It seems like the holidays started a lot earlier this year. There were all sorts of holiday parties, and, as always, there were 3 Pae birthdays: Mom's and Christina's on the 10th and Chloe's on the 18th. All this adds up to me eating and drinking way more than I should during the month of December. I've never really been on a diet, and I don't plan to start one, but my attendance at the gym will need to pick up in January.
So with the holidays and birthdays and everything, I got to try a couple of new places and return to some old favorites as well.
To celebrate Mom's and Mia's birthdays, we went to
Convivio, in the old L'Impero space. I was always a fan of the Scott Conant incarnation of this place, so I was curious to see what Michael White had done with it, now that it is truly his place, with a new menu, decor, etc. I loved the cool blues of the old decor, so the warmer red palate seemed not as interesting to me. Structurally, though, the place is the same, with the two levels, so the place felt like an old friend with a new haircut.
The menu had a lot of choices, but they offer a 3-course, fixed price menu for $59, which is a great value. We ordered some arancini for the table, but they were dense and not particularly flavorful. On the bright side, my eggplant parmesan was well cooked and tasty. Still, I was a bit sorry that I was so swayed by the eggplant that I didn't order one of the many offal offerings on the menu, including duck hearts and lambs tongue. Mom got the lamb's tongue, and it was tasty, as was the testa that Sandra ordered.
As my second course, I got another favorite, the Maccheroni alla Carbonara. Like they do at Lupa, White adds a bit of scallion to the dish, which offers a nice bite and something to cut through the richness of the sauce. It was good, but not the best carbonara I've ever had.
As my main course, I got the lamb chops, which had a bit of breadcrumb on top. I was pretty full by this point in the evening, and the lamb was not good enough to make me want to eat it when I wasn't hungry. But it was solid, and tasty.
Dessert was a Pistachio tart with orange sorbet. I liked it. In all, it was a solid, relatively affordable meal with friendly service. I think both Mom and Dad liked it better than the old L'Impero, but I did not. This may have been due to my ordering more basic dishes rather than adventurous ones, but I felt like the food was more comforting than challenging. And that's fine. I'll probably choose Lupa or similar for the equivalent type of food, but if I ever need a place in that neck of the woods, I'd happily go back to try some other things on the menu, avoiding the fixed price menu and going with the pastas.
You can see all the photos from the meal
here.
A few days later, I took the Pronto product team to
The John Dory. I felt a bit guilty about going here, since the prices are quite high, but we had a good year, and I felt the team should be rewarded. Plus, I wanted to try it! The room is very narrow and much smaller than I expected, given its huge, heavyweight neighbors, Del Posto and CraftSteak. Other than the huge, beautiful fishtank up front, the walls are covered with drawings of fish, including on the ceilings. It felt a little kitschy, but I liked it. I think it may get old after a while, though. April Bloomfield was there and cooking (we were seated on the platform portion of the tiny dining area and were able to watch the goings on in the open kitchen). I got the oyster pan roast with sea urchin butter crostini. I was warm, and not as heavy as I expected (it's basically oysters in a creamy broth). The uni crostini was just ok, as it was really more like a spread than pieces of uni. I would have preferred the latter. For my main course, I ordered the Dungeness Crab, which was a bit of a messy affair for a work dinner, but it was delicious. It was a whole crab, with a spicy, black sauce. It was perhaps a wee bit too salty, but I'd definitely order it again, if I didn't want to try the entire rest of the menu. This is a place I'll definitely go back to. It's right in my neighborhood, and has a bar where you can eat. It is a bit dear in terms of the price point, but I think I can swing it if I make a meal out of a couple of apps, or only order an entree. It's a welcome addition to West Chelsea.
For Chloe's birthday, we went to her favorite (and family favorite) 15 East. I've found my tolerance for mediocre sushi to have gone away entirely, so sadly sushi has become more of a special occasion food for me. 15 East did not disappoint, particularly with the special apps of uni soba and an egg custard with uni tucked inside.
Another highlight of the holiday eating season was Eric's Hannukkah party, where he made potato latkas with smoked salmon (the Gaspe from Russ & Daughter may be my new salmon of choice) and ikura, as well as some braised brisket. Yum.
I've been eating a lot of spanish tapas lately, as El Quinto Pino has become a regular spot for me. I also recently tried the new Boqueria in Soho and Txikito, the new Basque-style restaurant opened by Alexandra Raij, the former chef at EQP and Tia Pol. They are both tasty, though I'm getting a little tired of tapas. To celebrate the end of the year, I had my last lunch of 2008 at my beloved 'ino. Truffled egg toast and a chicken liver bruschetta. What a wonderful way to end the year.
