What Recent Meal "Blew You Away"?
Another poster just mentioned that he/she was not "blown away" by the food at Aquavit (and I agreed), and it made me stop and think, when were you/where were you, in a Manhattan restaurant, recently blown away by the food? I can't think of a place (other than Di Fara, which is not in Manhattan, so please don't respond to that) in Manhattan lately where I've been blown away by the food, but, to be fair, I've not tried too many new places lately.
Look forward to the discussion.
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I was just visiting NYC again this past week, and ate at the following restaurants: Momofuku Ssam Bar, Momofuku Noodle Bar, Prune, Babbo, Felidia, Les Halles, Aquavit, and WD-50. This is a wide range in terms of price and style, so in a way a fair sampling. What stood out the most? Both Momofukus's pork bun sandwiches (I will be dreaming in pork belly for some time to come), the horseradish aquavit and herring sampler with aquavit and classic beer chaser (lovely little dilled potatoes with dollhouse cheese wedges on the side), a real Scandinavian fantasy-come-true, and, finally, and I say without hesitation, every single dish (and we ordered MANY) at WD-50. It ALL worked. I say this, though I am a jaded, world weary eater by now. But the food was playful, inventive, and fully delicious in every animal sense, as it should be or else what's the point of molecular conceptual play? I found absolutely no pretense here, as the place really delivered. One day, I may rhapsodize in another post about each dish, when I find the time. But everyone should try for themselves.
Beyond that, the service at WD-50 was generous and knowledgeable, and the chef, who was there, a sweetheart to let me take a picture with him and have a few words. Our knowledgeable waiter showed us the kitchen. And I was not anyone special in the chef's world, just another customer who had made a reservation online.
I would return to these three establishments in a heartbeat.
Hope this helps.
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i've only had one standout item in the past several months: a series of different preparations of anago at yasuda.
i find that meals blow me away only three or four times a year, mmruth. the last time i was really blown away by a meal was in january at Lee Tong Kee Ipoh Sar Hor Fun in singapore.
i don't know if this holds true for anyone else, but i find it hard to completely separate the food from the rest of the dining experience. the truly blow-away meals are not just about fantastic food, but also about great service and company and me being at the top of my eating game, as well, i.e. i don't have a cold or allergies, i am eating with someone with whom i feel comfortable enough to focus completely on the meal at times and not on them (i have so few amazing business meals though i get to go to good restaurants), and i'm hungry enough to want the food.
i also think the element of surprise can play a major role in terms of what blows you away. meals that make you rethink food, meals where you discover something for the first time -- these are blow away meals for me. i can recognize food as being very good, but that is not the same as being blown away. the first time i ate at wd 50 and soto, the meals blew me away. since then, i've "just" had very good meals.
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This thread inspired me to try Degustation. WOW. Blown away indeed! It was some of the best tasting food I've ever had. At times I just had to put down my fork and laugh with delight about how good it was. Really, really amazing. I cannot express with words how much I loved the food. I plan on going back and not worry about price and just get tons of great stuff. Oh God it was amazing.
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biondanonima
May 8, 2008 12:39 PM
Just had lunch at Jean-Georges and was totally blown away by the skate wing with Chateau-Chalon sauce and the short ribs. Wow, wow, WOW!
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I have to agree with the first response to your post: I was completely blown away by a transcendent meal I had at Public. Chef Farmerie is particularly talented with his vegetarian dishes and salads (and I am an avid carnivore!)
Also, the tomato soup with the grilled cheese IN it was pretty ridiculous at The Smith.
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Nothing in the city has blown us away in many years. Upstate, The Basement Bistro has made us re-calibur how great a restaurant can be. Run by 1 person, the chef grows everything & the restaurant is sustained by the garden/greenhouse, makes aged cheeses & charcuterie, cooks & serves his tasting menus in his beautiful basement that is located on what is best described as a mini-estate/farm? We've eaten our way all over the world & this is the high point of our experiences.
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steve h.
Apr 22, 2008 08:45 AM
lunch last sunday at per se was pretty good. two hours of fine dining in a gorgeous room with great views. food, service and wines were excellent. one of the best sunday lunches i've had in a long time.
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re: abud
steve h.
Apr 22, 2008 11:47 AM
five-course tasting menu with lots of amuse-bouche and "compliments of the chef" stuff ran $175 per person. this includes the built-in gratuity. wine and tax is extra. the nine-course chef's tasting menu is $275. five-plus courses were plenty for a sunday lunch.
the place is absolutely serene without being stuffy. tables are far apart so you and a partner can chat about co-workers, the government, whatever without being overheard. also, there is no time limit. you can stretch your stay to as long as you like. staff will just keep piling on the sweets. i even noticed one well-heeled solo diner enjoying himself immensely.
interesting place. give it a shot. the sunday lunch thing is a double secret and doesn't require the dreaded, "two months in advance reservation" that weekday dining does.
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re: Adelia
steve h.
Apr 23, 2008 06:07 AM
the tripe was absolutely the best i've ever had. crust like scrapple on the outside, moist and tender on the inside. it could not have been more than two inches long and maybe an inch wide. superb.
the lobster poached in butter was another winner. again, not too big, not too small. the sweetness of the lobster came through perfectly.
there was a domino-sized piece of steak that was seared to perfection. the marbling was extreme yet the small piece of meat was juicy, tender and full of flavor. not at all fatty.
i could go on.
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Interesting subject, MMRuth. I think for me, a lot of being 'blown away' is circumstantial, and doesn't just have to do with the food. I'm not always blown away each time I go to a restaurant, even when I have the same -- or close to the same -- meal that has blown me away, before. If I'm rushed or stressed, I experience the food differently.
It also has to do with the novelty of the food. The first time I ever had mofongo was in Puerto Rico. I couldn't stop raving about it for weeks and even learned how to make it at home (discovering in the process that I prefer to leave the peeling of green bananas to others). The first time I ever had sushi was in teh early 1990s, at Bond St., before it became such a craze and before I went to Japan for the first time. Again, I was blow away, even tho these days, I don't find Bond St. very good at all.
That said, places where I have been blown away in the past year (not very recently... been a bit too busy at work for that) include WD-50, Aquavit, and the Modern Dining Room. And there were a few other places in Singapore, tho I was on vacation, then, so it's not a fair comparison, perhaps.
Place where I was not blown away, but expected to be (perhaps *because* I expected to be): Per Se, Le Bernardin, Masa.
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biondanonima
Apr 20, 2008 09:23 AM
Degustation. Holy Sh*t. We tried 13 dishes and at least 7 of them were mind-blowingly good, with the foie gras in sherry-date consomme being absolutely orgasmic. Those that weren't mind-blowing were still better than anything I've had in NYC in the past year. Here's a link to my review: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/511075
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re: MMRuth
biondanonima
Apr 20, 2008 09:32 AM
OMG. It was spectacular. Get 2 orders of the foie - you won't be sorry! When we were talking to the chef, he was saying that they're still experimenting with it and he wasn't sure about the sweet date broth with the foie - both LB and I were like "NO! Don't change a thing and put it on the menu NOW!" He described another foie preparation they do with hefeweizen and strawberries that sounded pretty awesome too. Anyway, I really can't say enough about this place - freaking amazing.
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re: Adelia
biondanonima
Apr 21, 2008 06:34 PM
To my knowledge, there isn't one - they have a version of the menu posted on menupages.com, but it's pretty outdated. I think the menu probably changes day to day, honestly. Don't let the lack of a website keep you away. Go! You'll LOVE it!
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Great question. I have had many satisfying, delicious meals but very few dishes that have "blown me away" and remain memorable.
Falai:
Passion fruit souffle. One of the best souffles I have ever had. Went back to have it again. Still thinking about it.
Fois gras trilogy - can't get the bitersweet chocolate shell around fois gras mousse accompanied by blueberries out of my head.
L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon:
Eel with foie gras (and just about everything else we had.)
The Modern Dining Room:
Foie gras with roasted peaches in a wine reduction
Duck - the best duck I have ever had. Like butter. Amazing.Lupa:
The trout with roasted pears and radicchio. Unusual combination. Very simple but memorable. Still on my mind.
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Unfortunately, I find the "blown away" meals few and far between. Di Fara is the best overall experience I've had in years. Before that, it was Blue Hill Stone Barns, but like sam1, I was more impressed with the overall experience than the food itself. And, before that it would have been lunch at Jean Georges in August. I've had a few delicious dishes since--the pig's ass sandwich at Casellula, the bread pudding at the Dessert Truck, gnudi at Mia Dona, poppy seed strudel at Andre's Cafe--but I haven't had an amazing overall meal. My college graduation tasting menu dinner at Aureole in its prime was the highlight of my NYC dining experience, and I haven't recaptured that since.
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Babbo (lamb's tongue, pig's foot "Milanese," octopus app.)
Momofuku Ko (the shaved foie gras dish and the coddled egg dish with soubise onions), Degustation
Taim (it was a relatively recent discovery for me several months ago; LOVE their sabich!)
Jean Georges (foie gras brulee)›1 Reply -
EMP (which I posted about), Ko, Babbo...
But the one that really and truly blew me away was the $300pp omakase meal at the omakase bar at Morimoto. (Thanks to fiance's family for a nicely sized gift card that paid for a good chunk of it). Morimoto wasn't in, so we were served by the head chef. Uni with fresh tofu skins. Fugu, served three ways. Kobe beef, served rare, from Japan. A whole fresh Washington Dungness crab. Monkfish liver. A giant miso hot pot with monkfish liver and monkfish chunks (so big we took it home). Half a Maine lobster, each.
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floretbroccoli
Apr 18, 2008 10:24 AM
The grated, frozen torchon of foie gras over reisling gelée, lychee, and pine nut brittle at Momofuku Ko kind of took the top of my head off.
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re: sam1
biondanonima
Apr 20, 2008 09:21 AM
Just went to Ssam and I'd have to agree - I enjoyed our meal but it certainly wasn't mind-blowing. I would like to try Ko, though, just to see.
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jfood
Apr 18, 2008 06:01 AM
Jfood went to Babbo last night for a greeeeeeaaaaat meal. Goose Liver Ravioli, sweetbreads and gelati. Full review in process.
Major good dinner.
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re: MMRuth
vvvindaloo
Apr 18, 2008 07:42 AM
MM, Babbo is one of those few places that is worth the hype. Drop everything else and go :)
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I think the two places I've come closest to being "blown away by" in Manhattan in the last several months are Madangsui (Korean barbecue place with great banchan on 35 St.) and Kamui Den (great little full-service Japanese restaurant on Av. A near 11 St.). Honorable mention for Szechuan Gourmet, which is always at least very good but not always revelatory.
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Great question!
My husband and I have spent way too much money at restaurants that did NOT blow us away.
HOWEVER-- a few exceptions: 1) Soto-- I love his food. The salmon citrus and steamed minute tai come to mind as dishes that we really really enjoyed...eyes back in head, etc. 2) Perilla-- I've really enjoyed everything I've eaten at Perilla, and love the laid back but sophisticated styling of the restaurant and the wait staff has been excellent. 3) Toloache-- the drinks, guacamole and entree offerings combine to make a great meal. Very very fresh and thoughtfully conceived.
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This just shows you the different tastes of people, and what they consider to be "blown away by". I had a great meal at Aquavit a few weeks ago, and have actually been thinking since then about how much I enjoyed it. So, I guess it's to each his own. I would never say that I was "blown away" by a piece of pizza, but obviously other people think that way. I would say that it is more what are memorable dining experiences. I rarely focus on one particular dish, but rather my over-all enjoyment of the meal. I would put dinners at Per Se, Gordon Ramsay's at the London, and Aquavit in that category. Also Tru in Chicago was pretty amazing. I include the wine parings with the overall enjoyment of the dinner.
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re: robinsilver
MMRuth
Apr 18, 2008 05:54 AM
It was many slices of pizza - http://www.chowhound.com/topics/500583 - and that kind of complete food joy that I guess I was trying to get at in my original post, though I didn't say that.
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Interesting question. I rarely got blown away by a whole dining experience. It is usually a dish or two that can trigger that "wow" factor. The only meal that I got blown away in NYC was at Masa. It was the food and each individual detail that made the whole experience.
As for individual food items:
- At Per Se: The foie gras and poached lobster; the oyster and pearls (only the first visit, not mind-blowing in subsequent visits)- At L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon:
1) The L'oursin - Sea Urchin in Lobster Gelée, Topped with a Cauliflower Cream
2) The Le Sucre dessert- At Le Bernardin: The egg dessert - milk chocolate pot de creme with caramel foam and maple syrup maldon sea salt
- At Jean Georges: The egg with caviar appetizer, and the summer strawberry dessert (seasonal)
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Husband and I wandered into Shortys .32 the other day for lunch. Had 2 burgers and a bottle of Chinon. Great afternoon.
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re: ginsbera
Just ate at Ko last week, that is now the most recent meal that blew me away hands down.
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vvvindaloo
Apr 17, 2008 12:59 PM
My profile lists the two places in Manhattan that blew my hair back (as I am fond of saying) in the past year. Incidentally, both were lavish meals at fine dining establishments:
Per Se
there wasn't one morsel of the chef's tasting menu that didn't sing to me. i wouldn't know where to begin on the food. however, i will say that the creativity of the menu, the artistry of the presentation, and the pure glee i felt with each bite are what stay with me.
Eleven Madison Park
the experience here, from start to finish, is bliss. the dining room and bar are elegant and stylish without feeling stiff or overdone. the service is professional and graceful, and the food is sublime. if i could only have one dish again (perish the thought), i would have to choose the confit of suckling pig.EDIT:
Ok, some individual food items:
I can't say enough about the pork buns at Momofuku Noodle Bar. They were a relevation for me. I know that many prefer Ssam bar, but for pork buns, my money is on the original.Homemade ricotta from DiPalo. It was fabulous, especially with the preserves he (Luigi) gave me to go with it.
Original green falafel pita with traditional condiments (hummus, salad, tahini) and harissa sauce on a wheat pita with a fresh lemonade at Taim in the west village. the best. falafel. ever.
Ribs and pulled pork at Mo Gridder's BBQ truck (it's in the Bronx, but I must mention it)
Gnocchi with wild braised short rib at Apizz
French onion soup dumplings at Stanton Social
Anago and slow-poached octopus at 15 East
Bomboloni dessert at A Voce
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re: MMRuth
LeahBaila
Apr 17, 2008 01:15 PM
The pork is absolutely outstanding...I salute the place with really opening my eyes to how amazing pork can be (never really ate it before I was 22 yrs old).
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last time i was 'blown away' was at hatfield's in los angeles last weekend.
in nyc, on the low end, artichoke's square slice was the last time i stopped in my tracks and laughed at how good it was. and probably allen and delancey's cabbage beef and onion...its a really inventive yet really delicious entree.
in retrospect, i was pretty blown away at the quality of food at bar blanc. and whenever im at yasuda, im blown away.
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re: MMRuth
vvvindaloo
Apr 17, 2008 01:45 PM
Be warned re: Artichoke's hours. They are spotty at best, and often nonexistent before mid-afternoon. There is a recent thread on this topic.
FYI, I edited my response to include several individual dishes that were memorable from the past year.
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re: sam1
Interesting. My first thought was Bar Blanc too, even more than Dovetail, though some of the dishes at Dovetail would qualify, such as sweetbreads, monkfish with lobster and foie gras, duck (which I thought was better than the one at Perilla, or at least different), and bread pudding. The game tasting menu at Picholine also qualifies. The lunch I had at Perry St. was also pretty amazing. And the gnocchi at Pepolino.
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re: sam1
I know i 'm not supposed to be commenting on LA stuff here, but agreed, Hatfield's is terrific and inexpensive to boot.
Just so my comment won't be booted, I'll add that L'atelier de Joel Robuchon, (esp the quail + foie + truffled mash and the Anguille app) as well as Allen and Delancey (apps only) and Spicy and Tasty (the cold fish appetizer) were pretty mindblowing.
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re: sam1
LeahBaila
Apr 17, 2008 12:58 PM
I loved the scallops entree at Dovetail and the pork belly app; Market Table's scallop app, cheeseburger, gnocchi & fennel salad were delish. What did you eat at those restaurants?
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re: LeahBaila
ive had the gnocchi with short rib at market table which just felt filled with butter and cheese and little else (in a bad way), the scallops which are usually a bit boring to me...and for entree, the lamb shank and crab cake which are both fine but nothing amazing in my opinion.
at dovetail, i had the veal ragu gnocchi which tasted big and heavy but nothing too amazing. and i had the duck entree which was good but ive had better...particularly at perilla.
i like both restaurants well enough...but i dont think id go back unless someone invites me (as was the case with market table).
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re: RCC
Exactly how we felt about Market Table. The food was certainly good, but not as good as Little Owl, and no comparison to Perilla, for the same price. And Perilla is more comfortable. If MT were cheaper, it would be good value, but at these prices it is just another overpriced, overhyped restaurant.
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