A Wine Story

Eleven Madison Park review

Below you can read my review of Eleven Madison Park for the NY Press, but first I have to say that I have very fond memories of this restaurant after experiencing recently Restaurant Guy Savoy in Las Vegas ($290 without wine/tip) and Per Se ($190).

Of course, Guy Savoy and Per Se are excellent, but the super affordable prix fix menu put together by Chef Humm is really worth it. That night, I had the honor of the wine list, and as it turned out one of the assistant sommeliers was in my WSET class.

The review continues below but if you've been to any of the restaurants above, would love to hear your comments.

A peek at trendy, upscale Eleven Madison Park
By Marisa D’Vari (originally published by the NY Press)

     So you’re trying to impress a hot date with dinner at one of the so-called “celebrity chef” restaurants in town, the kind of place where dinner for two with wine can set you back $300—or more.

    You demand outstanding service, astonishing cuisine and the kind of romantic ambiance that will pave the way for …. well, whatever comes next.

     Eleven Madison Park, an aphrodisiac of a restaurant, scores big points for its elegant Art Deco looks, white-glove service and innovative contemporary French cuisine at the hands of 29-year-old executive chef Daniel Humm—voted one of 2005’s best chefs of the year by Food & Wine magazine.

     Saunter into this light, airy space near Union Square and be dazzled by the 30-foot Alice in Wonderland-style windows overlooking Madison Square Park, alluring scent of exotic flowers from the many arrangements in this vast space and an air of culinary excitement and expectations permeating the room.

     Expectations?

     Yes, because here in Wonderland, under the talented hands of Mr. Humm, nothing is quite what it seems. A fan of reductions, foams and exceedingly slow cooking, Humm’s goal is to showcase the purest and highest quality ingredients in their finest form and artistically arrange them on the plate.

      Dinner service begins with an impressive presentation of amuse bouches, tiny bite-sized morsels designed to tease the palate such as black truffle macaroon with foie gras and apple cider gelée, crisp sweetbread cornet, citrus-marinated hamachi with zucchini and tobiko and goat cheese galette with Meyer lemon comfiture.

     In these tasty bites, Humm foreshadows the culinary alchemy that is to follow. On one visit, alternating discs of diver scallops, Nova Scotia lobster and Satsuma tangerines arrive on a white plate encircled by a frothy, vivid orange tangerine sauce and gentle sprinkling of vanilla sea salt. An entrée of slow roasted Chatham cod appears in the surprising shape of two alabaster white discs, surrounded by saffron fumet and ragout of fruits de mer. Suckling pig confit, a much-acclaimed and flavorful “main course,” looks very much like a candy bar on the platter.

     “An entrée the size of a candy bar?” you might think, reading this and not yet knowing the prix fixe menu begins at $76 for three courses (one is dessert) and can be augmented to include supplements (Alba Truffles is an additional $65), an additional savory course ($88 for four courses), or in lieu of it all, the gourmand tasting menu which begins at $120 for eleven courses ($80 more if you want each course paired with wine).

     Portion size can be an issue. Search the Internet and you will find diners who visually weighed the protein and equated it with the equivalent of a toddler-sized “lunchable” at $1 per calorie. If you really need those extra calories (again, you’re trying to impress that hot date, remember?) you have dessert coming. And coming. And coming, yet again.

     First enjoy your choice of dessert (silky cheesecake accompanied by roasted pineapple, kaffir lime and kili pepper shortbread is divine). Yet save room for the complimentary basket of fresh-from-the-oven madeleines, infamously described by author Marcel Proust as “squat, plump little cakes which look as though they had been molded in the fluted valve of a scallop shell.” And to top it all off, after you’ve settled the hefty check, you’re rewarded with a silver dish of mignardises, tiny bites of chocolate and miniature exotic jellies and other sweets traditionally served with coffee.

read the entire review at the NY Press web ...

Frederick's Wine Program

Fredericks is a new bistro downtown which offers an intriguing wine program. A generous selection of wines from France, Italy, California and Spain are offered by the glass (starting at $10) or carafe ($40s to $70s), with bottles ranging from $42 to $125.

This carafe idea is definately a new trend taking hold. You can read an excerpt from the review below ...

     Lined up at the chic, zinc bar, waiting for one of the sleek, white, circular booths or intimate, little tables are modern-day recreations of the characters that populated that 1961 film. With all the Holly Golightly model/actress/whatever types, still in their little black dresses, flirting with the darkly handsome Euro men, it seems as if New York hasn’t really changed all that much in the near half-century since that film’s memorable cocktail party scene.

Read the entire piece here
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TASTE OF MONTMARTRE

Chat Noir Brings Gastro-Bistro Cuisine to the Upper East Side

By Marisa D’Vari

“People want happy places,” says Yves Camdeborde, the French culinary master credited with coining the phrase “gastronomic bistro” to describe a venue serving high quality, innovative cuisine in a casual environment with lower prices. “They should be able to laugh out loud.”

Happy is the definitive word to describe the festive ambiance of Chat Noir, a lively new uptown gastro-bistro off Madison Avenue from the team behind the trendy La Goulue, known for good food and vibrant people watching.

Housed inside a pretty, landmark 66th Street townhouse, Chat Noir sparkles with the romance of a Parisian Montmartre cabaret. Mirrors and brass Belle Epoque light fixtures brighten the room, while the impressionist art painted by the owner’s grandfather, Louis Latapie, creates a mood of fun and excitement.

Read the entire review with this linkhttp://www.nypress.com/19/41/food/eats.cfm

STK in NYC's Meatpacking District

“Look, horns!” A blonde gestures to the gleaming white fiberglass priapic shapes jutting above the heads of the testosterone-fueled bar crowd at the glamorous new Meatpacking steakhouse STK. “How apropos!”

With its sleek, dramatic design, STK exemplifies the new female-friendly, NYC steakhouse geared to a younger, hipper crowd.

Under the direction of executive chef Todd Mark Miller, cuisine is playful and creatively presented. Grilled steaks come in three sizes—small, medium and large—and can be paired with six choices of sauces. In keeping with the new steakhouse trend, Miller gives equal focus to innovative non-steak cuisine.

You can read the rest of the review by clicking here

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By Marisa D’Vari