tuscan-style duck ragú spiked with a surprising zest of orange, and the Taglierini di Botarga e Granchio is like an enchantment-under-the-sea dance with a blend of crab ragú with roe from Sardinian mullet, topped with fresh sea-urchins.

Ananas Carpaccio

The desserts are a very fresh respite from the usual institutional suspects. Three guesses what cheese the Crema de Ricotta comes from…Mmm!

And what better way to walk home than with the crisp and lingering taste of Ananas Carpaccio – X-ray-thin, mint syrup marinated Pineapple slices with lemon sorbet and pink peppercorns.

http://obica.com/

Khe-Yo review

August 11, 2014August 19, 2014 / Roger Hyde / Leave a comment

Sesame Beef Jerky

If you are only going to try one new “it” restaurant this year, then let it be Khe-Yo. Not just because it’s located on a trendy TriBeCa shopping street, nor because Soulayphet (“Phet”) Schwader – who after years of cooking for Marc Forgione, managed to convince his mentor to partner with him and open a South-east Asian joint. Definitely not because it’s one of the few Laotian/Thai restaurants in the city, and certainly not because the service is flawless, nor the fact that the fern-adorned exposed brick walled, aged-wood bedecked room happens to be both chic and cozy, but primarily because it is a fireworks treat, thrill and delight for the senses.

After immigrating to the Midwest from his native Laos when Chef Phet was a kid, his mom would send him to school with Laotian food when all he wanted was a ham sandwich like everyone else. Wait, what? If my mother would have packed Tam-Mak-Hoong (Smashed Green Papaya Salad) or Ping-Sai-Ua-Moo (Grilled Laos sausage with green mango and peanut sauce) or even Laap-Dip-Nguah (Steak tartare with bone marrow) in my lunchbox, I might have gone to school willingly!

With only 14 family-style items on the menu (the 15^th being a single dessert of fruit-topped rice-pudding) Chef Phet ratchets a variety of proteins all the way up and down the flavor scale, thanks to his deft use of the gamut of south-east Asian herbs, roots and seasonings. If the end result isn’t 100% Laotian (or 100% Thai for that matter), Phet’s years behind the cooker have yielded a comprehensive understanding of what his customers want before they arrive, how to blow them away while they’re there and then how to keep them insanely loyal thereafter.

Sticky Rice

The first order of Sticky Rice (always on the house) arrives in a little whicker basket and is accompanied by a Babaghanoush-looking eggplant pate and a dipping dish of (chili-chili) Bang-Bang sauce. So when you roll the coconut-sweetened rice into a ball, dip it into the Bang-Bang (for as long or as deep as your internal fire hydrants will allow) and then top it off with a dollop of eggplant moosh, you will experience a VIP invitation to a marathon tea-dance for all five tastes senses.

The sublime sticks of Sien-Haeng (Sesame Beef Jerky) are so unbelievably morish that you will find yourself resorting to kindergarten tricks to distract your dining companions to look away while you snag them all. They arrive with a small dark wedge-shaped paste of smoked chilies (more fragrant than hot) and fresh radishes for contrast. Also on the un-sharably sharable list are the Fried Calamari dribbled with chili mayo between diced cubes of fresh watermelon.

Chicken Wings

The Chicken Wings (from tip to shoulder) were deep fried and then smothered in an impossibly sweet and tangy marinade from Hoisin and Sriracha, before being tossed with nubs of crispy pork rinds and crisped Thai basil, and served next to a pickled cucumber salad.

Berkshire Spare Ribs

I wish I had something better to say about the gorgeous-looking soy-crusted Ping-Sien-Moo (Spare Ribs), but the ensuing struggle to get them to release their vice-grip from their bones was a bit of a defeat.

Chili Prawns

As odd as it might have been to see two fresh fish options on the menu (Banana Wrapped Red Snapper and Whole Black Bass) from Laos, a land-locked country, we still ordered the game-changing Goong-Phet (Chili Prawns) that were the reason we had such an enormous full moon. A clutch of hearty head-on shrimp draped over the most unbelievably delicious Sriracha, basil, butter and coconut curry with doorstep wedges of crusty ginger-scallion-lathered toast to mop up the sauce. And mop it up we did. (Had there been any left, I wouldn’t have been surprised to see our fellow diners dabbing a little on their wrists and behind their ears.)

The cocktails are unsurprisingly exotic and the modest all-French wine list has been well selected to cope with (and complement) the uncompromising food flavors, like a red Sancerre named for Marc Forgione himself.

Khe-Yo is without doubt my restaurant of the month for August.

http://www.kheyo.com/

David Burke Kitchen review

August 7, 2014August 11, 2014 / Roger Hyde / 1 Comment

The anxiety-inducing thought of serving dinner to a rather demanding group of 15 executives after a long day of butt-numbing meetings is enough to insert molten shards of glass directly into the cornea. On one hand you have a ravenous team who has just spent the last 9 hours struggling to stay awake through flip charts, pie charts and stale coffee, and who rightfully deserve a few foo-foo cocktails, a table bedecked with a variety of sumptuous dishes and flawlessly attentive service. On the other hand you have an über-popular, high-brow restaurant in a trendy neighborhood, with a highly decorated and acclaimed chef accustomed to cooking and serving immaculate dishes for parties of 4 or 6. Perfect storm warning!

Lobster Dumplings

I think it’s important to separate the delights from the disasters as they transpired during our recent team dinner at the David Burke Kitchen in Soho’s James Hotel. Chef Burke has made a solid name for himself as an inventor and patent holder of many culinary feats that have become commonplace kitchen practices all over the world. His whimsical cooking style using basic ingredients gives his many restaurants a unique edge and distinctive flavors. But if we are truly measured by our weakest link, then someone’s got some ‘splaining to do in the service department.

Burrata and Squash Carpaccio

The dish-sized menu groupings are obviously a collection of greatest hits rather than any themed journey, starting with at least one of Burke’s many signatures – his little glass jars with Ratatouille and Ricotta. The Peanut Butter Maple Bacon Dates and saffron-infused Burrata and Squash Carpaccio with melon nuggets are hands-down crowd pleasers.

Parfait of Salmon and Tuna Tartare

And while the fragrant Baby Octopus and beets salad and the sublime Parfait of Tuna and Salmon Tartare can silence a room, nothing compares to the gorgeous Lobster Dumplings, which combine zucchini, white beans and roasted garlic in perfectly swirled, petite wraps.

The mains include every variety of popular proteins, including a crispy Branzino and the much reviewed and requested Short Rib with truffle mousse, or the cheddar bacon Kitchen Burger. The impressive Heritage Pork comes two ways: seared loin medallions au jus and the most delicious BBQ pulled shoulder baked right inside a light and fluffy corn bread torte.

Maine Lobster BLT

The green goddess dressing and tomato marmalade regretfully overpowers the magnificently presented Main Lobster BLT, and the prime rib-eye with extensive dry aging via Burke’s trademarked SaltBrick™ method harboring a trace of rancid mustiness from perhaps a tad too much of a good thing, was further exasperated by someone confusing medium-rare for medium-well!

Heritage Pork

The Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Bar is rich and sinful enough to share and although we ordered (and were looking forward to) the Coconut Trifle with peppered pineapple jam, we had to make do with Burke’s cheerful Cheesecake Lollipops instead.

Note to self: Team dinners + prix fixe menu = probably the way to go.

http://www.davidburkekitchennyc.com/

Salvation Taco review

August 5, 2014August 11, 2014 / Roger Hyde / Leave a comment

Just because the two-bite-sized taco in your right hand bears no resemblance whatsoever to the ones you ate at that cute little Tex-Mex cocina outside of Houston, or the ones they deep-fried and served from oars on the beach in Ixtapa, doesn’t mean that this isn’t a taco. In fact apart from the tortilla press churning out 5 inch discs of flattened maza at the edge of the bar, there’s absolute nothing authentic about April Bloomfield’s Murray Hill Mexican gastropub Salvation Taco. And you know what else? I don’t care!

Located on the ground floor of the Pod Hotel, Bloomfield and partner Ken Friedman have put together yet another reservation-less hangout for food freaks amongst a cacophony of loud colored walls, noisily tiled tables and apple green ceilings – with the odd quasi-religious deity here and there. There’s definitely something enjoyably naughty going on here – and everyone seems to be in on it. If you’re stuck for conversation, just point at something around the room and trust me, the rest will happen.

Empanadas

While many of the items sound Mexican, they only bear a distant relationship to their forebears. The menu starts off coyly enough with a dozen “Snacks” from Spicy Nuts to Chips and Guacamole and before you know it – you are staring down at the cutest little torpedo-shaped dough wedges filled with gooey Chihuaua Cheese and Serrano ham. Unlike any other Empanadas you’ve ever tried, the good news is: these will explode in a single mouthful. The bad news: too few mouthfuls to go around!

Mexican Sticky Rice Tamale

We skipped over the Pig’s Head Tostada (with crispy ears and pan-seared cheeks) and tried the Mexican Sticky Rice Tamale instead. Surrounded by a banana leaf, little chunks of aromatic Chinese sausage and morsels of pulled pork are dotted over a small, hot square of rice cake in a sublime sauce.

Under the “Taco Dinners” it was a tough toss-up between the Roasted Lamb Shoulder, that the couple next to us were busy tearing apart and shoving into fresh tortillas topped with Cucumber Pico de Gallo and Crema, or the Beer Battered Fish Filet with Tartar and Mayan mayonnaise, (our enthusiastic and bespectacled waitress’s favorite) but we finally settled on the Korean BBQ. This prompted a visit from one of the kitchen staff who proceeded to cut a large and delectably marinated, fire-roasted loin with a large pair of scissors, while firing off a barrage of questions about our heritage, our commute, our love life and other vital curiosities as she explained the tray of flavor accoutrements: crunchy pickled Daikon radish, fresh scallions, house-made Kimchee, Furikake and seaweed spices and a thick (and liberally salted) hot sauce – all the makings of the most inauthentic Taco ever.

Korean BBQ Accoutrements

Thereafter the menu shrinks again with half a dozen different kitchen-assembled Tacos – yielding 3 per order. From the Carne Asada with sweet and spicy grilled Nopales (prickly pear), peppers and onions, to the Roasted Cauliflower with baby Farro held together by the most unbelievably delicious curried Crema – the kind that could easily transform anything into a delectable delight – backpacks and roof-tiles included.

For desert I only managed to get a whiff of the steaming hot, freshly fried and sugared Churros with a little pot of hot Mexican chocolate for dipping as I lingered (probably a little bit too long in retrospect) at the table next to us on our way out.

Cauliflower Curry

This might be Bloomfield’s irreverent salute to all things south of the border, but south of my midtown office after a long day at work, it is without a doubt my salvation (and I didn’t even mention the cocktails!)

http://salvationtaco.com/

Peasant review

August 3, 2014August 11, 2014 / Roger Hyde / 1 Comment

There are myriad reasons why New Yorker’s prefer not to eat Italian food in Little Italy. Too many gullible tourists who think it’s authentic, too many look-a-like rooms boasting near-identical menus, too much pressure from manipulative, apron-wasted, hair-slicked-back sidewalk talkers, too many other good options vying for their dining dollars, or perhaps because one can only eat just so many meatballs and just so much red sauce.

Cannolicchi (Razor clams)

It’s therefore doubly curious that Frank DeCarlo’s rustic exposed vintage brick, concrete-floored, wooden bench filled ristorante Peasant not only dared to defy his neighbors by not succumbing to any of the Italo-American staples and (quite literally) build his own wood-fire oven and rotisserie kitchen, but that his success story has endured the renaming and reshaping of the neighborhood some 15 years later. If you ask any New Yorker if they’ve ever eaten at Peasant, they will probably say: “Ages ago. Is it still around?” Not only still around but DeCarlo has been consistently packing them in long before, during and (not surprisingly) after Michele Obama and the first daughters’ recent visit.

The menu runs the gamut of delicacies from earth, sea and sky, with just enough flavor restraint to allow the benefit of cooking at over 700 degrees to really pay off. The Acciuga E Radice salad is a wonderfully simple combination of mild white anchovies, radishes and crusty croutons tossed in a complimentary red-wine vinaigrette. The appropriately named Polpi in Purgatorio (Octopus in purgatory) though immaculately tamed in a garlic and chili butter would have welcomed a touch more tenderness, but the white-wine, garlic and breadcrumb encrusted Cannolicchi (Razor Clams) were a home run.

Spaghettini Ricci

The primi piatti selections include a Risotto, a Gnocchi and a tight handful of pastas including a rich and decadent Spaghettini Ricci laden with roasted cherry tomatoes and fresh sea urchin. Even though the fire-crusted-skinned Orata alla Griglia (Grilled Sea Bream) looked rather lonely on top of a rosemary quilt with only a tiny goblet of herb butter for company, the pure ocean flavor and perfectly moist texture is indubitably the best I have ever eaten.

Whole roasted Rabbit

But the money on the table has to be the whole-roasted Rabbit. Although not on the menu, (my hunch says it will be very soon) the leporid is heartily stuffed with rosemary, (clearly chef DeCarlo’s favorite go-to herb) and then tightly wrapped in guanciale (pork jowels) which caramelize around the skin forming a smoky, salty and incredibly fragrant aroma. I realize that the thought of a rabbit stuck between the cheeks of a pig might put one over the edge, but the combination of these two worlds on one plate is utterly delicious and completely unforgettable.

Rhubarb and Berry Stew

Somewhat more forgettable were the ten-more-minutes-on-the-cooker-would-have-done-it Rhubarb and Berry stew, and the overly-dense Chocolate Ganache, but thanks to our waiter’s theatrically gesticulating descriptions, via his thick yet disarmingly authentic accent, the dessert options are certainly worth hearing about.

http://www.peasantnyc.com/reservations/dinner/

Pig and Khao review

July 8, 2014August 19, 2014 / Roger Hyde / Leave a comment

Turon Banana Fritters

Comparatively speaking, adding any derivative of the word “Pig” to the name of your venture has been a pretty good omen for many restaurateurs in New York. Not sure whether it’s fun, courage or luck that the “other white meat” offers, but it certainly seems to translate into popularity and longevity. There’s April Bloomfield’s furiously acclaimed Spotted Pig, Danny Meyer’s impossible-to-get-into Maialino (piglet in Italian), happy-hour all-time-favorite Swine, Brooklyn’s BBQ indulgence palace Fette Sau (fat pig in German), sandwich palace Porchetta (deboned pork roast in Italian), lunchtime office crowd favorite chain Potbelly, or Traif (anything on the “verboten” list for good Jews – such as pork or shellfish in Yiddish) and so it’s scarcely surprising that newcomer and Top Chef alum Leah Cohen is already thinking of opening a gastropub knock-off of her South-East Asian hipster canteen Pig and Khao.

Burmese Eggplant Salad with Shrimp Chips

Whatever happens to be on the grill or in the fryer permeates the simple rice-noodle-thin slither of a room with open kitchen and back patio. The overwhelmingly Thai menu (thankfully omits any of the “Big 5” dishes) includes some Filipino and Vietnamese influences as well.
Cohen’s cocktails are every bit as intense and flavor-forward as her food. From her take on a Negroni with grapefruit and cardamom, to a chamomile-infused Rye with elderflower and a “scotch rinse.”
The Burmese Eggplant Salad is like an Asian, peanut, mint and shrimp version of a Babaganoush dip – made even more unstoppably edible thanks to the homemade slightly sugary shrimp chips.

Green Mango Salad

The Green Mango Salad sitting under a dome of char-grilled chicken and dried shrimp and cashews for crunch, bathing in that unmistakably flavorful and salivation provoking fish-sauce/lemon grass/chili dressing, feels a bit like the big brother of the Green Papaya Noodle Salad with grilled shrimp in a tamarind chili dressing. Both noodle dishes are crowd favorites. The Shan Noodles with ground chicken and turmeric, and the heavenly Khao Soi .

Khao Soi Noodles

A velvety smooth, Thai-iced-tea colored coconut curry with chicken, shallots and mustard greens topped with a centerpiece of egg noodles – the bottom half of which are softly submerged in the curry, leaving the top half exposed and crispy.

For our pork dish we tried the meat-falling-off-the-bones BBQ Baby Back Ribs. While the exact ingredients of Cohen’s barbecue sauce remains a secret, suffice it to say I would happily lap up the gingery-garlicky-syrupy deliciousness even if it were poured over MTA subway tickets or second-hand tennis shoes.

BBQ Baby Back Ribs

For dessert we tried the Turon, which is a banana smartly dressed up in a rice pastry jacket, before being flash fried and perfectly paired next to salted caramel ice-cream and chocolate syrup.
It’s fairly safe to say that Clinton Street has yet another runaway hit on it’s sidewalks.

http://pigandkhao.com/contact/

Barbuto review

July 1, 2014August 11, 2014 / Roger Hyde / Leave a comment

There’s nothing new about food being an addictively mood-altering drug. But less obviously the entire dining experience can also heavily influence your frame of mind. So no matter how hard you are trying to be a witty contributor to the conversation, by practicing those well-rehearsed one-liners on new ears, when your focus is distracted by a brusque waiter with sub-zero peripheral vision who seems to be the only one in the entire state who cannot see your wildly flailing arms in search of a replacement fork, or when one of your guests’ appetizers seems to be coming from Cairo on the back of a camel, even the best food won’t do much to bring back your mojo. So when a decade-old, all-time local favorite like Jonathan Waxman’s rustic Italian Barbuto ceaselessly delivers sensational evenings to remember, you can’t help but do your happy dance.

With the large garage doors open on two sides, Barbuto spills out onto the West Village sidewalks like a prime corner on an alleyway in Rome. The open kitchen feels fresh and approachable – but you wouldn’t dare get in the way of the furious activity that delivers hit after hit to table after table, night after night, year after year.

“jw” Pollo al Forno

While there is an abundance of seasonality to the menu, it is also a multi-year collection of some of New York’s favorite dishes, so much so that the first items (below the drawing of a bearded mutt) are Waxman’s two published cookbooks “A Great American Cook” and “Italian my way”. The service is both fun and flawless. Rapport is obviously encouraged and our waitress instantly became our fifth guest at the table.

Risotto Frutti di Mare

This week’s Bruschetta hosted a generous helping of Burrata and a dribble of Balsamic and two highly unlikely but utterly delectable companions: strawberries and pistachios. The Risotto Frutti di Mare with succulent shrimp and scallops couldn’t have possibly been any creamier. The Colorado Lamb with Bell pepper and onions had a thrilling but subtle spike of heat along with a luxurious au jus, while the recipe for the pork/veal/beef Bolognaise served with Gemelli pasta deserves to be immortalized behind glass, right there next to the Declaration of Independence.

Patate

The blisteringly crispy Patate (potatoes cooked with garlic, hand-smashed and then deep-fried before being sprinkled with Pecorino and rosemary) are so ridiculously devourable – little wonder they were able to stage their own disappearing act.

But the dish that will (hopefully) never vanish from the menu is Waxman’s illustrious “JW” Pollo al Forno with salsa verde. The pan roasted half-chicken couldn’t be more simply prepared with a little olive oil, lemon, sea salt and pepper, but the countless interruptions for basting make this flightless bird soar higher than any other. Topped with a mouthwateringly flavorful green mix of fresh herbs including tarragon, oregano, sage and mint with anchovy and garlic – you have the recipe for sold-out tables well into the next decade.

Desserts include many local favorites too, like the thick, creamy and indulgent Chocolate Budino served in a Capuccino cup with two biscotti or the Chocolate Coconut Cake, which is what happens when Tiramisu, Coconuts and Almonds are left alone to make a baby.

Chocolate Budino

Barbuto might mean “bearded” in Italian, but for most of us it means “Be back!”

http://www.opentable.com/barbuto-reservations-new-york?rid=3232&restref=3232

Estela review

June 27, 2014August 11, 2014 / Roger Hyde / Leave a comment

It’s relatively unlikely that you are familiar with the name Ignacio Mattos. But heed my prediction: this Uruguayan James Beard Foundation finalist is dangerously close to becoming the next big name in modern American food! Having served under slow-food legend Alice Waters at Chez Panisse and South American grilling sensation Francis Mallman along with stints at Isa and Il Buco, his unique style is rather tough to define. His recently debuted Soho boutique restaurant Estela showcases a healthy influence of Spanish, some Carribean, a dash or two of Japanese and just enough Italian to call it American!

Endive salad

While Mattos prides himself on presenting “approachable” food, I found his plating style quite the opposite – almost bashful. Instead of displaying an overt visual focus for the main ingredient, many of his dishes seem to conceal them beneath a forest of obscurities, creating a “surprise” as you wield your knife through the edible jungle.

Beef Tartare

His uncategorized menu of sharing plates grows in portion and price as you journey from north to south with snacks like Pickled Carrots and Salted Cod with Potato, to salads that include Kampachi with Apple or Celery with Mint, small plates such as Farro with Wax Beans, and then onto some hearty mains like Cod with Favas or Quail with Broccoli Rabe.

The Beef and Bison combined Tartare with sunchokes and capers is layered with dark flavors, and the crunch is an unsuspected bonus. The circular display of Endive leaves obscures the wondrous anchovied walnuts with Ubriaco rosso (Italian cheese aged in crushed red grapes).

Burrata with Salsa Verde

Everything I’d heard about the Burrata with Salsa Verde is true. The most luscious, earthy, dark green herb puree you’ve even come across slowly soaks into the toast supporting the white, velvety, creamy goodness above. Hard to believe that I have never tried Mussels in Escabeche (vinegar marinade) before, but the unique and almost floral tang won me over instantly.

Mussels in Escabeche

In the interest of time, forgive me as I gloss over the delectable Scallops with Peas, the unmissable Fried Arroz Negro (black rice) and the incomparable Pork with Potatoes and Borani (Persian eggplant and yoghurt) so that I can relive and re-salivate over the crystalized salt-crusted rib-eye of Beef with eggplant and leeks finished with the creamiest Taleggio cheese ever. Oh, and don’t be surprised if someone gives him a big ol’ culinary award for the Panna Cotta finished with honey and vinegar. Yes, vinegar!

https://rez.opentable.com/reservation/start/6742?source=selfhost

Aldea review

June 25, 2014August 11, 2014 / Roger Hyde / Leave a comment

Portuguese Baby Squid “a la Plancha”

Ever since I started traveling to the region, I have become a huge fan of Iberian cuisine. I love their confidence with the use of bold flavors and colors, and the way they embrace local favorites with just enough respect to allow them to break some of the rules without taking themselves (and their ingredients) too seriously. The snag is how to conjure up diner curiosity beyond the proverbial paella or typical tapas.

Enter George Mendes, whose hands have tickled the pots and pans at places like Basque maestro Martin Berasategui’s three-star Michelin restaurant in San Sebastian as well as Toqueville in Union Square, and who eventually opened his own restaurant Aldea in the Flatiron district.

The tranquil and alluring slither of a room grows outward and upward as you make your way past the various elements of nature: water, wind, earth, sky etc. that set the tone for a calm and relaxed adventure as the dishes start arriving.

Big Eye Tuna Crudo

Ask any Lisbonite and you will learn that there are 365 ways to prepare Bacalao (Salted cod). Mendes offers four: with poached egg, in a curried bean stew, in an onion and potato casserole and as Croquetas, which are the size and weight of fried ping-pong balls. Light, fluffy, potato-ey and gone in sixty seconds! The faint saltiness of the West Coast Sea Urchin Toast loses the battle to the surprising but very welcome mustard seed as the dish’s main flavor driver. Similarly the deep-green cucumber broth gives the Big Eye Tuna Crudo a refreshing boost that cuts through the yuzu-olive oil. The Portuguese Baby Squid “a la Plancha” is layered with wonderful flavors and colors, from the black squid ink, to the red strips of smokey Chorizo, to the tender Calamari rings. (But I either missed or failed to notice any ginger butter.)

Dayboat Diver Scallops

While the Portuguese Sardines in escabeche (vinegar marinade) didn’t level up to much more than the sum of their parts, the Dayboat Diver Scallops were what it’s all about. Simple, simple preparation with beets for color, porcini’s for texture and a pop of tart from gooseberry halves – a tough dish to beat. The Pastel de Nata (the famously celebrated, age-old pastries from Belém with their crispy shells that give way to freshly baked oven-warm custard, topped with cinnamon and sugar) more than delivered a sublime final act.

http://www.aldearestaurant.com/reservations/

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Roger's Digest

FOOD. My favorite 4-letter F-word.

New York Restaurants