probably should have posted this here instead of there…
Made it finally to Claud.
It’s liked by a lot of people but my experience didn’t match the experience that many others have had:
Escargot croquette - very good. One interesting observation - once they were no longer warm, the taste and texture really changed (for worse)
Red shrimp - it was good but nothing to write home about
Chicken liver agnolotti - even though it was a relatively cold day (so you are mentally ready for a hearty dish), the dish still felt too heavy. While they had added plenty of acidity to brighten up the dish, it didn’t make enough of a difference
So not a place I am itching to go back to.
similar to my experience in august when they opened. its fine but none of the food wowed me and i had a pepiere briords…no big deal.
the escargot in the croquettes were more pureed and really didnt have any texture of why one would eat snails. the pork chop entree was forgettable. the only dish i recall enjoying was the moses sleeper mille feuille which wasnt entirely a good choice on a menu in the hot august humidity.
i had a far more enjoyable meal at wildair a few weeks later in september (which i havent been to since 2016 when they opened). food was far more interesting and the wine list was very approachable.
Well, as perhaps another signal of the lack of enthusiasm for One White St., we ended up cancelling there (weren’t up for the tasting) and went to Dhamaka instead. Some very good things (the paratha was remarkable), but over all an underwhelming experience. The goat neck biryani tasted tasted strongly of uncooked chili. Won’t be running back.
A little late in responding further, but we went to Cosme with another couple. Loved the food and drinks, and had decent wine options. Ordered almost everything on the menu except guacamole and chips. Very good dining experience. Would definitely go back.
I am overdue for a visit for Cosme. Thanks for the reminder!
Have you tried Semma?
Dhamaaka can be overwhelming for most people.
Over time I have grown to like the experience of sitting at their bar. Good cocktails, good energy and fresh food. Food by itself never creates a surreal experience for me but I like the package.
I haven’t tried Semma yet, but it is definitely on the list.
My oldest is till in town before she heads our for a semester abroad. Trying to squeeze in a few fun meals before she leaves. I won’t go into much details, but had a wonderful meal at the bar at Ernesto’s on Friday night and another fun, delicious meal at King (in the bar room) last night.
To me, Ernesto’s is as close to dining in Spain without the plane ticket.
Has anyone been to the King folks’ new place in Rock Center? Jupiter, I think?
Went to House Brooklyn last night, a Japanese-French restaurant that opened in December. I absolutely loved our meal and can’t wait to get back. Unfortunately it is only 8 seats so its going to be a very hard reservation. The most excited new restaurant since Claud.
Some older pictures of the Chef’s food to give you and idea of his cooking stye:
A couple of recent meals:
We did the a la carte menu at Naro before a show at Carnegie Hall. The food was excellent. I would recommend sitting in the bar area over the outdoor spot. We had four small size dishes, two desserts sent from the kitchen and we were out in an hour (only because that was all the time we had).
Dinner last night at Porcelain. Food continues to get better (not that it was ever bad). We really enjoyed our meal. This will be the site of the next Rieslingstudy event on Feb 27th.
My oldest is heading off for a semester in London tomorrow so we celebrated her birthday a couple of days early.
Had lunch at Four Horsemen today before seeing the Thierry Mugler exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum. I’m doing dry January so no booze for me. That said 4HM is fantastic. Had the scallop with roe and fresno pepper, the citrus salad, toast with whipped ricotta and leeks, grilled trumpet mushrooms with egg yolk, the curried gnocchi, and the fried chicken. Dessert was the apple galette.
FWIW, I’ve seen a number of very cool fashion exhibits (Dior was fantastic). The Mugler exhibit didn’t do if for me. Too costume like.
great weekend in the city. hit llama san, nyc 53, oiji mi, and cosme
llama san is so good. can’t believe i never went. definitely a great lunch spot and enjoyed sitting at the bar (turned out we knew the bartender from years ago). the scallop and tuna apps were outstanding. iberico entree a notch below. it’s by no means inexpensive.
second time at 53 and i think i’m not going to rush back. unquestionably a grand and beautiful space and the asian food is really quite good but it’s just a little too grand for a casual weekend.
oiji mi is a stunner. the space and the food equally. service to match. the scallop app and jack fish were among the best dishes i’ve had. we immediately decided we’d have more scallops for dessert. such a gracious staff too. again, not inexpensive, but completely worth it. amazing but pricey wine list.
cosme is always great. fantastic sunday brunch with super margaritas and food that’s always better than i expect. a dish called vuelve a la vida (return/come back to life) came highly recc’d and was like a ceviche in a spicy red paste which made me very happy
all 4 places we sat at the bar and ate. i love the interaction and always learn good stuff from staff
Thanks for a great recap. We love eating at the bar, especially if there is a view into the kitchen. It’s a bit of dinner theater.
Wanted to try oiji mi, will have to hit it next time.
ditto. the busier and/or fancier the place the better the bar is.
NYC recap:
Semma - Rare to find a restaurant doing Indian cuisine at such a high level. Everything was good: tiger prawns, the lamb, the oxtail, poussin, lobster in coconut milk, banana leaf wrapped whole sea bass. Actually Dungeness crab was good but just ok. The star for me is still the gunpowder dosa. Chef Vijay is so nice and humble and sent out a bunch of comped dishes.
Oxalis- Great bar prix-fixe. Really enjoyed the radicchio, beets, and smoked date. Will return for carte blanche.
Le rock - Not a great experience. Food was ok but had some issues with service. Didn’t get seated until an hour after the reservation and then they told us all the fish entrees were sold out, which my pescatarian wife didn’t appreciate. Then they gave us attitude and told her at least they have a vegetables stuffed in cabbage dish.
Claud - Pretty good but maybe it got a little too over-hyped in my head. I did like the chicken liver agnolotti and the mushroom mille feuille. Escargots croquettes were good. Might have liked the chocolate cake the best. Wine list is pretty amazing. I can def see the David Chang lineage.
Four Horsemen - Amazing dinner. This was my favorite of the week. Had the oeuf mayo with smoked trout roe and lime leaf, grilled leeks with pine nuts, monkfish liver with dashi and horseradish, fried skate wing with celery remoulade, spinach tonnarelli with burrata, butter beans with nduja and tripe, fried sweetbreads with piri piri, and chicken with curry butter. Dessert was olive oil chocolate sorbet, basque cheesecake, and sticky toffee pudding. Every dish was great, maybe liked the grilled leeks or skate wing the most.
We had a similar situation at Mother Wolf in LA. Waited an hour after our reservation for a table and gawked at all the pizzas the servers were carrying past us. After being seated, our server came over and told us they were sold out of pizza and bread. Lol. At least this news didn’t come with an attitude.
We had lunch at Four Horsemen on Saturday. Amazing meal, but it must have been a completely different menu from what you had.