NYC – 3/22/17 – Kristian Baumann x Chef’s Club

In a different setting I think I would have enjoyed this dinner so much more.  Its completely personal preference but for some reason Chef’s Club just didn’t work for me even though I quite like the space.  I also think its difficult to have these dinners in the main dining room.  But still fantastic to have Kristian Baumann in NYC.

little neck claims, rosehip seed oil, salted gooseberries, seaweed

California spot prawn

brown beech mushrooms, fresh goats milk cheese


grilled & glazed squab, nashi pears, arugula, blackberries



rausu combo ice cream, toasted barley, blackcurrant wood oil

NYC – 6/22/16 – Alon Shaya @ Chef’s Club

Shaya was one of my favorite meals of 2015 so I obviously could not miss the opportunity to have some of Alon Shaya’s food closer to home.  It was fantastic although with a limited menu I couldn’t help but feeling that I just wanted to get back to NOLA.

Salatim served with pita bread – Louisiana crab tabouleh, bulgur, mint, tomato; Labneh, hold land trinity; Blackened eggplant salad, tahini, pine nuts

Fried oyster hummus, pecan brown butter

Cochon de lait shakshouka – slow roasted pork, stewed tomatoes, green chili zhoug

Louisiana shrimp – okra, paprikash, jasmine rice

Continuing the month long birthday celebration

NYC – 3/17/16 – Maison Premiere at Chef’s Club

I could not miss a chance to have Maison Premiere cocktails without having to cross a river.  And of course there was the added plus of missing the traditional St. Patrick’s day crowds.  Thinking we would never be able to get seats at the bar and wouldn’t be eating, I didn’t take pictures of the food menus and so cannot recall exactly what we had.  However the first dish from Maison Premiere’s menu was fantastic.  The two others were from the Chef’s Club menu and quite good as well.

 


NYC – 8/9/15 – Chef’s Club

Very occasionally I am wrong. When Chef’s Club opened I thought the concept was a bit ridiculous. Considering the general dislike that New Yorker’s have for out-of-town absentee chef’s I saw little that made sense about a menu that was a compilation of dishes by 3 such chefs. A permanent pop-up concept like Intro in Chicago is more of what I thought Chef’s Club would be. I have previously dined in the Chef’s Club Studio and the experience was wonderful. But this was my first time in the dining room as well as my only restaurant week meal this year. I may have mentioned it in a prior review, but this dining room is probably one of my favorites in NYC. The layout of the open kitchen allows for a maximum number of guests to have a fantastic view, the bar is absolutely stunning and the Puck building an icon on its own. I can’t even imagine how long just the bar miss en place takes. And while I am always skeptical of restaurant week menus, Chef’s Club used only the regular menu which indicated which dishes could be part of the restaurant week price as well as supplements for all others. I believe we were evenly split on supplements or not and did add a pizza after watching them being made in front of us all evening. An overall lovely experience and it was fantastic to enjoy restaurant week without feeling like you were settling for a menu you didn’t really want.
  Salad of the month – market tomatoes, ricotta, garlic crouton, soppressata, basil, charred tomato vinaigrette  Maine diver scallops – quinoa, meyer lemon, calabrian chili oil  Thai glazed short ribs – barrel aged fish sauce, broccoli, peanuts, mint cilantro  Colorado lamb chops, cotechino, endive, white beans, pear  Diavola pizzetta – salami napolitana, smoked mozzarella, san marzano tomato, chili oil  Dessert of the month – plum upside down cake, lemon sorbet, cream anglaise, plum caramel sauce  Ice cream and sorbet     

NYC – 1/10/14 – Chef’s Club Studio – Erik Anderson

I will admit that I don’t really get the concept of the Chef’s Club. When it was first announced I thought it would be more of a rotating pop-up concept. But it is actually a regular restaurant with a menu created by four visiting chefs (selected each year) but helmed by a different executive chef. I’m not sure that I would ever visit just for dinner but I was happy to see that others are supporting it and the dining room was quite full. But there is a separate ‘studio’ space where dinners are hosted when the visiting chefs are in residence and I was lucky enough to reserve a spot for one of Erik Anderson’s dinners. I have regretted not having made it to Catbird Seat while he was there so was thrilled to FINALLY be able to have his food. Expectations certainly exceeded.

The Puck – bourbon, bee pollen, pear, pepper (at the bar pre-dinner)

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Maine diver scallops – raw & cooked

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Potato – creme fraiche, caviar

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Squab liver Bon-Bon

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White truffle porridge – Danish rye bread, goat butter, hickory nuts, tonka bean

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Tart – potato, black truffle

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Pike – onions, roasted chicken skin bouillon, preserved lemon

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Roasted pigeon – cranberry, juniper, chestnut, turnip, pine

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Hay custard – roasted sweet grass hay, fresh cream, barrel-aged maple syrup

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Burnt sugar and Rosemary pudding – buttermilk, pecan, sable

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Wine Pairing
Raventos I Blanc ‘de nit’ Rose Cava 2012
Les Granges Paquenesses Cremant Du Jura Brut NV
Lanson ‘Black Label’ Champagne Brut NV
Domaine De La Pinte, ‘La Capitaine’ Arbois 2011
Charles Joguet ‘Cuvee Terroir’ Chinon 2012
Vinhos Barbeitos, Rare Wine Co. ‘Historic Series’ Savannah Verdehlo NV