Summer Restaurant Week
Hamachi (sungolds, ponzu, lime): prepared very similarly to the arctic char I had at The Modern recently. Given my next course is also arctic char but in a different preparation, this meal rhymes with that one. Pretty good dish, but I preferred The Modern’s version because of the peaches.
Pan-Seared Arctic Char (asparagus, crab, basil): I’ve read that char is somewhere in between salmon and trout, but it seems to me much more salmon than trout. It felt like classy salmon. Very good skin, excellent sauce—turned into a bit of a swamp a few bites in, but it stayed tasty. The trout at Oriole (which was also topped with roe and had a similar sauce) still tops this by a country mile, but this is a top-notch dish.
Plum Shortcake (green tea, honey, lillet blanc): the classic sort of dessert at these sorts of restaurants, but it delivers. I could have used one or two more bites. The size is what it is probably because they’re serving it at lunch.
Bread and Butter: they actually served this WARM because they’re sane and know what tastes good. They also offered me a second roll, and I said of course. Stuffing me with free bread is an easy way into my heart. They capped off the meal with a small bunch of wild grapes. I’m also a sucker for fresh fruit, especially in NYC where practically every time I buy fruit, it’s either already moldy or tastes terrible.
Rockaway Peach (bourbon, peach)
Their restaurant week meal is a verifiably good deal based on the normal price of the same dishes added up. If I ate the same thing next month, it would be $23 more expensive.