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NYC Restaurant Week- Winter 2012: Barbounia

6 Feb

That Lori (from StuffIAte) and I decided to attend Food52′s Piglet Party to check out the Tournament of Cookbooks.  We didn’t know much about the event, but when we arrived, it seemed as though no one else really knew much about the event… even the organizers.  It said it started at 7, but when we arrived around 7:15, people were still setting up and there was no one really directing the flow.

There were a few stations with food and wine and then a bunch of cookbook authors sitting at a table, waiting to sign, but without any information about which cookbook they wrote.  And while I have a special place in my heart for cookbook authors, I haven’t memorized their faces.  So that was… strange.  There was no place to put coats and no one found a garbage can, so Lori and I wound up sitting at a table surrounded by other people’s garbage.  Someone was nice enough to say “thank you” as she put her garbage down next to us.  With that… we decided to cut our losses and head out to take advantage of Restaurant Week.  A quick search on the iPhone and we had a reservation for 10 minutes later at Barbounia, around the corner.  (What DID we do before smart phones? Really???)

I have been meaning to try Barbounia for quite some time (especially for brunch, which is supposed to be awesome).   But Restaurant Week seemed a great opportunity to check them out.

Here is the RW menu.

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The inside is beautiful.  Great arches with detailed lights.  It looks like it should be a good deal bigger, but it was somehow cozy in a very grand way.

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After ordered, we received a very warm, very fresh piece of bread.  The edges were especially delicious.

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I ordered the Grilled Oysters on half shell with tomato confit, fennel pollen hollandaise and parmesan crumble.  Since it was Restaurant Week, I was expecting 1 or 2 small oysters.  I was very surprised when it was 3 giant oysters. And they were DELICIOUS.  The top was like mild melted cheese that complimented the oysters without taking away from the flavor.  Really enjoyed this.

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Lori got the Roman salad with romaine hearts, artichokes, fennel, celery, shave pecorino cheese and bresola.  She seemed to enjoy it very much.

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For entrees, I got the duck confit.  It came with overnight braised farro, medjool dates, baby carrots, turnip with date syrup and 5 spice sauce (luckily, not one spice included peppers).  This was cooked to perfection, full of flavor, and falling off the bone.  The faro was ehh, but the sweet sauce was so good that when using the faro to sop it up, became mouthwatering.

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Lori got the grilled pork (which doesn’t appear to be on the menu that is posted).  I believe it came with Israeli cous cous, cipolin onions and black trumpet mushrooms. I though her dish was really outstanding.  The pork was a perfect blend of meat and fat so it was succulent, and the sauce it had was delicious.

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For dessert, we both opted for the dark chocolate mousse (also not on the posted menu) which came with a salted caramel sauce.

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The mousse itself had GREAT flavor.  Perfectly bitter sweet with chunks of chocolate.  When you hit the flecks of salt, it took the flavor to a whole different level. Unfortunately, while the flavor was great, the mousse itself was a bit gritty.  Tasted like the chocolate broke.  But it was so good in taste that it hardly mattered.

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Service was very good.  Our waitress was attentive without being overbearing and didn’t treat us like Restaurant Week lepers (an all-to-common theme during RW).

Overall, our meal here was surprisingly delicious.  I was impressed that a meal this good (and this big in portion!) had flown under my Restaurant Week radar.  They deserve accolades for serving food proportionate to their regular menu, and fantastic in ingredients and flavor.  They don’t skimp, and for that, they will earn my loyalty and I will be back.  A great execution of Restaurant Week.  Gave us just enough great food to bring us back for more.

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

NYC Restaurant Week- Winter 2012: Russian Tea Room

6 Feb

Our second stop this Restaurant Week was at The Russian Tea Room.  The Russian Tea Room is a NYC classic, but I had no idea why. I also had no idea why I had never been there before.  So Restaurant Week seemed as good a time as any to check it out.

When we entered, we were told that due to the popularity of Restaurant Week, they had opened up the 2nd floor, which was usually reserved for private parties.  The hostess bragged about the “Fabergé inspired” egg tree in the back…

This was a plastic tree with some plastic lit up eggs… I didn’t get it.

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She also bragged about the “bear aquarium” (which, much to my dismay, was a bear shaped fish aquarium and not, in fact, a big aquarium filled with bears).  It turned around and around in the dining room and was filled with large goldfish.

This makes me wonder… who, while decorating a dining room, says “I know what would be perfect! A bear shaped aquarium that spins!”  But hey… there was opulence everywhere in this dining room with no clear decoration direction… so I guess it went with the room.

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Onto the food!

The regular menu was VERY expensive.  All apps were $18-$35 ($18 for beet salad!) and most entrees were in the $36-$48 range ($39 for beef stroganoff and $38 for chicken kiev!)

We stuck to the Restaurant Week menu.

Mike started with the Goat Cheese and Wild Mushroom Blinchik which was described as a crêpe filled with mixed mushrooms, goat cheese, melted onions and lingonberries.  It was crispy and actually quite good.

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I got the borscht.  It was no Veselka, but it was decent. I found it tasted more like carrots than beets, but it was still hearty and good. It came with a small meat-pie type thing that was so so.

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Mike got the chicken a la king.  It both looked, and tasted, like wedding food.

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I got the filet of beef that came with garlic mashed potatoes and “baby vegetables.”  The mashed potatoes tasted quite bland (no garlic) and the “baby vegetables” consisted of a single carrot and a single piece of asparagus.  Neither were baby, unless the portion size was what they were describing. This also both looked, and tasted, like wedding food.  Cheap wedding food.

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For dessert, Mike got the cheesecake.  As a purist, he LOVED this.  It was absolutely pure cream cheese and sugar.  I can’t blame him for enjoying that.

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My dessert was the “chocolate dome.” It was filled with some raspberry something. It was overcooked, dry, and one note.  One of the most boring desserts I’ve ever tried.  Bleh.  When I don’t finish dessert, you know something is wrong.

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The service was also pretty horrid.  No one offered us refills on water nor wine, it took a long time between courses, and we waited 20 minutes for our check before finally asking a busser to get it.  Our waiter never even came over in the next 15 minutes before we left. Bravo.

Overall, the Russian Tea Room seems to be relying on it’s long-standing history and it’s opulence, rather than on its food and service.  The food was hardly passable, and had I spent more than the Restaurant Week price ($35 per meal), I would not have been pleased.  Even $35 for what we ate was decidedly overpriced.  This is the exact reason Restaurant Week has a bad rep.  I want to assume that they served so-so things to fit into the price of RW, rather than serving smaller portions of their regular menu (which gives people a reason to come back and eat off the regular menu).  If their regular menu is that bad, they are robbing New York tourists.

Total  Nom Points: 5 out of 10

Restaurant Week Wrap-Up: An on-going list of where to go for NYC RW (Updated Winter 2012)

6 Feb

I have now been writing about Restaurant Week for over 4 years.  It is one of the most frequented sections on the blog, so I wanted to make it a bit easier and summarize the best, the good, and the bad.  I will continue to add to this list as we try new places for Restaurant Week. (Last update is from Winter 2012)

So who had the best Restaurant Week menu?  Who didn’t skimp on portions?  Who obviously thinks Restaurant Week is a total waste of time?  Read on! (Click on the restaurant name to link out to the original review I posted)

Top RW Noms (Book now! Even if RW is another 6 months away):

  1. ilili: I have been to ilili twice for Restaurant Week and I think they are the best of the best.  Great selection, plentiful portions, and gosh darn GREAT food.  Everyone left raving about it.
  2. Cafe Boulud:  This was just barely edged out for #1 by ilili.  The braised veal cheeks and the chocolate dessert still  both echo in my mind as some of the best bites I have EVER had.  Their menu was limited, but there were enough items to keep me happy.  I have been dying to go back.
  3. The Modern – Bar Room:  Delicious.  Small portions but well worth it (and it’s not like you leave hungry).  Service was a terror, but the food made up for it. (I went back for Summer 2011 and it was just as good and with great service this time around).
  4. Olives: Small selection but all very tasty.  It’s a nice intro. to a Todd English restaurant, especially since it’s usually a bit pricey
  5. Barbounia: Fantastic food and good portions. Impressed by the food and the nice service. They understand that Restaurant Week is all about giving people a reason to return.
  6. Aquavit: The entrées here were a bit on the average side, however, the uniqueness of the food, the fun of doing a flight of Aquavit, and the INCREDIBLE desserts just barely pushed this one to the top list

Average RW Noms (I’d probably go back and try them again, but they weren’t special enough to hit the list above):

  • Craft Bar:  I can’t put this in the top list since we actually accidentally booked a reservation that was NOT Restaurant Week (be sure to review the list carefully so you know who serves on weekends).  I do think it may belong there, however, as the food was great and the servers were AMAZING about taking care of us since we made the mistake (they gave us 2 apps on the house)
  • Black Duck: A solid Restaurant Week experience.  The initial choice of fish, chicken, or pasta wasn’t an awesome selection, but each dish tasted great.  I would like to try this place again and order off the regular menu.
  • Angelo and Maxies: I was actually impressed with this place, but I think their non- Restaurant Week offering is probably just as good.
  • Tribeca Grill: My short ribs were pretty good, but I’ve seen better Restaurant Week menus and tried better food.  I’m not sure if this was the fault of RW or if the restaurant itself just isn’t top of the heap.
  • Delmonico’s:  Good but not great.  I’ve had better steaks in Manhattan by far, but there is something fun about going to this place just for the history of it.
  • 10 Downing: We had an enjoyable experience here, however, something just wasn’t totally right for most of the meal. Service was spotty, there were too many inedible things on my plate (shallot skin? garlic skin? seriously untrimmed meat?)  Everything was plated beautifully with a lot of attention to detail, color, and the season (summer).  Not to mention, one of the best panna cottas I’ve ever tasted.
  • Ruth’s Chris: Been meaning to try this place but haven’t gotten around to it? Restaurant Week is a good time to get a taste. Their regular specials menu is also quite good, so if you don’t make it for RW, it’s okay.

Disappointing  RW Noms (Not sure why they bother with Restaurant Week):

  • Park Avenue (Summer):  While we had some great nibbles, it really felt as if this is one of those restaurants that doesn’t like Restaurant Week and it comes out in their food.  I might try them again for their regular menu, but I wouldn’t suggest it for Restaurant Week at all.
  • Perry Street: Come on Jean Georges! I expect more from you.  Nothing was bad, but nothing was great.  A Restaurant Week faux pas perhaps.

Bad RW Noms (Just plain wrong):

  • Mercer Kitchen: Awful in every way.  This place is what gives Restaurant Week a bad name.  Awful menu.  Small portions.  Food that seemed like it could have been cooked at McDonald’s.  I haven’t been able to eat cooked salmon since this night.  It was THAT bad. 
  • Russian Tea Room: Bad service. Food that hardly could pass for wedding food.  This place could have such great potential as a NYC icon but instead, it’s just tacky and bad.

What are your favorite Restaurant Week places?

Where are you trying out this year?

NYC Restaurant Week- Winter 2012: Ruth’s Chris

6 Feb

I try to write about Restaurant Week each season.  This year I was away for the first week, but, thankfully, Winter 2012 Restaurant Week actually lasts 3 weeks.  So you have one week left.  Make your reservation! (Though it usually does get extended…)

This RW I decided that it would be a good idea to bring Mike to a steak house that I enjoyed very much, but not necessarily enough to want to bring him there for full price.  In my mind, I would much rather get the same meal somewhere else since I’ve already tried Ruth’s Chris and put it very firmly in the center of the NYC Steakhouse pile.  That’s not to say it’s not good, on the contrary… the buttered steak is something everyone should enjoy once in their life.  But there is some stiff competition out there (cough cough Keen’s cough cough).

Mike and I decided to take advantage of our reservation, and order one meal off the Restaurant Week menu and one a la carte from the specials section on the menu.

The Restaurant Week menu is here.

We started with the Steakhouse salad with vinaigrette dressing. This was a very good, very fresh salad with great croutons.

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Then we got the 8 ounce petite filet and paid the supplement to add grilled shrimp.  The shrimp were very tasty and totally worth the up-charge (nothing worse than paying extra for shoddy shrimp!). The steak itself was good.  It was charred well and full of flavor.  But it wasn’t exactly super special.  It was just good and well cooked.

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This Restaurant Week menu also comes with a side.  We chose creamed spinach.  This was decent. I prefer the one from The Palm by far.

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As for the a la carte special, you can choose a starter, steak, and get a dessert for about$50 (a veritable steal by NYC Steakhouse standard).

We started with the spinach and pear salad.  This is my kind of salad.  Sweet and filled with fruit. I know some people don’t like fruit in their green salad, but I’m a HUGE fan. And this didn’t disappoint.

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The Cowboy Ribeye is usually their best steak, but we didn’t need such a huge piece of meat, so we got the regular Ribeye.  This was very good, but surprisingly not as good as I remembered. It definitely had a leg up on the filete, but I remember the Ribeye having a lot more char (I’m such a char sucker). It was still quite delicious, however.

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They had a brown sugar and walnut butternut squash side on the menu and I opted to get this instead of the sweet potato casserole that I got in the past and loved.  this was good, but I missed that sweet potato casserole (which… let’s be honest… was really dessert).

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The dessert with both menus was their signature chocolate cheesecake. I LOVED this, but Mike, who is a cheesecake aficionado, likes his cheesecake pure and original. Can’t please everyone!

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Overall, this was a good Restaurant Week experience.  The special menu is actually quite a deal on its own, but spending $35 for a steak dinner is really never a bad thing.  I can’t say I LOVE this place… but it’s a good staple.

Total Nom Points: 6.5 out of 10

Kefi: Restaurant Week Menu

31 Aug

 

We were on the Upper West Side and in need of a place for dinner.  I had heard very good things about Kefi, and realized they were still running their Restaurant Week special.  This Restaurant Week menu had a lot of items off the regular menu, and I realized the regular menu was also very well priced.  

Mike started with the Kefi salad.  It had feta cheese and was dressed very well.

 

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I chose the grilled octopus with bean salad.  Now this… this was a show stopper.  I like octopus just fine, but it’s never something I LOVE.  This octopus?  I wanted to take it out to dinner, buy it wine, and beg it to come home with me at night.  It was perfectly grilled, with a bit of char, and not a hint of chewiness.  If this is what octopus always tasted like, I would probably eat it exclusivity.

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For our entrees, Mike got braised lamb shank with orzo.  The lamb shank was tender with full flavor and an awesome sauce.  I usually would have been very jealous of this entree, but mine was even better.

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I got the shrimp, orzo, feta, tomato, and spinach.  It was all baked into a delicious bowl of amazingness.  It reminded me a bit about very adult mac & cheese made Mediterranean style. It was sensational.  I was stuffed half way through but wanted to finish every last bite and lick the plate.

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For dessert, Mike got ice cream. One was toasted sesame and the other was maple walnut.  Both tasted homemade.  Delicious!  

 

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I chose the chocolate mousse and halva with sesame ice cream. I love halva and as thrilled to have it in the dessert.  The mousse was delicious and rich, but I had eaten so much of the previous food that I really didn’t have room for it.  

 

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Overall, Kefi was a surprise and a delight.  I cannot believe people are flocking here in herds. Especially after I learned that it was opened by Michael Psilakis and Donatella Arpaia.  With heritage like that, and food this good, Kefi should be packed every day. But it wasn’t. So go there. Now.  Before the secret is out!

And bring me back some of that octopus.  

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

 

 

 

Restaurant Week Summer 2011: The Modern Bar Room

24 Jul

I have been to The Modern Bar Room for Restaurant Week before, however, I had yet to bring Mike.  The Modern is always one of the hardest RW reservations to get.  When I saw that they were doing their Restaurant Week menu on Sunday, I was excited and scheduled immediately.  I was pretty bummed a few days later when I got a call to say that there was a misprint and that The Modern was only doing Restaurant Week during the week.  Damn.  I put my name on a wait list and expected little.  To my surprise, I received a call earlier this week saying that there was an opening at 6pm on Thursday.  So we took it!

I really love the inside of the Bar Room. They have a beautiful tree mural on glass on one end and everything is super (shocker) modern.  They always have gorgeous flowers and it’s always buzzing.

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And I simply love that they serve their bread warm (what a difference that makes!)

 

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The Modern serves a lot of their regular menu for Restaurant Week, just in smaller portions.

For his app, Mike chose the warm goat cheese and lamb terrine, with toasted pistachio and watercress.  This was AWESOME.  The lamb had great flavor and everything just went together well.  And I love that this summer has been FILLED with pistachios (some in every meal this week!)

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I chose the slow poached egg with eggplant “caviar” and sea urchin foam.

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The waiter described it as “oozing” and he was right.  The egg was perfect and combined so nicely with the eggplant.  The foam wasn’t anything special, but it made it beautiful and it all tasted great.  It had a nice sea salt in it too that really just brought out each flavor.

 

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For our entrees, Mike went with the veal flank steak with chick peas in a Choron sauce.  It was rich in flavor and tasted great.  The sauce especially was great.

I was actually expecting the portions to be much smaller.  This was plenty of food.

 

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I chose the Maine lobster papardelle au poivre with squash blossoms.  This was absolutely beautiful and tasted beautiful.  Great, fresh tasting lobster in a creamy sauce that wasn’t heavy.  The paradelle was modelled with green and tasted perfectly fresh.  The squash blossoms added a nice freshness to it.

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For dessert, Mike chose the cheesecake with fresh berries.  This was awesome.  Great vanilla and cheesy flavor.

 

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I went with the caramel coffee dome with vanilla ice cream and amaretto gelee.

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This was very good, but I think this is one that was more beautiful than it was delicious.  It needed a bit more texture, but it was still very, very good.

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Overall, The Modern remains one of my top picks for Restaurant Week. In my opinion, they do NYC Restaurant Week perfectly by allowing people to try what is actually on the menu, and just shrink the portions a bit to make it affordable for the restaurant.  As someone who wines and dines clients on occasion, this would be very top of the list of where I would take a good client.

Total Nom Points: 8 out of 10

 

Restaurant Week Summer 2011: Black Duck

23 Jul

Our 2nd stop for NYC Summer 2011 Restaurant Week was Black Duck.  Their Restaurant Week selection was anything from their soup and salad section (which included gazpacho, a Bibb lettuce salad, and an arugula salad), pan roasted chicken, fish of the day (which was pistachio crusted fluke, or spring penne pasta for entrée, and dessert was listed as summer strawberry cake.

Mike chose the Bibb Lettuce salad that came with citrus pieces. The dressing on it was very citrusy and fresh.  Nice summer salad.photo 1

I went with the arugula salad which came with dried figs, onions, roasted pistachios, and shaved pecorino in a champagne-dijon vinaigrette.  I was concerned about the “dijon” part since I’m not a mustard fan, but the entire thing was delicious.

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While not on the Restaurant Week menu, we chose to get the sliders app. It said it came with mustard, and Mike was kind enough to ask if it was on the side.  We were assured it was… but when it came… no mustard to be found.  Weird.  But the sliders were grilled and well salted, and tasted like they came right off a backyard grill (which isn’t necessarily what I want at a restaurant, but it was still good).

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Mike’s main course was the spring penne pasta that came with spring peas, yellow cherry tomatoes, regiano, and basil pesto.  I LOVED the peas and the basil pesto.  I wouldn’t say the pasta was anything special, but everything on it was really good.

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I chose the pistachio crusted New England Fluke over baby bok choy and mushrooms with ponzu. This was VERY tasty, though I’m not sure if I really recognized the pistachio coating as pistachio.  It added a nice crisp, but I was hoping it would be a bit more pisachio-y.

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My camera battery had actually died just before this meal started, so all these pictures were taken with my iPhone.  It was fine at first, but as it got darker, I had to start using the flash and most pictures just weren’t as nice as with the real camera.  One thing the iPhone can capture, however, that my camera cannot is cool candle lighting.  It made my wine look pretty awesome.

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For dessert, the waitress came out and started listing off a whole bunch of options. I was surprised since the only one listed was the strawberry cake. I asked her if they were included in the RW menu, and she said not usually but they would make an exception.  Also, she noted that the strawberry cake was actually a strawberry cheesecake.  Mike’s middle name could be cheesecake, so he went in that direction.  It was a bit strange though… it was more like a biscuit cake with a small layer of cheese (marscapone maybe) in between two layers and topped with strawberries.  It was just okay.

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I decided to order the “chocolate caramel mousse.” I was a bit surprised when a slice came out (I was expecting just mousse) and I’m still not sure where the caramel was (there wasn’t even any drizzled on top. Hmmmmm)  It was good but quite rich and kind of disappointing when I really wanted some caramel.

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Overall, our meal was very good and we really enjoyed everything.  I wouldn’t say I LOVED it, but I would certainly go back.  There were some awesome sounding dishes on the entrée list that I would definitely want to try!

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

Restaurant Week Summer 2011: 10 Downing

22 Jul

I try to blog about Restaurant Week here in New York each season.  For my previous NYC Restaurant Week adventures, check out this link.

Our first stop for Summer 2011 was to 10 Downing.  I had heard very mixed reviews.  I felt like a few years ago, everyone said this was one of their top places… but recently there were a number of people who called it a “let down.” I figured Restaurant Week was a good time to try it out.

When we arrived, we noticed that tucked in the corner, chatting away, sat Emma Stone and Kieran Culkin. Pretty cool sighting!

The Restaurant Week menu included a choice of 3 apps (chilled pea soup, sweet shrimp with grits, and heirloom tomato & watermelon salad), 3 entrees (sauteed wild striped bass, chicken with summer squash, and braised short ribs), and 2 desserts (spiced chocolate torte or almond & pecan panna cotta).

Mike chose the sweet shrimp and Anson Mills cheddar grits, which came with garlic, jalapeno, and fried leeks.  He very much enjoyed it.

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I went with the chilled English pea soup with buttermilk ice, summer fruits, and puffed barley.  It also had beautiful orchids floating on top.  It was refreshing and the fruit was an awesome pair with the soup.  Perfect for summer.

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Mike went with Hudson Valley Farms chicken with summer squash, eggplant, fingerling, and pistou (which is a cold sauce made from cloves of garlic, fresh basil, and olive oil).  It was filled with flavor and surprisingly not “boring” for chicken.

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I wanted the short ribs, but was disappointed to hear that they were still 2 hours from being done with the slow cooking (which I found especially strange since our dinner reservation was at 7pm, and while I know people eat late in NYC on a Friday, 9pm to START serving a dish seemed weird).  But they were doing the same preparation (broccoli, bearnaise sauce, and shallot confit) with skirt steak.  So I went for it.  It was delicious and tender, with a great sauce… but…

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…There were a number of inedible things on the plate.  From a gob of fat on the steak to a shallot and garlic still in the peel, I found it weird that they didn’t seem to have completed the prep and just threw things on the plate that were supposed to be there but someone didn’t know what to do with them.

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Mike went with the spiced chocolate torte with muscato reduction and chipotle cream.  It sounded good, but I couldn’t have it.  Mike said it was “just okay.”

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I chose the almond and pecan panna cotta with roasted cherries and madeira.  Now this was AWESOME.  This is how panna cotta is supposed to taste. I have had a lot of panna cottas over the years, and always found it just… eh… But this was a fantastic texture, flavor, and rich in goodness. And the cherries were mmm mmm good!

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Overall, 10 Downing was pretty good, and we enjoyed their Restaurant Week selection.  Some things felt just a bit “off” about the service and the prep, but it was quite good food and I’d return for a non-RW meal without hesitation.

Total Nom Points: 7 out of 10

NYC Restaurant Week- Winter 2011: ilili (Take 2)

28 Jan

A request came in for a place to eat lunch during Restaurant Week for my work crew.  We needed some place near Gramercy, so my last experience with Ilili instantly came to mind.  Ilili still ranks as one of the very best Restaurant Week experiences I ever had.  Amazing food selection that all tasted GREAT and in normal person portions.  Could they repeat the awesome performance?

Beyond the food, I think the space is awesome.  Boxes with old fashioned lightbulbs hanging behind panels.  The ceilings are high, so I’m sure this place gets loud, but it’s lovely to look at.

They brought a basket of pita pillows to the table.  I remember these being tasty last time, however, they were a bit bland and stale this time.

Their Restaurant Week menu is almost entirely changed from last time, however, it’s still a phenomenal deal.  They let everyone order TWO items from the apps and then one entree and one dessert.   SO many apps sounded great.  I wound up going with the grape leaves (nothing special, but tasty).

I also ordered the Riz, which is Lebanese rice with toasted vermicelli and mixed nuts.  It also has a lovely hint of cinnamon and herbs.  This was probably the best rice I’ve ever eaten.  I could eat this for days.

Other selections from the group included the lentil soup….

The “mouhamara” which is walnuts with sundried peppers and pomegranate molasses…

The Phoenician Fries with sumac, parsley and garlic whip (Yum!)…

And dandelion greens with pine nuts and caramelized onions (called Hindbeh)…

At this point in the meal, everyone was already saying how much they were enjoying their food. And the entrees were yet to come!

One coworker was VERY well behaved and ordered the shrimp salad.  He said for salad, it was great, but I could tell he had food envy for the rest of the orders.

I was having a tough time deciding between a few options on the menu.  A couple people at the table went with my alternate selection, the Lamb Dip.  It was described as slow roasted leg of lamb on a house made bun with au jus and horseradish sauce.  It was DELISH!

But the whole table shut down when we tried my choice, the braised lamb shank.  One other coworker got it with the peppers.

Mine, obviously, was peppers-less.  And this was a show stopper.  It came with fried eggplant, labne, and mint.  It was OHMYGODINEEDTOHAVETHISAGAINRIGHTNOW amazing.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it.  The lamb was perfectly gamey without being too overpowering, and it was tender in an amazing sauce.  Wow.  I want to flash back and eat this all over again.

Our dessert selections covered most of the dessert menu.

Two coworkers were adventurous and got the Ashta, which is traditional Lebanese clotted cream with orange blossom simple syrup and bananas.  The clotted cream wasn’t bad, but I found the orange blossom syrup WAY too overpowering (like chewing on a plant) and the guys REALLY didn’t like it.  It was definitely an interesting flavor, just not our speed.

One coworker got the Awaimat, which is a Lebanese beignet with orange blossom simple syrup.  It was good, but I’m just not a fan of beignets unless they are from Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans.  Also, the orange blossom syrup in this was MUCH less overpowering, so it was much more enjoyable.

I was obviously on an ordering streak, as my Ilili Candy Bar (with chocolate kataifi crunch, pistachio and gif caramel, and chocolate ganache, which was poured over at the table) was FANTASTIC.

It was small but VERY rich.  The coffee with it was an excellent pair.


Overall, I think I can safely say this is the #1 recommendation I would give for Restaurant Week.  What’s even cooler, they have a lunch menu prix fixe all year long that includes a lunch salad or sandwich with a side for $20.  That WOULD be a good deal, but when you can get the above for $24, I have to say… RUN… don’t walk… to Ilili for Restaurant Week.  And the secret isn’t out yet, so you can still snag a reservation for next week.
Total Nom Points: 8.5 out of 10 (this is a bump up from last time, because it was, dare I say it?  EVEN BETTER with that slow cooked lamb sandwich)

NYC Restaurant Week- Winter 2011: The Modern Bar Room

28 Jan

Still wondering where to go for Restaurant Week this time around (thru February 6th, as of now)?  This year there is a slight change:  No more Saturdays, and Sundays are optional (I’m sure a lot of restaurants are happy about that).  There are still plenty of reservations available on Open Table (though some places aren’t on there, so you have to call.)

Every year, one of the hardest Restaurant Week reservations to get is at The Modern.  I was browsing who had some openings, and was shocked to see a spot for 2 at The Modern Bar Room (in MoMA, the Museum of Modern Art) on the first day of Restaurant Week for 6pm.  I jumped on it, and invited That Lori (of Stuff I Ate) to join me.  She was more than happy to oblige.

I was slightly obsessed with the floral design in the entry-way.

Beautiful purple lilies (I think) of some sort.   It looked like a dark purple calla lily.  Simply lovely.

Right behind that was a bar, that had thoroughly stocked glass shelves.

A view of “The Bar Room.”  It was simple, tasteful, and (shocker) modern.

The menu was quite lengthy for Restaurant Week.

I had trouble choosing because so much sounded great!

It was as we were browsing this menu that we started running into the problem of the evening… our waitress was MIA.  And continued to be MIA for at least 30 minutes before taking our order, which she rushed through.  We noticed she gave everyone else a shpiel about restaurant week and how you could pick one thing from each category, however, the entrees were half portion and you could pick a full-sized portion of anything on the menu for $17 additional.


I was famished, so I scarfed through both pieces of bread quickly.  The butter was obviously homemade and delicious, but lacking in salt.  And there was none on the table… and no one to ask…

Lori decided to begin with a dish she had tried in the past, but was so enamored by it that she just had to get it again.  It was roasted Long Island duck breast with peppercorn-crusted apples and toasted pistachio-truffle dipping sauce.

The peppercorn-crusted apples were very good, and Lori LOVED them, however, I’m not a huge pepper fan.  The duck was perfectly ducky.  But the sauce… HOLY CRAP.  Now THAT was good sauce.  What could possibly be bad about pistachios and truffles?
I decided to go with the artichoke soup, since I can’t get enough archies.  The combination of the artichokes with pearl barley, toasted almonds, and ricotta was very nice, and didn’t overpower the artichoke flavor.  The biscuits had rosemary in them and were deliciously buttery.
I’m glad I had a hearty portion of soup… we proceeded to watch someone sit down, give their order, and receive BOTH apps and entrees before our entrees even came out.  The manager came over to apologize… our waitress did not.  She didn’t seem to have any problems with her other tables, however, we were the forgotten children all night.  Literally the red-headed step-children.  And SHE was a red head! (Perhaps she’s a self-hater!)
Lori chose the squab for her entree.  When it came out, it was VERY tiny, even for squab (as was mine… though I have to say, both of us left completely satisfied and perfectly full without being too full… I wish portion control was always that easy).  The squab was spice-dusted and I LOVED the cinnamony tang it had.  It also came with braised romaine, haricots verts and bacon salad.  (Did somebody say bacon salad?)  Delightful little squab.
I went with the pork belly that came with rutabaga choucroute and ginger jus.  It was a decadent few bites of porky goodness.
For dessert, I chose the dark chocolate tart that came with chocolate ice cream.  It had a delicious, crackly top like creme brulee (though made out of chocolate, not sugar).  It was scrumptious!  I even liked the chocolate ice cream, which is rare for me.
Lori chose the coffee caramel dome with vanilla ice cream and amaretto gelee.  It hinted a bit towards Star Wars…
The layers were awfully tasty, however, I forgot to take a pic.  D’oh!  I’ll link to Lori’s pictures once she posts.
I wish the light was better, but the gelee made for a very artful decoration.
Overall, besides the AWFUL waitress, the food was sensational and this ranked very high on the Restaurant Week experiences list.  The selection is fantastic and while the portions are small, they are packed with flavor, very satisfying, and in no way did I leave wanting.  If you can secure yourself a RW reservation at The Modern, DO IT!  (In fact… they have been extending Restaurant Week during the final week lately, so go ahead and snag a reservation for the week following while you can and see if they extend… you can always cancel!)
Total Nom Points: 8 out of 10
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