CountryEpicure

12 East 12^th Street, New York 

http://www.gothambarandgrill.com 

On April 12, 2007, David and Frédérique (right) took Linda and me to The Gotham Bar and Grill for dinner. We used to go there frequently as it is a good place to take people from out-of-town to be in a very “New York” ambience, but we had not been for a few years and were glad that David chose it. 

We were shown right away to a good table in the small raised area in the back right which may be a little quieter than most of the restaurant and from which there is a view of the whole room.

We ordered a bottle of an Iron Horse sparkling wine, which was very nice; we looked at the menus as we enjoyed it for apéritif. There is no tasting menu. The dinner menu is split into first, second and third courses, but, like most people, we did not order a “first” course. All four of us enjoyed everything we ordered so I will not bore my readers with repeating how good each dish was. We ordered a bottle of the 2004 Ken Brown “Santa Rita Hills” Pinot Noir; it went well with everything. 

Linda started with the Maine Lobster Risotto, Artichoke Hearts, Pea Leaves, Black Trumpets and Prosciutto di Parma. 

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

.

.

(Left) The seared foie gras.

(Right) The seafood salad. 

David and Frédérique started with the Seared Foie Gras, Kumquats and Candied Fennel, Blood Orange Lavender Reduction. The generous piece of foie gras was perfectly seared on the outside. 

My starter was the Seafood Salad, Scallops, Squid, Japanese Octopus, Lobster and Avocado , Lemon Vinaigrette. This is a signature dish of the restaurant and its chef, Alfred Portale. It was dubbed “Vertical Cuisine” when it first appeared at the restaurant’s opening in 1984 due to the way it, and other plates, were molded into a small tower. The vinaigrette used to have more of a flavor of the lemon and lemon zest than it did this time.  

We moved on to the main courses: 

For Linda: Snake River Farms Pork, Butternut Squash Purée, Toasted Barley, and Port Poached Pear.

.

 .  

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

(Left) For David: Miso Marinated Black Cod, Bok Choy, Shiitake Mushrooms and Sticky Rice, Soy Lemongrass Ginger Sauce.

(Right) For Frédérique: Roast Squab “Choucroute,” Foie Gras Saucisse, Sauerkraut, Spätzle, Dark Beer and Squab Demi Glace. 

.

For Me: Barbeque Spiced Muscovy Duck, Braised Collard Greens, White Corn Grits, Bourbon Duck Jus. Fortunately there was more bourbon flavor than barbeque. The grits were in sort of a deep fried beignet, which was light. The greens were finely chopped. Good ole southern cookin was never like this.

. 

And then dessert: 

Frédérique had the Passion Fruit Crème Caramel, Pineapple Napoleon, Fresh Marinated Tropical Fruits. 

.

Linda had the Warm Maple Tart, Blood Orange Marmelade, Walnut Ice Cream. 

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

 .

(Left) David had the Gotham Chocolate Cake served with warm Butterscotch Ice Cream. 

(Right) I had the Tangerine Creamsicle, Warm Tangerine Sauce, Hazelnuts and Hibiscus Sorbet. 

.

In many ways this restaurant is fortunately twenty years behind the times. The portions are quite large by today’s standards. There isn’t even a small portion tasting menu offered. There is no amuse-gueule. While a few of the techniques have become popular recently, such as David’s miso marinade on the fish or my hibiscus sorbet, most of the dishes might have been on the menu twenty years ago and probably were. The chef is the same. The décor is exactly the same. The clientele was well dressed, much better than the “anything goes” fashion one sees now in trendier restaurants. One inexplicable flaw is the background music; the sound of table conversations is deafening enough.  

We are very glad we went. Thank you David.