TL;DR/Favorite dishes- Tuna Carpaccio, Spanish Mackerel, Pot Pie, Sticky Date Cake
Located in South Williamsburg, this excellent newer seafood-focused restaurant features two changing menus, a current $95 tasting menu, and an à la carte menu. This place ages and dries a lot of their meats and fish, and you can taste the quality throughout their menu. The lighting inside is a tad dark, but it seems like it would be a nice date spot. The place has a nice drink menu, as expected for the chef's pedigree, and I went with one of their cocktails. This was the $18 Salt & Grain, a rum-based drink with rye whiskey, white miso, sesame, and banana. This was both unique and excellent, with flavors including some sweetness, smokiness, and earthiness from the miso. Another person enjoyed a $22 Tomato Martini with gin, or her choice, vodka.
The first bites to arrive were two orders of Focaccia for $9, with stracciatella, anchovies, and tomato-garlic confit. The focaccia had a nice crust, and the mix worked very well, with the slightly salty anchovies complementing the rich cheese and the confit adding just enough aromatics. This was a delicious opening bite, and I can imagine it working well on the tasting menu also, as an initial course.
The second and third courses, those being the two raw fish dishes, arrived simultaneously. Our preference of the two, and one of our favorite dishes of the night, was the Tuna Carpaccio for $31, with pork belly, tonnato, and tomato ponzu. The very thick pieces of tuna were meaty and went surprisingly well with the fatty pieces of pork on the bottom. There was also a mildly creamy citrus sauce that helped balance the dish. This was excellent.
Also good was the $29 Spanish Mackerel. This came with blood orange, chicory, and toasted walnut, with the blood orange both in slices and also used as a lightly sour sauce on the bottom. The dish came with 5 large pieces of mackerel, which were not nearly as fishy as I expected, and I would recommend it as a lighter appetizer.
Next were two of the main dishes. First was their signature dish, a Pot Pie for $43, with lobster, Kurobuta sausage, and clam. The crust on the outside was very flaky and buttery. Then inside was a filling with plenty of sausage, some clams, and a bit of lobster. I wish there were a bit more lobster for the price, but the pie's flavor was excellent, with some mild spices.
There was also the $25 Fish Fillet, listed as their take on a filet-o-fish. Description aside, this consisted of fried skate, Comte cheese, and white kimchi. The piece of skate was very large, dwarfing the bread, and had a nice, thin crust with plenty of tender fish inside. I have never been the biggest fan of Comte, but it worked well enough here. The bit of crunch from the kimchi was nice, but I wish the pickle were a bit stronger, as it was a bit rich. If you want a filling and reasonably priced main, I would recommend this one.
The last of the savory dishes was the Branzino for $69 with crab fat chermoula, roti, and perilla. The fish was presented butterflied, with the bones removed, outside the head and tail, of course. There were a bunch of greens on top, including the aforementioned perilla and some watermelon radish. This came with four gigantic pieces of buttery roti. While the fish was cooked wonderfully, I found the chermoula to be not nearly as sour as usual, so the dish became a bit rich. It was still tasty, but I would recommend that at least three people share it.
We ended with two orders of their only current dessert, which is the same as on the tasting menu. This was the Sticky Date Cake for $23 with mascarpone gelato and toffee. Aside from the description, I believe the toffee sauce also contained Mr. Black coffee liquor. Anyway, this arrived with two large portions, which makes more sense based on the price. The cake was moist and not overly sweet, with a texture similar to a bundt cake but with a slightly crisper exterior. This was excellent, and it paired nicely with the ice cream.
Not many complaints here, aside from maybe the prices of certain dishes. I'll be back soon enough for their tasting menu before it becomes prohibitively expensive. Would recommend heavily before there is too much buzz, and it will be deservedly difficult to get into. read more