Country

I wanted to love Country. The dining room is breathtakingly beautiful with ostentatious chandeliers, tastefully cased in glass. The open kitchen adds another theatrical element to the experience. The well-heeled waiters skate through the room, contributing additional levels of charm. Country had all the workings of a top-notch dining experience. My family loved it, but somehow it missed the bar for me.

Country’s menu is a four course tasting menu, with optional supplements. It changes daily, an impressive feat for any restaurant. On the night we went they had a special whole white truffle which was showcased around the table for us all to smell. For an additional $80, the truffle could be added to any dish. The supplements all featured the white truffle as well. All fine and impressive, but not worthwhile in any of our opinions.

The meal began with an amuse-bouche of a fried frog’s leg in a cream sauce followed by a tiny quail egg, mini sweet potato tarts and some kind of salmon puff. Everyone around the table ordered differently. Duck stuffed with foie gras was a highlight: intensely flavorful and delicately accented with the foie. A butternut squash risotto appetizer was a real hit with my Grandma. All of my dishes were real misses though: a poached egg with proscuitto and frisee, bland pork cheeks, and a striped bass with squid (squid missing in action). It’s hard to place what was lacking but I wasn’t “wowed” by anything. Dessert was a bit of a recovery with a sorbet intermezzo followed by rice pudding and a chocolate mint dome with vanilla ice cream. The courses were timed well and the service was great. Plates arrived in a well-conceived manner, the real issue was the elements served on them.

Perhaps I ordered poorly and missed the real signature items? The New York Times gave it an “excellent.” At these prices however, every dish should be excellent.

Country: 90 Madison Avenue at 29^th in the Carlton Hotel
Cuisine: French
Word to the wise: There is also a café below Country, a more relaxed option.

Filed under French, New American, Restaurant Reviews |