Tag Archives: foie gras

New Restaurant Opening: Betony

8 Jun

When it comes to top restaurants, I find it very hard to judge fairly when I’m comparing a Tasting Menu to just about anything else.  For instance, our Top 10 contains 9 restaurants that were either Tasting Menus or Prix Fixe.  But seeing as though our Numero Uno of ALL TIME was Eleven Madison Park, we were excited to hear that a former chef from there (Bryce Shuman) and a former General Manager (Eamon Rockey) had started a new place that opened in Mid-May called Betony.

Betony is located on 57th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues, in prime Central Park tourist territory.  The inside is a very interesting space, with plush brown fuzzy seating and walls and ceiling carved and etched.

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The menu is sparse but has plenty of items that sounded quite tasty. The left part of the menu is small single bites.

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The middle is bigger sized appetizers.

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And the right column are the entrees.

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We had a tough time choosing, and when we asked our waitress for guidance, she explained to us that at least half the menu was amazing (making it so hard to choose!)

We wound up going with the marinated trout roe, “tuna melt,” hot foie gras, roast chicken, and grilled short ribs.

We began with some well mixed twists on classic cocktails (Mike got the negroni and I got the mojito) and the table bread was breadsticks (which looked like thin spaghetti with some delicious salt on them) and cheddar chips.  Both were salty, crunchy goodness.

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Our first appetizer was the Marinated Trout Roe on a puffed rice cracker with cucumber.

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Not only was this fresh and delicious…

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… it was a work of art!

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And then we tried the “Tuna Melt” which had a thin layer of melted fontina cheese on top and was on a brioche.  This was also stunningly beautiful and WOW was it good.  Like punch you in the face good. (I’m not even sure what that means but it seems appropriate somehow).

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My only complaint about the “finger foods” is that there were 3 of each. With a party of 2, it leaves for some awkwardness when you each have one and then look at the last bite longingly.  Even though Mike and I have been together for over 5 years and we’re getting married next week (HOLY SHEIS MONKEYS! NEXT WEEK!), we still struggled making this decision. Mike was a gentleman, however, and told me to have the last bite of tuna.  I gave him a quick taste because I couldn’t be that selfish.  But honestly, I would have rather they served us just 2 or bit the bullet and served 4.  Fair is fair when it comes to delicious food.

We were then served an intermezzo “from the kitchen” which was a gooseberry compote with tomato snow.  It smelled like flowers and a summer day.  I found the compote very tasty but there was something… off… about the compote. It tasted very soapy. Like something went wrong soapy.  It was the only blemish on an otherwise spotless meal.

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We were then served bread, which was baked in-house by the pastry chef and had caraway seeds, which reminded us of a Jewish deli in all the right ways.

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Up next came the foie gras, which was just described as being “hot or cold.” Our waitress guided us to the hot one that came with crispy kale and ham hock consume (which was poured over table side).

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It also had black garlic and a few other ingredients in it (including a top chip) that are escaping me. They served this with two plates and an extra bowl of consume.

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This dish was very well composed and the kale and the foie were great together.  The consume was superb and they very smartly offered to bring more rolls to soak up the awesome leftover liquids.  The sommelier suggested a moscato which complimented the rich foie very nicely.

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We asked the sommelier to recommend a glass of wine for each of the entrees we ordered, so he suggested a round Pinot Noir and a smokey Rioja.  Both were excellent with the meal.

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Both entrees were also served with a sauce/jus at the table.  The chicken had a rich and flavorful, but simple chicken broth.

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It was cooked on the bone but served without it and came with perfectly cooked turnips and morel mushrooms.  The skin on top was crispy, but if I can be a nit picker, it could have been a tad bit crispier. But the flavor was very earthy and the texture moist.  Well executed.

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The chicken came with a side that had a grain (perhaps bulgar?) with dark meat confit and a quale egg.  This was fantastic and really nailed all the flavors. (Our waitress told us that in an effort to use every bit of the chicken, the liver dish was also created from the whole chickens they buy).

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The Grilled Short Rib came with romaine (which was charred, and beautifully so) and sweetbreads.  A beef jus was also poured over the dish at the table and this was an incredibly rich and flavorful dish, with some of the most tender meat I’ve ever tasted. A bit was served on the bone, but the slices of short rib were out of this world.

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This was a dish not to be missed.

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At this point we were basking in delicious nomming glory but we couldn’t stop there!  The desserts just sounded so interesting and were listed without much description but with simply the most forward flavor of the dish.

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We also ordered a dessert Vouvray (Vouvray is our favorite white wine)

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But out came a madeira… which was poured for us before we had a chance to interrupt and ask if this was correct. Turns out it was not, as expected, but the lovely sommelier topped us off and we got to enjoy this awesome dessert drink on the house while waiting for the Vouvray.

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We chose the blueberry dish which came with crispy poppyseed flavors, fresh (and superbly delicious) blueberries, and a tea flavored ice cream.  This was beautiful and tasty.  A very fresh, very summery dessert.

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Then we each got the selection of 3 dessert tastes:

Frozen Chocolate Stout Macarons (A very nice balance of flavors, though the macarons were bit dense)
Pink Peppercorn Caramel Chews (A curious and quite good flavor and texture combination)
Dried Cherry & Pistachio Divinity (Awesome… awesome awesome awesome.  A great combination of salty and sweet.)

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What a meal!

This was a masterpiece.  It easily rivaled many tasting menus we have had and I might have to put it right in line with Ai Fiori, our current #10 spot holder on the all-time Top 10 list.

The service was spectacular, attentive, and friendly.  It wasn’t at all stuffy and they really cared about how much we enjoyed the food.

It was obvious that the chef is thinking critically about his dishes and doesn’t put anything on the plate just for the sake of putting it there. Flavors are expertly combined and the plating is beautifully crafted. The only miss was the weird tomato snow, but some dishes I couldn’t find a single fault with. If this is how good they are just 3 weeks in, I can’t imagine how good they will be as they find their sea legs.

Total Nom Points: 8.5 out of 10 (we struggled about giving this an 8.5 or a 9, but it is definitely in line with Ai Fiori so we need to keep some consistency around this Nom joint)

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Portland, ME: David’s Opus 10

11 Apr

High on the list of places to try in Portland, Maine was David’s Opus 10. I have been hearing about it more and more since it opened this past November, and it made a few appearances on the Soup to Nuts: Maine food experts dish about their restaurant favorites article.

The menu is a 9-course Tasting Menu and Mike and I split a wine pairing between us (I drank more since Mike had to drive home).

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The Opus Ten part of the restaurant is actually behind the main restaurant, David’s. They do a small seating in an intimate space with beautiful draping along the ceiling. They also put a cart of goodies in the middle of all the tables.

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While we weren’t right at the window, our table afforded us a peak into the kitchen.

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And the table was beautifully set with a dark purple calla lilly (one of my faves!)

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Even the butter was beautifully styles (and very tasty with smoked salt on top).

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With a lovely variation of rolls and some very nice olive and balsamic to dip.

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Our first dish was not on the menu, but was certainly more substantial than your usual amuse bouche. Unfortunately, since it wasn’t written on the menu, I cannot recall the specifics beyond the fact that the meat was shaved off of a beautiful piece of hock on that middle table and tasted delicious with the cheese, olives, and bread.

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It was beautifully marbled and had a great tenderness to it.

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My first cocktail necessitated a quick froth (and tasted great).

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The first official menu item came out, and this was the dish that everyone in that article was raving about. Morel and exotic mushroom gratin with Mushroom and Madeira cream shooter.

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This had a very lovely mushroom flavor and was incredibly enjoyable, but I think I would have loved it a whole lot more if we hadn’t just had the mushroom of a lifetime at Local 188.

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Next came a butter poached lobster, risotto cake, citrus truffle miero greens.  This was very tasty, but I feel a bit like I might be struck by lightening for saying this… I don’t really “get” butter poaching lobster. It’s so much more flavorful when you just boil it in its shell and then dip it in butter. Somehow the poaching seems to take away some of the great lobster flavor.  (Sorry food gods)

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Our next dish was seared scallops with bowfin caviar and smoked salmon.  I really liked the addition of the matchstick potatoes in this. It created a really awesome contrast of textures and flavor without distracting from the delicious fish.

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I really enjoyed our next bite, quail egg ravioli with kale, hedgehog mushrooms, and foie gras butter nage [sic].

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I didn’t really taste the foie gras, but this was rich and creamy and very, very nice.

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Our next dish was a nice intermezzo with strawberry-basil sorbet with frozen vanilla and basil infused vodka.

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The vodka was actually poured overtop from a bottle that was frozen into a block.

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Even though I don’t love vodka, I really enjoyed this light palate cleanser. Very refreshing and a nice way to head into the rest of the meal.

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Grilled quail, foie gras medallion and “buttered” toast with cranberry-pear gastrique. Usually I find quail hardly worth the effort. A teeny bite without much flavor.

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This was a more substantial portion and it all went together well, and this time the foie had a really nice flavor that was prominent without being overpowering.

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Our last savory course was my favorite: Lamb saddle, lamb presse, sweet potato hash, and kale braise.

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There was an amazing crispy top on the one piece of lamb, and everything was cooked, flavored, and spiced perfectly.  Really great dish.

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Our dessert was Feuilletage “beignets” with peppered strawberry and Grand Marnier creme chantilly.  These were quite tasty. Not too dense and nice flavor.  I enjoyed the strawberry balanced with the pepper.

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Our final bites were chocolate, caramel nut bark, chambord and chocolate truffles, and pecan, orange and cranberry sandy.  I thought these were all pretty good, but nothing too outstanding.

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The truffles were my favorite of the trio.

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They also offered us some after dinner drinks, and Mike chose to have some Twenty Year Old Sandeman (which he really enjoyed).

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Overall, our meal was really great but I wouldn’t say it was outstanding.  Solid, great flavor, nice pacing, and great service. But there was no dish that really stuck out as a huge WOW.  It felt like a really nice, celebration of a meal, however, and is a fun way to spend an evening. I actually wonder if I would have enjoyed it more had we not had such a great experience at Local 188 the night right before. But as far as tasting menus go, I would say it was worth every penny (though they didn’t tell you how much any of the extras cost, which was mildly annoying). It’s a really nice treat right in Portland.

Total Nom Points: 8 out of 10

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The New Champion: Eleven Madison Park- Part 2

13 Dec

Welcome back to our incredible meal at Eleven Madison Park. If you haven’t read Part 1 of our number one meal of all time, please go back there and come back here when you’re done!

So where were we?

Oh yes… we had just had some salsify and realized our cocktails were, sadly, empty.  So it was time for wine (while I was tempted by the wine pairing, I was nervous that I would be too drunk at the end to really enjoy and remember the meal… so we went for a bottle instead).  We told the sommelier that our favorite white wines were Vouvray and Russian River Chardonnay.  He mentioned that we had diverse flavors and we discussed trying something that was interesting. He recommended we try a WHITE Rioja. I hadn’t heard of a white Rioja, but we were game.  It came in netting. How fun!  

The wine tasted great and complimented the whole meal well. Must keep white Rioja in mind!

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But now… back to the meat grinder!

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We were soon given a tray of a whole bunch of mini bowls.  From left to right and top to bottom, there was an apple mustard, sunflower seeds, quail egg, dried blue fish, chives, whole grain mustard, horse radish, apple, and salt (the same special salt as before). In the little squeeze bottles were an apple oil and the other was a horse radish oil of some kind.

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It was also served with slices of rye bread.

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But what was going into the meat grinder?  Never would have expected this…

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Fresh New York carrots were ground for us right at the table into “carrot tartare.”

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It made a great consistency that was neither mushy nor crunchy, but exactly the same texture as tartare. How interesting!

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You then mix in however much of anything you want and enjoy.

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I really enjoyed the taste of the quail egg with the carrot.

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Our next course was one of my absolute favorites. It was lobster with poached leeks, black onion, and a shellfish bisque. I also think one of the waiters mentioned it had black garlic in it (one of my favorite flavors). This was everything right.  The leeks had a delicious char flavor and the lobster was so sweet and flavorful.  It all went so well together and I couldn’t believe how elevated this dish was. (Come on! How do you possibly elevate LOBSTER?! Amazing!)

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As we were finishing up, we were presented with our 140 day aged beef.

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And we saw the duck (that we didn’t choose) presented to the table next door. It was lavender and honey coated.

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While we awaited our beef, we were presented with a roasted parsnip with sesame, parsley, and dijon.  It had a parsnip chip on top.  I am not a huge parsnip fan, but this was a really fantastic presentation and all the textures made it very interesting. I was impressed that a parsnip could be made to taste this good.

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Once we finished our parsnip, a bowl of magic was put in front of us.  I cannot do justice to the smell (and taste) that came from this bowl. It was an introduction to the flavors we would be having next, a beef broth made with the same seasonings as our next course. It was a nostalgic flavor that brought me immediately back to my Great Grandmother’s kitchen. It was a memory I didn’t even know I had. Smell is a magical thing.

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After our incredible broth, we were given our beef course.  It was grilled with mushrooms (the likes of which was a variety I have never seen), amaranth, and arugula.  The amaranth is a tiny North American grain that was toasted and added a perfect little crispiness to this dish.  It was served with a sauce with the same flavors as the broth.

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On the side was a braised oxtail with foie gras and potato.  The oxtail was the texture of short ribs and incredibly rich in flavor.  The foie gras and the potato had such a great flavor, and it was all a bit reminiscent of a (brilliant) shepherds pie with that potato/meaty combo.

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The rib eye steak itself was absolutely incredible.  Charred and perfectly cooked, with an amazing sauce.  Every bite made me do the “happy belly dance.”

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What came next was one of my favorite parts of the whole meal. It started with a porcelain plate that perfectly resembled a paper plate.

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And then out came a mystery basket they called a “Greensward.”  

They said everything we would need was in the basket, except we may need a bottle opener, which they provided.

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We took a peak

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Inside was a beer, a soft pretzel, cheese, grapes, and plum mustard.  

I commented that the restaurant was like Christmas, because you just got to keep opening up presents.

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The beer was a special brew from Ithaca Beer Co. and we really enjoyed it. It was perfect with everything.

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I went to Ithaca College and always liked this brewery. I’m so glad it’s growing and now showing up all over the place in NYC!

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The plum mustard was a bit much for me (not a mustard fan), but Mike liked it.

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The cheese was served inside a mystery box…

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… and the cheese smell when you opened it was awesome.

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The grapes and pretzel went perfectly with the cheese and beer.  It was just a perfect picnic basket and totally FUN!

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After we were done with our picnic, they wheeled over a cart and started mixing up their take on the egg cream.  It was made with vanilla malt and fresh seltzer right in front of us.

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I’m not sure if I’ve ever had a real egg cream, but I can tell you that I never have had, nor probably will ever have again, an egg cream as good as this. It was a little glass of heaven.

It was a great conversion from our savory courses to our desserts. 

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Our first dessert came out and looked like autumn on a plate. It was poached pear with honey and acorn. (Acorn?) I don’t know what acorn tastes like, but if that was what we ate, I think I want to be a squirrel.

This was perfect. Everything I could possibly want. Totally my kind of dessert. I absolutely loved this combination.

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And then we had some excellent coffee.

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And started our last course: sheep’s milk cheesecake and port with walnut ice cream. I really loved the walnut ice cream. It was very mildly walnut flavored, but identifiable so.  The port and the cheesecake mixed so well with everything.

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And then Mike cheated.

He noticed that the plate below his dessert was moving around and he lifted it to find a little chocolate in a dish below.

At which point our poor waitress (noticing he made this discovery) ran over (with grace) and asked us to cut a deck of cards. She spread them out and then did some magic and gave us each a card.

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Mike’s card was blackberry… 

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…which was MYSTERIOUSLY the chocolate he had discovered.

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Mine was espresso…

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…which was my chocolate (surprise!)  What a novel and fun way to end such a novel and fun meal!

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And then our meal ended just how it began… with a perfect little pastry box all tied up.

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And inside was another set of black and white cookies, but these were of the sweet variety.  They were apricot and something else, but Mike’s handwriting (he was the note taker for this meal while I photographed) is unreadable at this point (I’m blaming the booze!)

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But then… there was one more.

It started with this homemade apple brandy being placed on our table, with the comment that we could drink as much of it as we wanted… I really enjoyed it, but damn was it STRONG! I only had a couple sips, but I enjoyed it.

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And then out came two perfect chocolate covered pretzels to end the meal.

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We marveled over the incredible adventure of a meal we just had. It was such a journey filled with fun surprises and every single bite was fantastic.  Usually tasting menus are filled with a few memorable bites and some other things you don’t remember.  Even the best ones.  Even a couple days later, we still have moments where we recall a whole bunch of courses from the meal and marvel at how amazing they were.

When the bill came, our server informed us that they had taken the drinks off the bill because they were late. I was really impressed that they went to this level of service to remove the cocktails.  But upon reflect, I think they might have taken the cocktails AND the bottle of wine off the bill.  I almost feel bad about it, because I’m not sure if they meant to do that. I have no idea! 

The service from start to finish was fantastic. There was only the 2 little blips with the cocktails being delayed a bit and then the one egg dish coming out without a description, but I can hardly remember those when put in light of the rest of the meal. Our server, specifically, was impeccable in every way.

As we stood up to go, we were given two cute little boxes to take home.

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In our little boxes was a sweet note for a Happy Anniversary.

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And 2 chocolates to take home. (We ate these a few days later and HOLY CRAP! They were so insanely good. It was like a spark of the meal we had and brought back all those awesome memories).

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Then a final bag with a jar of the chef’s favorite breakfast granola for the next morning.  (It is probably the best granola I’ve ever had and I just love when a restaurant sends me home with something awesome for the morning)

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What an amazing meal! I don’t know if I could say it enough. It was just freakin’ fantastic.

And we had no doubt as we left that it was the best meal we’ve ever had.

WD-50 has been our Number One restaurant for 4.5 years (even after a 2nd try!) and I really didn’t think anything could possibly top that.

But Eleven Madison Park topped them all.

Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200. Go immediately to Eleven Madison Park for the meal of a lifetime. (Okay… maybe save it for a special occasion, but GO!)

And I am giving it a perfect 10.

Total Nom Points:  10 out of 10

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