Really Old Restaurant Reviews

During my semester break, I “toured” the East Coast- spending time with family in North Carolina, visiting New Jersey for the first time in a year, checking out the farmland my parents bought in Pennsylvania, and hanging out a bit in New York. Since my family isn’t really known for “haute-cuisine” (read: food not burnt) at Christmas dinners, the two biggest culinary highlights of my break had to be eating at both The Spotted Pig and Aquavit.

I know I was a year or two late on enjoying the whole “gastropub” fad, but I think The Spotted Pig, as the forerunner of the trend, has managed to transcend fashion and end up as a Village classic. Who wouldn’t love The Pig for letting you eat 1-star Michelin food without having to dress up or make a reservation? I, rather decadently, ordered that night’s appetizer special of fried pig’s ear which was exactly as awesome as fried pig skin can be. Though pig’s ear is a bit (just a bit) rich, our waiter recommended a 2005 bottle of Villa Sparina Gavi which had great peachy acidity and a slight mineral crispness that cut right through the delicious fried fat. For an entrée, my dining companion ordered a char-grilled burger with roquefort, which made me mad. It was a great burger but I was hoping to snag some bites of some other, more interesting, plate like the pan-fried skate with chicory or the beef and Guinness pie. Admittedly, I also didn’t get too crazy by ordering the quail with roasted trevise and pomegranate (which was also great).

Two days after New Year’s, I took my high-school friend Vicky to the, then practically vacant, dining room at Aquavit. It’s always both fun and disturbing to take someone with little fine-dining experience to an upmarket midtown joint. Even for me, going to midtown restaurants like Le Bernardin, L’Atelier, or Aquavit usually lowers my self esteem. I always get the feeling I’m way too young and way to poor to be there. But, at least at Aquavit, such nerves can be calmed by the house-made flights of the restaurant’s namesake. Of course our chef’s tasting featured a lot of artfully presented and beautifully dressed fish (yellowtail with duck tail, sea urchin and lime; chili-dusted roasted halibut, brioche-crusted salmon with beef cheeks) but the standout plate of the night for me was the oxymoronically rich and fluffily-light foie gras ganache with cured quail, pickled asparagus and raisin vinaigrette. I could eat that everyday.