We narrowed it down to Aureole: New York - the flagship restaurant of Charlie Palmer. I had lunch there once at the Bar Room and recall thinking that I needed to come back for dinner. The restaurant moved here from their former Madison Avenue location when One Bryant Park opened summer of 2009. The location is prime - a block from Times Square and Bryant Park with never ending foot traffic.
The space is separated into the Bar Room and the Dining Room - a set up that you see in most high end restaurants these days. In the front of the house is the the vibrant Bar Room - an open space with high ceiling which probably helped to absorb the noise; and floor-to-ceiling window facing the 42nd Street. Then in the back is the Dining Room. Lower ceiling and dimmed lighting made it cozy but with sufficient noise to feel the energy.
We went for the 5-course Dinner Tasting.
First Course - HAWAIIAN HAMACHI
avocado, pineapple, yuzu citrus, baby red shiso
Second Course - SCOTTISH LANGOUSTINE
basque peppers, potato gnocchi, sauce bouillabaisse
Third Course - BLACK BASS
mussels, purple potatoes, mustard greens, tomato
Fourth Course - PRIME NY STRIP
leeks, hens of the woods, potato puree, natural beef jus
Dessert - PINEAPPLE BAKED ALASKA
coconut, mango, passion fruit
The bouillabaisse sauce in the second course was quite memorable - you can taste the vastness of the ocean all squeezed into a couple of spoonful sauce on the plate.
Black bass was cooked to perfection - the skin side charred just the right amount so that you can feel the crunch when you bite into the skin; yet the meat was moist with the broth from the mussels.
Potato puree with the beef dish had a hint of wasabi, reminded me of Japanese style beef steak with wasabi soy sauce. They go quite well together - wasabi and beef. Maitake mushrooms (or also know as hens of the woods) on the plate added to the aromatic experience of the dish.
I couldn't quite figure out what the dessert was. I didn't know what a baked Alaska was - so I had to look it up when I got home. According to Wikipedia, "Baked Alaska (also known as glace au four, omelette à la norvégienne, Norwegian omelette and omelette surprise) is a dessert made of ice cream placed in a pie dish lined with slices of sponge cake or Christmas pudding and topped with meringue. The entire dessert is then placed in an extremely hot oven for just long enough to firm the meringue." I actually enjoyed the contrast in the creamy texture of the ice cream and the fluff meringue.
Overall, the portions were just about right for a tasting menu. Each course had solid base; but with touches of Asian flavors to lighten the dishes.
The Dining Room was full when we were seated, I suspect with the theater crowd. When we left, it was probably 1/3 full. Not sure if it got full again with late crowd.
Very much enjoyed the dining experience. The food was not extraordinary; but it was not forgettable either. I'm sure to come back again, if not for dinner, for lunch.
No comments:
Post a Comment