Tuesday was overcast; we carried our umbrellas with us all day, though they remained unopened. But the threat of rain wouldn't dampen this day. We were lunching at Le Bernardin.
Éric Ripert's French seafood restaurant is rated 24th best in the world for 2016. It's higher up on our list. Ripert opened Le Bernardin in 1986. He's not expanded his brand, or his pocketbook, by opening spin-offs throughout the city or the country or the world. Instead, he's in Le Bernardin's kitchen, overseeing preparation of the consistently finest food on the planet.
Le Bernardin offers a three course prix fixe lunch menu — first course, main course and dessert. Our sommelier recommended a wonderful white Burgundy, which we enjoyed with Le Bernardin's signature amuse-bouche salmon spread.
We shared two first courses, the black bass and the sea trout. Both were excellent. The black bass tartare was a perfect summer starter; it was fresh and plentiful. The ultra rare smoked sea trout was unbelievably delicious. It gave new meaning to "melt in your mouth." The sauces perfectly complimented the delicate fish, without overpowering.
Black Bass Tartare; Baby Zucchini, Parmesan-Lemon Confit Sauce Vierge
Ultra Rare Smoked Sea Trout; Pickled Red Onion, Citrus-Miso Emulsion We shared the monkfish "fish & chips" and the skate as our main courses. The meaty roasted monkfish and hearty romescada sauce paired beautifully. The poached skate, cooked to perfection, was a much lighter dish, but equally engaging. Both dishes were wonderful.
Pan Roasted Monkfish; Crispy Kale, Lemon Confit-Romescada Sauce
Poached Skate; Braised Daikon, Charred Scallion Jam, Lemon Confit-Kimchi Broth Our empty plates cleared, we were preparing to order dessert, when we were invited into the kitchen to chat with Éric. He was humbly delightful, as always.
When we returned to our table, we were each presented with Executive Pastry Chef Thomas Raquel's unique pre-dessert — The Egg. It was decadently delicious.
Pot de Crème, Caramel, Maple Syrup, Sea Salt We shared two more decadently delicious desserts with a glass of semi-sweet Moscato d’Asti.
Coffee Caramel Cremeux, Roasted Almond Mousse, Bourbon Froth
Roasted Apricot, Caramelized Honey Cremeux, Osmanthus Blossom Sorbet There can be no better way to spend two hours in New York City, or anywhere, than at Éric Ripert's Le Bernardin. It is heavenly perfection. Tuesday night was theatre night; we had tickets to Arthur Miller's The Crucible at the Walter Kerr Theatre.
Miller's 1953 play is the fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials. It was written as an allegory for McCarthyism. As Ben Brantley observes in his New York Times review, it's perfectly timed in a presidential election year when politicians traffic in fears of outsiders and otherness. The production's ensemble cast was excellent, although Marlene liked it better than I did. Our dinner reservation was at Danny Meyer's Marta, in The Redbury New York hotel, just north of Madison Square Park. We'd dined there once before and it's the perfect spot for a late night bite.
The lively, hip venue offers Italian fare. We started by sharing the veal sweetbreads. Presented on rosemary "Popsicle" sticks, they were as tender and delicious as any we'd had.
Animelle — Fennel-spiced Veal Sweetbreads, Rosemary, Lemon Marta's pizza menu offers "rosse" and "bianche" varieties. We chose the Porri e Pancetta from the latter. The leeks, bacon and scallions blended flawlessly with the tangy fontina cheese, all atop chef Nick Anderer's perfect thin crust. A splendid late night snack.
Porri e Pancetta — Leeks, Bacon, Fontina, Scallion We saw box-after-box of Marta's wonderful pizzas being "carried out." If they delivered to St. Louis, we'd order at least once a week. Copyright © 2016 TwoForTheTable.com |
