Making the Chef

NYC Visit, Part II

Some more restaurants from the week of fun.

Bread Bar at Tabla
Tabla was one of my first fine dining experiences in NYC (that was way back in 2002) and what I remember from that original night was a few small things. Small fried fish, eaten whole, as an amuse. My first encounter with a fish knife, which I hadn't the foggiest of what it was and had to ask the server how to use it. A pistachio chocolate kulfi, which was one of the finest desserts I had ever had in memory. This time out, I have to say the food was not as memorable, but the whole process was. I've come to appreciate everything that makes up a restaurant - the bar program, the wine program, the hospitality, the food, etc. Not only does Tabla serve some great cocktails, but the extensive signature non-alcoholic cocktails are quite impressive. And the sommelier of the evening produced a fantastic wine that was even cheaper than the price range that I asked for. One thing that I do have to admit ... the saag paneer pizza that was on the Bread Bar menu was one of my favorite things that I put into my mouth in NYC (well, after those chicken liver crostinis at Gramercy Tavern).

Blue Smoke
When it comes right down to it, I'm a southern boy at heart. I am steeped in the culinary heritage of the south, so when someone makes a fuss over BBQ, well, I'm probably going to have a word to say. There's been quite a few not-so-nice words written about Danny Meyer's Blue Smoke and how it's not authentic BBQ. My response: bullshit. This stuff is the real deal. Just rip into the St. Louis style ribs to see for yourself ... instead of the normal small red ring around a piece of meat that shows it's been penetrated by smoke, the whole piece of meat has been penetrated by smoke. It's intense, some of the best BBQ I've had. The same critics also say that the sides are where it's at. To me, they were hit and miss. Deviled eggs, cornbread and sweet potato fries (with honey dipping sauce) were excellent. But the baked beans (a little too smokey/southwestern), cole slaw (I'm sorry I like mine sweet and creamy, not savory) and braised kale were not so memorable. I also had to laugh a little bit at the fact that there was a pastry chef listed on the dessert menu. Now, I'm not knocking her skills or anything, but in presentation and content (brownie sundae ala mode) they were pretty much diner desserts ... it matched the sophistication of the location, but honestly I don't think they needed to devote the space to developing the ego of a pastry chef there. One thing I did love was their bar setup. In true BBQ joint fashion they had a wide swath of ice where they iced down their longnecks ... very nice. And their bourbon menu? Anything that has Rebel Yell on it has got my approval.

Olives
I only stopped in to have drinks at Olives and to see what it was all about. Olives, for those not in the know, is one of Todd English's flagship restaurants. English, in foodie-land, gets more chuckles than smiles since it seems like he used his looks more than his skills to create a now-struggling restaurant empire. However, he had to have been a good chef in order to get his start (which is a fact that I think we sometimes lose sight of in celebrity chef culture ... Rocco DiSpirito might have crashed and burned at Rocco's, but someone had to believe in his food in order to fund him). Olives, in my opinion, looks cool, but misses the whole point of a good restaurant - it isn't comfortable, it isn't welcoming. It has no soul. English's empire focused on expanding too quickly and lost that ephemeral quality that gives restaurants life.

posted by LindyChef @ 11:48 PM