Well, blog, it's been another long while (must we go on this way?) but I've returned to you at last, with a new commitment to broaden my reviewing horizons. Yes, we're traversing that most dangerous of landscapes--the world of cuisine. So, as my cab-driver's, best friend's, hairdresser's, sushi-chef's younger cousin used to say--allez cuisine!
James (long-term bf) and I took our stomachs out to Gramercy Tavern to celebrate our five year anniversary tonight. Bear with me as I try this restaurant thing for the first time--I'll have to begin at the beginning.
Address: 42 E 20th St, New York, NY 10003
Cuisine: French Comfort Food / Rustic
Meal eaten here: Dinner
Bar: Good to get lit. Speaking of lit...
Have matchbooks: light me up, Charlie
Basically, there are two dining areas to the restaurant - the front room, which is more like a pub decor-wise, and the back room(s), which is/are more upscale (white table cloths, tasting menus, dress code, the whole nine yards). There are two different menus, depending on where you sit, and, since we were in the fancy-schmancy back room (it was 5 years, after all) that's the one I'll be discussing.
For that menu, you can either choose from two tasting menus -- six courses each (see http://www.gramercytavern.com/mobile/menu/) or order from a pretty extensive prix fixe sort of menu, which includes a starter, a main course, and a dessert (including a pre-starter amuse bouche, a post-main palate cleanser pre-dessert, post-dessert petit fours, and even a take-away oatmeal muffin in a baggie for the next morning).
The food was good over all. For starters, James had the smoked trout, and I got the rabbit fettucine. Pre-starter, as we sipped wine, they served fresh baked bread and a puffed potato ball with a hard grated cheese (parmaggiano reggiano, if I had to hazard a guess) to amuse our bouches, and ours were, indeed, in fairly good spirits as we dove into the first course. James' trout was great - melted in your mouth, and the smokey, fatty fish flavor paired perfectly with the pickled onion. My rabbit fettucine was good as well-the sauce was light and salty, and the rabbit was tender, although not exactly mouth-melting. Could have done without the brussels sprouts, personally, but it wasn't bad.
The next course was the main--James ordered the lamb rack and shoulder, and I got the duck. Let me preface this with saying that I am a self-proclaimed duck snob. Nine times out of ten, if it's on a menu, I'm all over it. I was a little skeptical about the pairing with the duck on the menu (rather than a sweet compliment like a fruit sauce, which is my preference by far, the Gramercy paired their duck with cabbage and mushrooms, much more earthy than typical preparations), but I went for it anyway, because, like I said, I'm on duck like Daisy on Donald (hm off-color metaphor, much?).
One thing that was nice about both James' lamb and my duck was that the portions were reasonable, but not miserly; there was definitely enough to get your fill without being stuffed to the point where breathing becomes difficult. The food itself was well-cooked (my duck was medium inside, without my having to specify it, and James' lamb was cooked to his specification of medium as well), though there were a few little issues that, in my humble opinion, kept both dishes from being really stellar. Let's start with the lamb: overall, good presentation and pretty good pairing with the greens it came with. The thing that got me, though, was that they left the fat on, which tends to impart lamb with a flavor that's a little too overwhelmingly, well, lamby. I'd rather have less meat to eat, but more that's ready-to-eat -- ie doesn't require me to pick the fat off the meat, and vice versa. That being said, the flavor was good and it married pretty well with the sides (mushrooms and greens--very light and low in carbs, too).
As for the duck, the confit was perfectly crispy and delightful, and the duck breast (stewed till it was extremely tender) was also lovely. I felt that the mushrooms and cabbage were a little too one-note with the duck (would have definitely preferred something a little more citrusy or fruity to cut through the gamey, fatty taste of the duck). Also, it was a teeny bit too salty for my taste (yes, I'd love some cheese with my whine, actually.) Ultimately, though, it's silly of me to complain since I ate the whole thing without any real issues.
The best part of the meal, in my opinion, came last. As a rule, I love dessert (eat it first, that's my motto)" and, at the Gramercy, they fed you three delicious courses of it. The first was a palate-cleansing mandarin jello with a touch of custard and a delicate meringue coin, this was light, airy, tangy, and exactly what the doctor ordered. Next came our dessert orders (James chose the chocolate bread pudding, while I opted for the Sticky Toffey and Fig cake.) These were superb. Like I said, I love dessert, but I often find that, at restaurants, desserts are overly sweet, entirely too rich, and totally unappetizing after the first few bites, because you're a. Pretty full from the main course, and b. Unable to want more after the richness of the first few bites. This dessert - not so. Both our dishes were ooey, gooey, warm, and wonderful. Both James and I licked our plates clean ( and he doesn't even like dessert! ) so kudos to the dessert chef, very well played.
After dessert came a lovely set of petit fours (chocolate macaroon that was good, if a little dry, a lovely lemon meringue bite, and a chocolate with coffee creme filling. After dinner, they presented us with individually wrapped, home made oatmeal muffins for breakfast tomorrow morning-very nice!
Overall, the service was terrific--we were constantly attended to, water-wise, and our silverware was meticulously changed after each dish. The waitstaff were helpful and polite; great experience.
Though the main dishes could have been tweaked a bit for my palate, the food was generally thoughtfully prepared, and the desserts were unparalleled. The service was great, and the atmosphere was lovely. For a special occasion in New York, the Gramercy is definitely a front runner.
Final Verdict:
*** and 1/2 stars our of *****
Price Range:
$$$ out of $$$
I'd go again:
For a really special occasion / If my lottery ticket cashed in.
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