Sheer Bliss

Last night I experienced something that can only be described as sheer bliss. It doesn't happen often and the experience is very fleeting but it is oh so satisfying. It hands down has to be one of the greatest pleasures on earth for me. I had a perfect souffle. Those who know me well can guarantee that if a souffle is on the menu, I will somehow have to have it. This delectable treat was a lemon and blueberry ripple souffle with a spoonful of blueberry ice cream expertly dunked in the center of this luscious goodness. From the moment it was placed in front of me I could tell that this would be special. This souffle rose nearly one and a half inches above the ramekin with a nearly perfect flat top browned to just that side of golden. Not even the slightest sign of a crack or a bubble. I would have to say though that at a 1-Michelin star restaurant I would be gravely disappointed if they deigned to serve a cracked souffle. The texture was so light and airy with a slight crunch from the sugar dusted inside the ramekin. The top was just begging to be cracked into. The combination of tart lemon and blueberry got the salivary glands going against the sweetness of the custard base and the souffle was served at the perfect temperature, just below piping hot tempered by the frozen ice cream slowly melting to create a creamy sauce.

What added greatly to the amazing souffle experience was the gracious service leading up to its unveiling. We had ordered the tasting menu which predicated a special dessert of brown sugar tart with muscat grapes. However, somewhere between the meat and cheese courses, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a souffle being served to another table. I inquired after it and got the requisite "I'll see what I can do" response at which point I never know how the outcome will go. For example, an inquiry at the French Laundry as to whether or not I could purchase some of the lovely brioche to take home was finally met with an apologetic "we only made enough to serve at the restaurant today" (this was before the opening of Bouchon Bakery). The chef and our waitress on this occassion though delightfully rearranged our menu and served a small sample of the brown sugar tart as our pre-dessert instead of the marscapone panna cotta as planned (thankfully so since I've really never enjoyed panna cotta). Then without a word the beautiful souffle appeared. My only complaint is that I didn't have enough!

Artisanal Restaurant Review

I woke up Sunday morning in a panic realizing that I only had hours left in New York City and we hadn't settled on a restaurant for brunch yet. In the haze of my hangover I decided that I needed one last great meal before I left the Big Apple. I first tried for reservations at Balthazar so that I could have a few last moments in Soho but silly me, how could I expect Balthazar to have space open on a brisk Sunday morning. The very unkindly lady said she could seat the 4 of us at 3pm for brunch (I had to leave for JFK at 4pm). I then tried to the Central Park Boathouse but amazingly for a New York City restaurant, they didn't take reservations. Last resort, Google. I cross-referenced a few "top brunch spot" lists and came across Artisanal Restaurant in Midtown. I was hesitant to settle on Artisnal since it is afterall in Midtown, the area where mostly tourists and theatre goers dine because they have nowhere else to go. On top of that they easily gave me a reservation for 4 at 1:30pm, no questions asked. But the chef sounded promising and who could say no to a restaurant centered around cheese.

We arrived a bit early and had ample space to wait at the bar. Near enough to 1:30pm we were seated into a tight space where I felt like I was dining with the family seated next to us. This was definitely the Park Avenue Sunday brunch crowd so again I was nervous this restaurant would be more about the "cheddar" than the cheddar. One look at the menu though and I was hooked. First of all it was no question that I would have the artisanal cheese fondue as my main so it took some arm-twisting to settle on a starter. It came down to a choice between the gougeres and the beignets. With my savory cheesy main, the waiter suggested the beignets ($12.50) that didn't dissapoint. They were perfectly bite-sized pillows dusted in cinnamon and sugar. They came out piping hot freshly fried as they always should be.

My fondue ($24.00 for 2) made from a blend of artisanal cheeses followed shortly. I wished I'd asked what the blend was exactly because it was a great balance of sharp flavors and luscious melted goodness. One knock against the fondue was they were out of the kielbasa so we were left to dip crudites, bread, and apples slices ($8 for dippers). We also ordered egg with the fondue which used a preparation I'd never heard of or seen before but supposedly it was traditional. Once we hit the bottom of the fondue pot, the waiter came and cracked a raw egg into the still warm enamled cast-iron bottom. He let the egg sit and once cooked, scraped up all the cheesy bits with egg. It was unusual but oh so good. My companions also had the eggs benedict ($14.50) which looked scrumptuous but I can't comment since I didn't try any and the egg frites ($16.50). If I get a chance to go back I will definitely be having the eggs frites. It was two eggs cooked over easy placed on a bed of crispy garlicy french fries. So pungent and delicious! The french fries were especially good dipped into the cheese fondue.

I wish I'd had room for more cheese after the fondue but we moved on to sweets instead. How could we not follow the cheese fondue with chocolate fondue ($24.50 for 2)? As unfashionable as fondue might be, I can't but enjoy dipping bits of fruit, cake, biscuits, and marshmallows into melted chocolate. The chocolate fondue did have a strong liquer that I didn't care for and would ask them to leave out next time. We also ordered profiteroles ($11.50) which always good but typically not impressive. These profiteroles did leave an impression though with the use of a very good quality pistachio ice cream instead of the traditional vanilla. In the end we someone managed to log over 3 hours just for brunch.

The Damage

Food $130.75

Liquor $44.50 (what is brunch without mimosas and bellinis?)

Tax $14.68

Service $30

Total $219.93 for 4 people

Overall rating

(3.5 out of 5 tube stops)

Ambience: Walking in I was reminded of Bouchon which reminds me of any typical Parisian style bistro. Straw charis, round cafe tables, and wood and zinc bar. As mentioned the tables were a bit tight but the restaurant benefited from high-ceilings making the space feel open in general. The restaurant can get noisy at times since likely seats ~100 diners. This is not a restaruant for a quiet romantic dinner.

Drinks: 3 of us had the strawberry-rhubard sunrise and 1 had a mimosa. You can probably guess that the sunrise was a mix of a strawberry-rhubard puree with Champagne. It was a good quality Champange though that subtly dry and refreshing.

Price Range: £££ (out of ££££)

A bit pricey for brunch but we were well hungover and splurging.

Reservations: As mentioned I had no issues getting a table for brunch at 1:30pm for 4 people. There is ample seating so I can't imagine not getting in at a reasonable time unless pre-theatre dinner time on a Friday or Saturday night.

Taking a Small Bite Out of the Big Apple

I just returned from an extended weekend in New York City with my really great girlfriends Brit and Karen. I always have a great time with these girls and they are such inspirations to me. Very cool chicks indeed and always great hostesses. NYC is also a city that I LOVE LOVE LOVE so I've never not had a fantastic time there.

This trip though we had the special addition of my friend Grant who also happened to be in NYC at the same for business. Having Grant along meant that I could indulge in some "less-girly" activities, namely attending the New York Rangers vs. Boston Bruins hockey game at Madison Square Garden. I was really looking forward to this since 1) I haven't seen a hockey game in ages and 2) I've always wanted to attend an event at MSG. Although I had no allegiance to either team I had to root for the Rangers since Grant was rooting for the Bruins (clad in Boston Bruins jersey all the way from London). The Rangers played an appaling 46 mintues of hockey where they were actually starting to get booed by their own fans. With a bit over 6 minutes left in the game, the Rangers finally scored their first goal of the game to put them 1-2 against the Bruins. I was holding my head down in shame expecting Grant to gloat when in the last 53 seconds of regulation time the Rangers' Markus Naslund scored a second goal forcing the game into overtime. After 5 minutes of sudden-death overtime the game was still tied 2-2 leading to 4 shootout rounds which finally ended with the Rangers' captain Chris Drury scoring the game winning goal. Admittedly if you look overall at how well the game was played, the Bruins should have taken home the win but no, my team for the day WON!

Aside from the highlight of the hockey game, the weekend mainly consisted of tons of eating, boozing, shopping, and hanging out. To give you an idea of the magnitude of our gluttony, Saturday morning we had pastrami sandwiches and cupcakes delivered to the flat right before heading out to brunch. And nothing tastes better at 4am than our traditional slice of pizza at Rosario's in the Lower East Side. Another notable restaurants included August Restaurant (a brunch must of ours), Les Halles (associated with Anthony Bourdain before he became a roaming TV chef), and Artisanal (which surprised and impressed me so much it will get it's own post).

Unfortunately my trip concluded with a 4-hour delay on my already taxing redeye back to London but I'm chosing to remember the good times and will do whatever is in my power to never fly American again.