Tag Archives: pana cotta

NYC Restaurant Week Summer 2014: Bread and Tulips

3 Sep

Mike and I had to kill some time in the city (so weird that we don’t live right in it anymore!) before meeting up with someone, so we chose Bread & Tulips for our Restaurant Week dinner. I had passed by a few times and always meant to stop in, so this was the perfect motivation to finally do so.

IMG_9750

The space has a really nice feel to it, with clean white subway tile and some rustic influences. It was dark, however, so apologies in advance for the lack of light on the pictures.

IMG_9752

I was impressed that the menu included Gluten-Free spaghetti.

IMG_9754

And they included a card to come back and have a drink on them after dining with them for Restaurant Week, a really nice touch to bring people back.

IMG_9755

The bread was rustic and incredibly tasty.

IMG_9756

We started with the housemade meatballs with san marzano tomatoes and ricotta.  Really tasty little balls of meat.

IMG_9761

We also got the gorgonzola figs with rosemary and honey.  These were delicious.  Little mouthfuls of sweet that really started the meal well.

IMG_9764

For our entrees, Mike got the Flatiron Steak Tagliata with roasted garlic potatoes.  This was good but not outstanding.

IMG_9767

I got the housemade papparadelle with braised leg of lamb and grana.  It was quite delicious, however, I was hoping for more lamby flavor.

IMG_9768

For dessert we got a chocolate & hazelnut mousse cake with hazelnut gelato.  It was good but very rich.

IMG_9773

We also got the vanilla bean pana cotta with seasonal fruit.  This was tasty but a bit weird. The texture just wasn’t right.  It was very, very soft and wet.

IMG_9776

We were given two little almond cookies at the end of the meal, which were very good and a nice touch.

IMG_9777

Overall, I didn’t love my meal. It was good but not great.  I felt like we got a good meal for the price, however, I’m not sure how I would feel if I paid full price for it.  I would go back to try them again, but I’m not in any rush. Though that free drink ticket sure has some allure for an afterwork treat!

Total Nom Points: 5.5 out of 10

Total Nom Points: 5.5 out of 10

 

Restaurant Week Summer 2013: Asellina

1 Sep

I made an unscheduled last Restaurant Week stop for Summer 2013.  This time, we checked out Asellina near Gramercy for lunch. (Upon looking up the website, I realized that Asellina is from the same restaurant group as STK).

It’s in the Gansevoort Hotel on Park Ave, so as expected, the space was quite nice and modern.

DSCF2328

I started with a salad that had shaved pear on it with goat cheese and nuts.  It was dressed very well and was a very enjoyable salad.

DSCF2325

My dining companion had a shrimp appetizer (that I believe was on the regular menu, not Restaurant Week). These babies were HUGE. He said they were very good.

DSCF2330

I then chose to go with a flatbread pizza.  This came with mushrooms and scallions.  I really enjoyed this pizza.  Great crisp to the crust and the toppings were very nice.

DSCF2331

For dessert, I tried to pana cotta.

DSCF2333

This was a nice, simple dessert that was well executed.  I especially liked the use of stewed peaches with it.

DSCF2336

Overall, my Restaurant Week experience here was fine. Just fine. Food was good, and since it’s close to my office, I will most likely be back.  But nothing to write home about.

Total Nom Points: 6.5 out of 10

nomscale- 06.5

 

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.

DSCF5045

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.

DSCF5048

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.

DSCF5049

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…

DSCF5052 

…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.

DSCF5054

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.”

DSCF5056

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!

DSCF5057

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