Winter Restaurant Week Review 3/6-
Recommendations for restaurant week: Apps- Goat cheese salad or pappardelle. Mains- Pomegranate duck, schnitzel, or branzini. Desserts- Persian lime pie. Lime pie is Steve's quality, and you can quote me on that.
I went to this American spot for restaurant week a few days ago, having been there once ages ago when I used to live in Cobble Hill. I had a different experience than most folks probably had or will have during restaurant week, with our group sharing food outside of individual desserts, of course. The service was friendly, and we were seated in a somewhat cramped space in this slightly dim place (in advance, pardon the lighting for photos.) Their special is $45 for three courses, which is pretty reasonable given that most appetizers on the main menu are around $20 and most main dishes range from $35 to $45. However, the caveat is that many of the better dishes are an extra $6, with some worth it and others less so. To drink, I had a Hot Toddy with bourbon, St. Germaine, honey, lemon, and clove for $12, which was standard and helped warm me up after walking across the bridge to get there. They gave us some Focaccia and olive oil to begin with, which was tasty.
For appetizers, my favorite that didn't have an extra charge was the Pistachio Crusted Goat Cheese Salad with roasted beets and citrus vinaigrette. The highlight, of course, was the goat cheese, which was nutty and slightly funky. I wish there were more roasted beets, and otherwise, I found the dressing a bit light. For $3 extra, there was the Pappardelle with buffalo oxtail ragu, which was small but tastier. The pasta wasn't the biggest portion, but it was perfectly cooked, and the ragu had a good consistency. If you don't mind paying a bit more, I would recommend it. The remaining appetizer, the Ozark Bar-B-Q Ribs, was a bit disappointing. While I liked the sauce, which had a sweet and spicy flavor, the ribs were very tough and a bit too fatty.
For the main course, my easy favorite was the Duck with pomegranate sauce, which was a $6 supplement. The portion was very large, consisting of several pieces of sliced duck along with a duck breast. The sliced duck was tasty, but the larger piece was even more tender and flavorful. The sauce itself had a mild sourness and sweetness, and at the end, a few folks were mopping it up with the remaining bread.
Also tasty, but $3 extra, was the Pan Roasted Branzini with white beans, escarole, and tomato confit. The fish was cooked well, being tender with crispy skin. The beans were mildly cooked and still had some texture, and I particularly liked the fish with the escarole, as the mild bitterness worked well. This was pleasant but perhaps a bit mild, and I think a light sauce would have helped, possibly with garlic and other ingredients. We also got Grilled Scottish Salmon with three mustards, cream, and horseradish. The fish was cooked nicely again, but I found it a bit too pungent.
The remaining dish with supplements, the Venison Bourguignon, with carrots, pearl onions, mushrooms, and bacon, was good, though a bit small compared to the other dishes. This was $6 extra, and the meat itself was tender, while the sauce was rich. I found it just a little bit salty, and I presume that was from the bacon, but it was good and honestly better than many of the generic bistros in the city. Speaking of bacon, we also got an $8 side of Brussels Sprouts, which were decent.
The best main dish sans supplement was the Chicken Schnitzel with porcini gravy, mashed potatoes, and dill. The chicken had a nice light breading and was very tender. The mushrooms added earthiness, and the mashed potatoes were soft and buttery. Also lightly fried, but worse was the Veal Lemonese with breaded cutlet, Grana Padano, and lemon cream sauce. Outside of sauce preferences, as both were prepared well, the veal was unfortunately much less tender.
For dessert, most of us got their highly recommended Persian Lime Pie with fresh lime pastry and a graham cracker crust. Instead of being a wide piece, this was more of a pie jar, similar to how Mia's in Cobble Hill, among other locations, serves it. However, the comparisons end there, with the flavors being much better. The filling had a perfect mix of sourness and sweetness. In terms of NYC, this was honestly the closest thing to Steve's Key Lime Pie that I've had. Another person had the Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with whipped cream, which was a bit above average but not comparable to the pie.
We overall had a pretty good meal here at this neighborhood spot. It's not the best for any particular dish, but it was mostly worth it for the price, especially if you don't mind paying extra for some things. Mid 3 bumped up. read more