December 28th, 2009
A rotation of five chefs in two years would normally be a recipe for disaster. Not so at Tom Block’s Allen and Delancey. After taking the reigns in the kitchen just two weeks ago, Allen and Delancey showed no signs of distress. In fact, it was a truly memorable meal which I plan to include as one of my top five of 2009.
Though sharing Christmas dinner with my sister, it was impossible to miss how gorgeously romantic Allen & Delancey is. The low lights, red velvet curtains, iron chandeliers and dusty books lining the shelves create quite a scene. If I were to seduce Edgar Allan Poe, I might do it at Allen & Delancey. Being Christmas day, we had a 3 course prixe fixe menu with less choices than normal, but each dish fully delivered. My sister started with three oysters with lemon granite, paddle fish roe and celery, while I had the market green salad with goat cheese croquettes. While not exactly innovative, the greens had an intense olive oil which was delightfully absorbed into the croquettes. Next we both had the foie gras torchon with quince and salty slices of brioche. We both remarked on the perfect ratio of creamy foie, sweet quince and brioche which perfectly complemented each other. For our last course we had bright pink, smoky ocean trout which was nicely cooled by a yogurt sauce.
Everything was phenomenal in the food department but the service left a bit to be desired. Our first course arrived rapidly, before the drinks were served, but then we had a long wait for the other courses. Our waiter was affable though, and he informed us that he was actually a Babbo transplant, filling in for a friend on the holiday. So I take the service issues with a grain of salt.
A & D has an entire section of their website devoted to cheese, yet there was no cheese course offered in the prixe fixe. Being the cheese head that I am, I asked if they could create one for us. Our waiter asked the manager who not only created a 4-cheese platter for us, but he personally delivered it with his own explanations.
An odd thing happened to me that night. I was not in the mood for wine. So I tried my luck on a “Tinker’s Stand” #2, a warming blend of Rye, elderflower, amaro, sherry, benedictine and aromatic bitters. I’ve learned in the past that mixed drinks at restaurants are colossal disappointments, 95% of the time. This drink was that 5%. It was as good as the drinks I adore at some of the best bars in New York like Little Branch and Death and Co. It was serious. My sister had successful drinks as well: a Jalisco Trail #1 with blanco tequila, acacia honey, lime, Angostura bitters but even better was a smokey mix of Islay scotch, tequila and absinthe. I had to celebrate bartender on the way out. I hope she was more appreciative than horrified ;)
I hope Chef Tom Block sticks around and continues to do great things at Allen and Delancey.
Location: 115 Allen Street (and Delancey)
Food: Excellent
Drinks: Though they have a worldly, well-priced wine list, it would be a tragedy to miss their elegantly crafted cocktails.
Service: Good
Average App/Entrée Price: $10/$26 though our four course prixe-fixe Christmas dinner was $85
Value: Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
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Filed under Cuisine, Lower East Side, Neighborhood, New American | Comment (0)
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