In 2009, NYC lost a landmark.  Tavern on the Green went bankrupt. I had never been there myself, since it was way over budget in my first few years in NYC when I lived off of ramen and the kindness of business lunches, but I always knew it to be hard to get into and expensive.  Those two things should really never equate to bankruptcy in my mind, and I heard that they were one of the highest grossing restaurant of all time in 2007 (to the tune of $37 million) but apparently the economy, debts, lease problems, some bad business, and what I heard was a severe decline in quality shuttered the restaurant. (view down Central Park West) Since it closed, reopening the iconic space has been a never ending cycle of delays delays delays The first official day of new service for the newly redone restaurant was this past Thursday, so I was excited to snag a reservation for Sunday, even if it was at 5:15pm.  I was excited to see what this iconic refurb had to offer. Entering off Central Park West from 67th Street, I was a bit surprised to see that it was still under a lot of construction outside. It looks like they are working on the patios and gardens. The entrance still has that elegant feeling, with a long covered entrance and a well dressed man holding the door open. When you walk inside, the first thing you see is… a gift shop.  A gift shop? In a restaurant.  This made me roll my eyes.  I figured this was going to be an even worse tourist trap than I originally thought. But we proceeded inside. Rumor has it the old interior was a lot of shiny metal and mirrors.  This had a lovely “tavern” feel while still being a bit upscale.  (Though I was surprised at how casual it really is) There is a gold plated pegasus chandelier that rotates above the entry bar, however. So not all the gold is gone.   There is a windowed, glass cube porch-like area that looks out on… unfinished courttard.  I was actually a bit surprised to see that the restaurant does not have views of the park.  At all.  I’ve passed by it a thousand times but always just assumed you could see the park from somewhere in the restaurant.  But no dice. The cube reminded me a bit of the Apple Stores. We walked through the main room that connects to the windowed terrace, which also contains a big window looking into the kitchen. We were sat in the back room, near the back bar at a quiet table for two.     It is a large space, so I was surprised to hear that the old restaurant was more than double the size. The space used to be an old sheep barn, so the sheep play a prominent roll throughout the menu design. The menu, by chef Katy Sparks, offers chilled seafood and ceviche, as well as salads.  From there, the menu is split into 3 sections: The Hearth (coming from a wood burning oven), the Grill, and The Plancha (a Brazilian griddle). I expected it to be over the top and ridiculously expensive.  It was certainly tourist pricing, but it wasn’t as ridiculous as I thought it was going to be (most small plates/apps were $12-$18 with entrees around $24-$34 with the exception of a $54 New York Strip Steak). The bread is served as crispy (possibly cheesy?) thin breadsticks and long thin rolls with an impressive dip.  I believe it had sheeps’ milk yogurt, feta cheese, oil, cumin seeds, rosemary, thyme, and a few other things. It was quite enjoyable. We started with the Serrano Ham, Cave-Aged Gruyere and Sage Toast, and Anchovy-Caper Sauce.  It was a delicious nibble, though a tad bit greasy on the fingers.  I liked the combination of ingredients and it was different and a little bit special.  Though for $18, it was still a very small portion of grilled cheese. We also tried the Fried Local Duck Egg on a Spring Onion and Smoked Ricotta Crostata with Anchovies and Oil-Cured Olives. I really enjoyed the rustic crostata which had a great flavor (though when eaten on its own, was a tad bit dry) and the ricotta mixed with the egg and salty anchovies and olives was a very nice combination. For entrees, we got the Heritage Breed Pork Chop, Wood Roasted Rhubarb and Fennel with a Local Honey and Verjus Sauce. This had a unique flavor with the rhubarb and fennel.  I wish it were a bit more sauced (or thicker sauce?) because I found the dish a bit flat.  Good, but not great. We also tried the Braised Lamb Shank with Creamed Chards, Pickled Golden Raisins, Roasted Cauliflower and a Fresh Mint Gremolata. The meat was cooked perfectly.  Tender, and fell off the bone.  The meat itself had nice flavor, however, I wanted a bit more from the preparation.  Again, a thicker sauce may have really set this dish apart, or more mint.  I will say that I had one piece of cauliflower that was crispy and packed with flavor.  It was great. Unfortunately, the other pieces sat a bit too long in the jus and weren’t quite as crisp.  Shame. As for dessert, we went with the Ice Box Cake with Ruis rye bread, maple-rye whisky pudding, sour cherries, maple walnut pralines. The jar that came out felt especially small for the $13 price tag, but there was something about it that was strangely interesting.  It was basically pudding and bread crumbs, but somehow it tasted new and fresh. We also got the Spring Pavlova with Matcha Green Tea curd, macerated organic strawberries and rhubarb, chantilly cream.  I LOVE pavlova, so I cannot NOT order it when I see it on a menu.  This very was very interesting with the Matcha green tea.  There was also something salty that I really enjoyed in this. Added a depth to the flavors.  The pavlova itself wasn’t as crispy as I like my meringue, but it was still tasty. Overall, I enjoyed my meal at the new Tavern on the Green.  If it were priced a few dollars cheaper on each dish, it would have been a much better meal.  It just didn’t have value. But it did have appeal.  Tourists will flock here, and there were a fair amount of children dining there, so families will enjoy it for a nice meal out where they can feel comfortable bringing the kids, however, I’m not sure it will regain its stature as a “go to” restaurant for the food. (Then again, it never was the “go to” for the food!) From what I heard, this is going to be quite the undertaking.  They will owe the city licensing fees of either 6% of the total restaurant sales or $1 million dollars, whichever is greater.  This will mean that they will need to make $17 million in their first year, which translates to about 1,200 meals on Saturdays and Sundays and 600 meals per day each week day. I don’t know if I’ll go out of my way to go back, but I’m glad we got to try it, and part of me hopes it sticks around because I’m a sucker for NYC nostalgia, especially in dining. Total Nom Points: 7 out of 10

Tags: braised lamb shank, central park, crostata, duck egg, grill, grilled cheese, hearth, heritage breed pork chop, ice box cake, katy sparks, lamb, new york dining, pavlova, plancha, pork chop, restaurant review, restaurants, tavern on the green, tavern on the green review, tourist restaurant, where to eat in NYC