Slow Cooked

Smith's

I don't often spend my Monday nights out and about, but when picking a place to meet a friend last night, I figured a chilly Monday was the perfect opportunity to check out a relatively new, relatively hot restaurant without having to wait hours for a table.  Turns out, if the restaurant is new enough and hot enough, there will still be a 1.5 hour-plus wait on a Monday night.  Still, I was glad to have picked Smith's (the newest venture by Danny Abrams, of Red Cat, Mermaid Inn and Harrison), because it luckily has a clubby little bar in the back with a fun menu and a friendly bartender, and my friend and I managed to sample four or five dishes as well as a few glasses of wine, with absolutely no wait.

Smith's menu offers an exotic twist on greenmarket bistro fare: we had truffle deviled eggs, grilled tellagio and apple sandwiches, crispy brussel sprouts with almonds and an apple cake with ginger ice cream.  All of the dishes were almost dainty in presentation, but big on flavor, and the wines by the glass offered a generous selection with some options under $10/glass.  We each started with the sparkling Brut Rose di Rabosa, from the Veneto region of Italy, which was crisp and dry and acidic and delicious, especially with the cheese and apple dish.  My second glass was a lovely Zinfandel blend whose name escapes me but that I loved for being less jammy than a lot of Zinfandels I find on wine lists. 

The bar itself was a delight: it's dim and mirrored and there is velvet and a big Oriental rug and the entire vibe was very much goth-meets-club car.  The dining room is more understated but the bar felt like a secret compartment, hidden in the back of the restaurant, which made it all the more enjoyable.

I had neither the patience for the long wait nor the foresight to make a reservation, so I can't speak to the service or the full menu, but I can say that Smith's had a bewitching feel to it, and that I plan to return.  The location is somewhat surprising; it's on Macdougal, smack in the middle of NYU-land, amidst comedy clubs, coffee shops and bars, but Danny Abrams has created an elegant, stylish spot that is clearly attracting crowds.

Our bill, which included four drinks, three small plates (or was it four?  I feel like we tried something else that I'm forgetting...) and a dessert, came to $72 before tip.  Smith's ( 212-260-0100) is located at 79 Macdougal St., nr. Bleecker St. and accepts all major credit cards.

Noble Food & Wine

I wanted to love Noble Food & Wine but it was a case of the whole being less than the sum of its parts. We went on Saturday night, and I loved the decor, the sunken dining room with sleek wood paneling, loved the idea of reserve wines available by the glass but ultimately, I was underwhelmed.

The restaurant was strangely uncrowded for a Saturday night but even so, I was alarmed to see that there was (from what I could tell) one server attending to the entire room (which is small and beautiful, like sitting inside a jewelry box), and honestly, the pacing of the service was awkward: we ordered drinks by the glass but our first glasses of wine arrived well before our appetizers (I had ordered a sparkling wine from - no lie - New Mexico to pair with the tuna tartare appetizer but there was a long lag between receiving the drinks and the first course) and I was done with my entree before the pinot noir I had requested was brought to the table.

That said, the wine and food were all very good. The first wine I tried - the sparkling, from Gruet - was crisp and had pear and peach flavors, but not so much to overpower or clash with food. My first course was tangy and fresh: diced tuna and hamachi with grapefruit and watercress. Kevin started with a glass of oaky zinfandel and the crab cakes, which were thankfully not too bready (as a crab fanatic, too much filler is a cardinal crab cake sin in my mind). I had the lamb shank special which was served with exceptionally creamy polenta and sweet roasted tomatoes; Kevin had an excellent rib-eye steak with fingerlings and creamed spinach. The pinot noir (Roger, maybe? I can't recall the name but I think it was a Sonoma pinot) I ordered to have with my entree arrived too late to drink with the meal, but was delicious and chocolate-y.

Still, the overall experience didn't quite gel, and maybe it's a service issue more than anything else, but there was an...awkward vibe in the room. Also, and this might be nitpicking, but there was a large aromatic candle burning in the bar area, and while I couldn't smell it in the dining room (and it didn't smell BAD), I strongly dislike scented candles mixing with food; it's just too much. But, as I was waiting for my coat, I overheard the bartender waxing on about oyster varieties which gave me pause and might mean a return trip is warranted, even if just to sit at the bar and have some Blue Points. As long as that candle isn't burning.

Noble Food and Wine is located at 7 Spring Street and accepts all major credit cards. The menu is seasonal/new American, and the most noteworthy thing is their reserve list of wines by the glass (for instance: a glass of Silver Oak cabernet. For $55. A glass.)

Momofuku Ssam Bar

Two words I never thought I'd see on a menu: ham cream.  But we'll get to that later...

Every year when the New York Magazine "Where to Eat" issue hits newsstands, I get a rush of food-frenzy anxiety, suddenly desperate to visit all the hot spots, all the best new restaurants, all the hardest-to-get tables.  Of course, since every other New Yorker is like-minded, there are no available tables at any of those New! Hot! Spots!  Which is when I become thankful for the more democratic (albeit frustrating) no-reservations policy at certain restaurants which allow anyone with the patience and/or free time to dine in their midst.

(photo courtesy of NY Magazine)

My friend Rebecca and I decided to try for an early Saturday night dinner at either Momofuku Noodle or Momofuku Ssam Bar, in the East Village, pending the wait at David Chang's two restaurants.    We arrived at Momofuku Ssam (our first choice, as the menu seems more geared towards dinner than the noodle bar) around 7:30 and were immediately seated at the cramped but sleek bar, right in front of the kitchen window (a spot I always like).   And, as crowded as the bar space is, I appreciated being in close proximity to other diners because I was curious about many of the dishes and liked being able to scan around and even ask our neighbors for ordering tips.  (They might not have liked that as much.)

My first tip: get the pork buns.  I love pork buns in almost all of their manifestations, because it's hard to go wrong with dough and pork, but the pillow-y dough and pork belly were delicious.  My second tip: as enticing as all the pork dishes are, don't overlook the raw bar.  We split an order of scallops that were described by our waiter as 'sexy', and while that may be pure up-selling hooey, the scallops were pretty sexy: thinly sliced and served with pickled cherries and tart watercress.  We also had an order of fried brussel sprouts that come crispy and spicy, courtesy of chili, mint and fish sauce.  I didn't try any of the larger pork dishes (and was especially interested in the clay pot dish) but enjoyed the hangar steak ssam - Bibb lettuce do-it-yourself wraps with marinated beef, kimchi and ginger scallion. 

I had two glasses of rose Cava which went especially well with the scallops and the pork, but on my next visit to Momofuku would like to sample some of the sakes.  And, on my next visit - if I can round up a group to go along with me - I'd like to try the Bo Ssam: the whole Berkshire pork butt, slow roasted in sugar, soy sauce and wine. 

But now for the aforementioned Ham Cream: Rebecca and I looked over the brief dessert menu and were immediately struck by the Amish cheddar shortcake with apples and ham cream.  What's ham cream? we asked our waiter.  Well, he said, it's whipped cream with some ham flavor in it.  Or, so it's exactly what it sounds like, we said.  Yep, he told us.  But he recommended the dessert, telling us how the savory cream and the caramelized apples played off one another.  We took his recommendation, and we were very, very glad to have done so.  The shortbread was actually more of a biscuit - softer than I think of shortbread being - and had just the right amount of sharp cheddar bite to it, the apples were diced and sauteed, and the ham cream was light and rich with a slight savory flavor to it, more smoky tham ham-y, and altogether, it was delicious.

Our total bill, which included 4 drinks, 4 dishes and 2 desserts, came to $112 before tip.  Momofuku Ssam Bar (212 254 3500)is located on the corner of 2nd Avenue and 13th Street, and accepts all major credit cards.  Reservations are not accepted (unless you are ordering the Bo Ssam, which must be pre-ordered).  They are open for both lunch and dinner, and serve until 2am.

Prune

Prune is so cute that it seems almost dangerous; it's easy to think that surely the pink t-shirts and mismatched flatware, the tiny tables and cheerful staff are all part of a downtown neighborhood bistro gimmick.  But the constant crowds at Prune all seem to indicate that the food can stand up for itself (especially at brunch, as Prune is known for the wait as much as the fare), so I was anxious to finally eat there.

I ate with a party of nine people, and negotiating a party that size in a space that small can sometimes be tricky, but Prune welcomed us eagerly.  Prune's menu has a sort of an eclectic home-cooking slant to traditional bistro dishes, with some Mediterranean flair as well.  The table started off with several appetizers to share, and the bone marrow and sweetbreads both won raves.  I split an order of three generous bones - roasted and full of rich marrow, served with toasted bread, sea salt and fresh parsley - and was digging with my friends, flipping the bones over and over, scooping out every bit of the yummy goo.  The table also split several of the vegetable sides, and we were in agreement that the roasted yams in brown butter were the favorite, although I personally was a bigger fan of the creamed chestnuts, served with a generous dollop of ricotta. 

I had P.E.I. mussels in a spicy almond-chili broth as my entree; the mussels were plump and sweet and the broth rich and vibrant.  Several of my friends ate the slow-cooked pork shoulder with salsa verde which was tender and tasty, and the whole fish of the day - a grilled branzino stuffed with greens and lemon, and dressed with fennel and herbs - won raves as well. 

The dessert menu is somewhat limited, and we again split a few items among the table; I was most intrigued by the "sugared hay" dish, which turned out to be sweet shredded phyllo dough (imagine shredded  wheat, but with phyllo, sort of) topped with Greek yogurt and squares of candied pumpkin.  I'm not a fan of too-sweet desserts, and this dish could have been a breakfast as much as a post-meal treat, and won points for being something utterly new to me. 

One impressive note: Prune boasts an extensive cocktail menu, surprising for such a small restaurant, but there were a good number of wines by the glass available, many beers, and well over a dozen cocktails - both classic and signature.  I had a glass of Cava and then two glasses of a crisp, refreshing Chardonnay from a new-ish Sonoma winery - Lioco - that I almost never find on a wine list and was more than happy to encounter at Prune.

Dinner and drinks came out to just under $90 per person, including cocktails, appetizers, sides, entrees and tip/tax.   The menu is priced moderately high for the casual neighborhood spot it is, but the foodie crowd that's found a fit on East 1st Street doesn't seem to mind (The Tasting Room is just a few doors east of Prune).  Prune (212.677.6221) is located at 54 East 1st Street and accepts all major credit cards, but doesn't allow cell phones.

Knife & Fork

Tasting menus are always a gamble; diners are often asked to shell out money in the hopes that they get enough of the dishes they like and not too much of those they don't, on top of which is the suspicion that the dishes are showcasing what's plentiful in the kitchen, but not necessarily special.  On the other hand, a tasting menu is a good way to get a sense of a restaurant's story, and to understand the chef and the menu in a larger context.  Then again, tasting menus can be over priced and poorly paced…you see why I think of them as a gamble.

The tasting menu at Knife & Fork seemed like a sure thing, however: $45 for six courses at a restaurant where nearly everything on the menu appealed to me.  And surely for a very reasonable $45, the six courses would all be small, after all, most tasting menus cost more and feature five dishes at most.

Well, we were wrong about the size of the dishes, but the cost of the meal seemed even more reasonable once we started eating.  And eating.  And eating.  None of the courses was a miss, but by the fifth course, we were ready to cry Uncle.

First, a little about the restaurant: small, exposed brick, narrow bar, heavy rustic tables featuring a surprisingly fish-heavy menu and a wine list that includes both sake and an entire page of beers – in fact, the room itself has a casual, pub-like vibe that almost undercuts the serious food being served there.  Chef/owner Damien Brassel opened Knife & Fork in 2006 and designed his menu with an emphasis on sustainability and seasonality.  Starters are almost all $14 or $15, and entrees are priced at $27 or $28; there are many slow cooked and smoked dishes, with occasional Asian flourishes, like lemongrass and ginger in a butternut squash puree.

Our tasting menu started with an appetizer of fromage blanc over a disk of  butternut squash, topped with a sun-dried tomato tapenade and elderberry flower, which was notable for the unusual blending of both flavors and textures – it was refreshing and rich at the same time.  Next was one of my favorite dishes, a delicate piece of cured salmon topped with salmon roe, alongside wasabi crème fraiche and a sake-poached pear.  The third course, which was still considered an appetizer, was an enormous slab of pork belly served over creamed savoy cabbage with butternut squash-lemongrass-ginger puree, and it was so good, so rich, so over the top that I couldn't finish it, although the caramelized crust on the pork belly was basically meat candy.

At this point, we started to get really full and were speculating that maybe the additional courses included a palate-cleanser.  Not so.

The fourth dish was a grouper entrée, served with sautéed Russian fingerling potatoes and chanterelle mushrooms.  The fish itself didn't do much for me, but the potatoes and mushrooms were fragrant and delicious.  As the servers cleared our plates, we mentioned how full we were starting to feel.  Oh don't worry, you only have two courses left, they said, Just the meat and the dessert.  A meat course, we repeated.
The meat course was braised short ribs served over vanilla-infused potato puree.  I know that short ribs have become ubiquitous to the point of overkill on menus these days, but I still love them.  If left to order straight from the menu, I would happily have the cured salmon starter and the braised short rib entrée.  Happily. 

Dessert was a ginger crème brulee, and the only thing wrong with it was that we were too full to totally enjoy it.  And then, the chef sent out a dense chocolate cake topped with pistachio ice cream, just because.  We forced a few bites down and then more or less rolled ourselves to 2nd Avenue in search of a cab.

We had a bottle of Barbera D'Asti with out meal, moderately priced at $38, and the $45 per person tasting menu seemed beyond reasonable, considering the amount of (really, really good) food we were served.  When I return to Knife & Fork (and I plan on returning) I will stick to the menu, but this tiny rustic spot is definitely worth your time.

Knife & Fork (212 228 4885) is located at 108 E. 4th Street and accepts all major credit cards. 

Hall of Fame: AOC Bedford

I've mentioned AOC Bedford frequently enough (either on this site or to whomever will listen) that it seems criminal not to have told you all about it in detail.  After dinner on Saturday night, I remembered just how much I love this tiny spot, and how fond I am of Bedford Street in general, especially on a night mild enough to warrant leaving all the windows open, which the restaurant did, spilling itself out onto the street just a little bit.

"A.O.C." is used in France to designate products that have been officially deemed representative of a certain region (sort of like a cru in the wine world); in Spain the designation is D.O. and in Italy it's D.O.C., and basically all that means is that if you see a particular cheese or oil or truffle or whathaveyou prefaced with those initials, it's going to be good.  And AOC Bedford has designed their menu around such ingredients.

The menu is straightforward -- it's arranged by the main ingredient, and there is one of everything, meaning there will be a Pasta, a Beef, a Lamb, a Fish, etc.  The preparations tend towards the rustic and the simple, and have French, Spanish and Italian influences.  The wine list is concise; one of my favorite things about AOC Bedford is actually their cocktail menu, which features what they call "classic" cocktails - my favorite is the grapefruit martini, but people I've eaten with at AOC speak highly of the Old Fashioned.  The room is small, with exposed brick and beams, cozy, quaint, blah blah blah charming and romantic and comfortable, all the things I like in a restaurant. 

One of my all-time favorite appetizers happens to be a signature dish at AOC -- the octopus carpaccio.  It is divine.  I crave it.  I cannot speak highly enough about it.  And, it's beautiful.  It comes served on a wide plate, thin cross sections of octopus somehow held together in a large pancake which has been drizzled with the best olive oil I've ever tasted and sprinkled with red pepper and fleur de sel, with toasted bread alongside.  Every time I eat at AOC Bedford I have this dish, and Saturday was no exception and I am telling you, if you go: GET THE OCTOPUS.  It looks like stained glass when it's served, and I adore it.

I ordered the fish as my entree - the fish dish is almost always a market special; last weekend it was grilled grouper served in a creamy red curry (maybe?) sauce with teeny, delicious asparagus on top. Kevin ordered what is usually my go-to entree at AOC, the duck breast, seared to a crisp and served with vanilla infused mashed potatoes and a wine-poached pair.   It is every bit as rich as that sounds...

Our entrees were delicious, as I knew they would be, and the Pinot Gris we drank with our meal was acidic enough to stand up to my cream sauce and Kevin's duck.  We ordered the Crepes Suzette for dessert, because if you go to AOC Bedford, you have to order the Crepes Suzette, for the presentation if nothing else; the table side preparation adds a nice bit of drama.  (There isn't much of a dessert menu, and I don't believe there is actually a pastry chef, but the creme brulee and crepes are lovely.)

I find everything about AOC Bedford to be perfect; the service is warm but neither fussy nor intrusive, the crowd is usually a nice mix, the food is excellent and the room always, always, always feels welcoming. 

One touch that never gets old: the bill is presented with a candle in a pewter candlestick, the edges of the paper burned for a nice aesthetic touch.  And!  AOC Bedford offers BYOB Mondays during the summer!

It's one of my favorite spots in the city, one I never get tired of.  AOC Bedford (212 414 4764) is located at 14 Bedford Street, and offers a 10% discount to diners who pay cash.

Zucco: Le French Diner

New York changes seasons like flipping a switch; one day you're sweltering on the subway platform and the next you find yourself thinking, Hmmm, you know, I think I might need a sweater...  Just as suddenly, my food cravings change.  The first nip of fall, which arrived (as best I can tell) on Saturday, left my little household craving red meat and red wine. 

Our unofficial tradition has become to celebrate Kevin's birthday with steak frites.  We've steak frited all over downtown Manhattan and our neck of Brooklyn, and upon the recommendation of a Francophile friend of mine, decided to take this year's steak fest to Zucco, on the Lower East Side.

Anyone who knows me knows I like quirky, I like small, and I like back story; Zucco provided all those, in abundance.  The space is tiny - as in, two proper tables, a few stools, and a bar; one of the articles I read quoted the owner (the single-monikered Zucco) as saying he can seat 20 thin people, or 14 fat ones.  Frankly, I can't imagine 20 people in the little space, but the size wasn't a problem as the bar was entirely open when we arrived.   The dim space is full of French kitsch that leans heavily towards both religious icons and boxing memorabilia, and manages to feel art-directed and shabbily haphazard at the same time.  Bowie was playing on the stereo, and behind the bar were three people: the tattooed host, the busboy, and the cook.

The menu is straightforward French bistro fare, and the prices are moderate (I didn't see anything over $20 and most dishes were under $15) and the selection is plentiful.  I ordered the lentil salad, tangy with red wine vinegar, and Kevin started with a spinach and goat cheese salad that was made even better by the bird's eye view we had of the preparation: the cook sliced disks of goat cheese on top of baby spinach, then wrapped the whole thing into a sort of phyllo dough envelope, which was sauteed in butter and then plated over mixed greens.  Divine.  I had the hangar steak served with a red wine shallot sauce and a bubbling potato gratin, and Kevin had the shell steak with herbed butter and crisp, brown frites.  Everything was great, but what I loved most was watching the cook; the French Onion Soup was one of the most enticing dishes I've ever seen prepared -- seeing the onions sauteed in stock and then poured into a crock with a piece of toast, heaped with cheese and sent under the salamander made me regret my lentils, just a little.   With our meal we had a $24 bottle of Cotes Du Rhone which was nothing to write home about, and in hindsight perhaps not meaty enough for our entrees, but was nice and dry and also, $24.  Our entire bill, before tip, came to $88.

The food at Zucco can hold its own with most of the other bistros in New York I've tried, but the atmosphere sets it apart.  I've had my share of zinc bars and red banquettes; this funny little spot endeared itself to me with the ephemera and the attitude and most of all, the open kitchen.  Zucco (212 677 5200) is located at 188 Orchard Street and accepts American Express.            

Trestle on Tenth

Some friends were in town last week and upon the recommendation of a co-worker, we ended up at Trestle on Tenth, a spot I must have walked past countless times but never noticed.

After about an hour of drinking and chatting and nibbling, we all sort of looked at one another and proclaimed, We have to come back here when it's cold.  The menu, which is seasonal-American with French and Swiss influences, was full of the kind of toasty, rich (borderline heavy) fare that goes best with scarves and coats and lots of red wine.   (The cocktail menu, however, was all Summer: refreshing drinks with bitters and fizzy things and cucumbers and watermelon...there were maybe eight signature drinks and the three or four that we sampled were absolutely delightful.  Delightful enough to have had seconds.  And by seconds, I mean thirds.)

I started with a glass of Riesling -- it was sweet, almost too sweet to have had with food, but was perfect as a cocktail -- and we split the charcuterie plate which featured some nice, nutty cheeses.  Emilie has a hard time resisting sweetbreads and the bite I had of hers was pretty fantastic; seared to a crisp and served over white asparagus with pea shoots, they were actually a really nice balance to the Riesling, now that I think about it.  Caroline and I both had the crepinette of pork shoulder, which - according to my South Carolina-born girlfriends - was like home cooking: braised pork shoulder formed into a sort of pattie (although I don't remember a casing, which I'm pretty sure is what makes a crepinette a crepinette, no?) and heaped over sauteed greens, and it was very, very good.

Emilie also tried the chilled tomato soup because it is served with corn and crab meat, which are two things that are basically impossible to resist.  Caroline and I went straight for the heartiest, heaviest, most comfort-foody thing on the menu, the gratinéed pizokel with onions and gruyère, which was, more or less, a trough of fried dough, onions, and cheese.  (And when I say a trough of fried dough, onions, and cheese, I mean to say YUUUMMMMM.)  The downside, sadly, was that I had a stomach ache for the better part of the 15 hours that followed our meal, but it was worth it.  However, in case you are wondering, ONE order of the pizokel is more than enough for three people.

In terms of design and atmosphere, Trestle is exactly the sort of place I love.  It's small but airy, comfortable and cozy while still maintaining a nice, sleek vibe, and the music playing was fantastic.  The service was a little off, and sort of hard to describe; our waiter would be extremely attentive but then forget to bring us something we'd requested (I got a wine glass 5 minutes before I got the wine, and another 10 minutes went by before Emilie and Caroline got their cocktails, and the bar was not that busy).  Still, the overall experience makes me comfortable recommending Trestle as a great weeknight neighborhood option.  I plan on returning, for sure.  And I highly recommend the cocktail that is called a Scottish something or other, because WOW, it was good.

Trestle (212 645 5659) is located on the southeast corner of Tenth Avenue and 24th Street, and accepts all major credit cards.

Del Posto

My parents visited New York last week, which meant that dinner reservation planning began at least a month prior.  They generously took Kevin and me out to Del Posto one night, and I have to say: if you are looking for a grown-up, elegant-without-being-stuffy, downtown-but-not-sceney dinner, Del Posto is an excellent place to start.  It's hard to pin down the vibe, exactly, and there's an element to Del Posto that seems contrived -- the food, after all, is not fussy, so things like purse stools and valet parking seem a bit over the top, but I think that's the point.  Del Posto wasn't created to be the new Babbo or Lupo; it's something else entirely.

First of all, it is huge.  Huge.  There are three levels in the cavernous, high-ceilinged space tucked under the high line tracks on 10th Avenue.  Having not lived through New York in the 1950's I can only say that the decor of Del Posto captures the way I picture it; dark wood, amber lights, heavy linens, round tables facing out towards more marble than I have ever seen in any restaurant.   Despite the retro decor, however, thee menu doesn't feel dated in the least. 

Del Posto describes its dishes as "Cucina Classica" which, as best I can tell, means simple Italian dishes from several regions of Italy, interpreted and updated with green market ingredients.  The menu looked lighter and more balanced than that of Babbo -- or less rustic, at least.  Before ordering, the table was served an assortment of antipasti bites -- pickled radishes, fried mushrooms, fennel and grapefruit soup...and at least one other item that I am forgetting, but what I do remember is the creamy rosemary lardo (why does "fat" sound so much better in Italian?) that came alongside the breadbasket.

Our table opted for the five course modified tasting menu option, which was more of a screamingly good prix fixe option than a true tasting menu (which IS offered, in seven courses): the five course option was $85 per person and included a first and main course of everyone's choosing, plus two "bites" (small plates, much more than just a bite!) of pasta, and a dessert.  The only stipulation to this tasting menu was that the table had to select which two pastas we'd all be having; the other three courses were fair game.

I started with the yellowfin & tail susci, which was delicate and brightly accented with radish, fennel, snow peas and marigold petals.   I love seafood in almost all its incarnations, but raw and lightly splashed with heavenly olive oil is possibly my favorite preparation; I want to taste the fish above all else, and the crunchy radishes and delicate flower petals let the crudo shine through.

Our pastas were the Agnolotti dal Plin in a brown butter sauce and the gnocchi with braised lamb shoulder.  The agnolotti was rich and almost salty, and the gnocchi was gooey without being gummy.  We were drinking a delicious Barbera D'Alba that was especially good with the gnocchi.

I went back to ocean for my entree, though -- there were actually more fish options on the menu than I anticipated.  I had the roasted turbot with chanterelles and sweet corn, which was excellent.  It wasn't fussy, and I'm not even sure it wasn't something I could have replicated at home, but the fish was fresh and meaty and mild, the corn was crisp and sweet...everything was just good.  Mario Batali gets a lot of flack over his prices and over all the fanfare for what amounts to pretty simple dishes, but I'm sorry: the food is good.  Simple is fine with me.  I like a little fanfare now and then, and sure, I'm not going to spend $30 on an entree every night but there was nothing - nothing - to find fault with in any of the dishes we sampled at Del Posto.

Between my husband and my parents, the lamb and the pork were both covered, as was a nearly-transparent veal carpaccio starter; I heard nothing but happy mumbles as they ate their dinners.

My memory starts to blur around dessert (and the second bottle of wine).  I had the affogatto fredo (espresso over vanilla gelato) which, quite honestly, was nothing to write home about but I was so full that I just wanted something simple (and, I always, always, always love a good vanilla gelato).  My mother, we decided, won the dessert round; her Baba au Rum came in a silver tureen, involved a selection of rums poured over brioche, and I think there was also caramel in there somewhere.  It was extreme.

Before the bill arrived (and yeah, it was a million dollars; Del Posto absolutely screams Expense Account), one of the many servers (...almost too many.  The service was excellent but almost too visible, at times) brought over the petits four cart.  Which is an entire cart devoted to all the little bites of sweet things you can imagine.  I can't remember all of them, although I know my favorites were the teeny meringues, and the "fancy Reese's Peanut Butter Cups" were a hit with everyone else.  I am a sucker for teeny tiny dessert items, and also for all the extras that restaurants now seem to throw at patrons in an effort to distinguish themselves, so the petits fours almost distracted me from HOW VERY FULL I was by that point (I made the strategic error of drinking too much water, I think) but I think I managed to sample at least three of the little sweets.  And then I passed out.

Well, not quite.  We made it home first, happy and full.

Del Posto (212 497 8090) is located at 85 Tenth Avenue and accepts all major credit cards.  The restaurant begins accepting reservations exactly one month in advance.

Po

I realize that Mario Batali is one of those figures - like Martha Stewart - whom people either love or hate.  And, like Martha Stewart, I love him.  Yeah, I've read all the negatives things about him, his footwear and his temper but I don't care: his food is really, really good.  I've never eaten at the Cornelia Street restaurant Po, either before or after Batali's tenure there, but the newly-opened Brooklyn location offered us the chance to sample some great trattoria fare which seems to still bear some of Molto Mario's influences.

Po recenlty opened on Smith Street, confirming what Brooklynites have been witnessing over the past two or three years: the bisto is Over, and the trattoria is In.  Po joins Lunetta, Frankies Sputino and Boca Lupo in offering the neighborhood rustic, casual Italian food with nary a red sauce to be found. 

We went on Saturday night, and enjoyed the meal very much although the hosts were so flustered in seating us that I considered for a minute heading somewhere else to eat.  There was about a 10 minute wait for a table of two, which on a Saturday night was no problem whatsoever for my husband and me, but the initial process of giving our names to the hostess just seemed to cause a sort of...commotion.  It was fine once we were seated, but the front of the house was so flustered that it almost made me uncomfortable. 

But, the food!  Was really quite good.  Once seated, we were given dense, chewy Italian bread and two bruschetta topped with white beans in marinade.  These I loved, and would happily have ordered for the $2 they are listed for on the menu.  I started with the cured tuna antipasti which I plan to replicate at home as soon as possible.  Chunk of cured tuna were tossed with fennel, white beans, artichoke, red onion and (I think) some frisee lettuce (or maybe savoy cabbage?).  It was hearty and refreshing at the same time, and the chili mint vinaigrette livened up every flavor in the dish.  Kevin started with a special appetizer of figs and melon with prosciutto, drizzled in a balsamic reduction and topped with shaved Parmesan Reggiano -- can I just say how much I enjoy fig season, because really, what is better?  Yum.

I had a pasta dish for my entree; continuing the white bean theme I ordered the white bean ravioli in a balsamic brown butter sauce.  Come October, I will like this dish a lot more, I predict.  The pasta itself was delicious and tender, and the white bean filling was delicious, but the balsamic brown butter sauce was a little too rich for me; with every bite I kept thinking, This tastes like dessert.  Or Autumn.  Don't get me wrong: I ate the whole thing, but the brown butter was just a little too much for me. 

Kevin was feeling carnivorous and opted for the skirt steak which was served over green beans and roasted red peppers.  I think both of us are eager to go back to Po in order to sample some of the other pastas as well as the guinea hen, which I hear is fantastic.

We had a bottle of delicious sangiovese which I believe started with an "O" and I realize that it completely non-helpful, but it was fantastic and apparently, not on the on-line wine list.  For dessert, we split the Po sundae, which is a scoop of mint gelato topped with hot fudge and spicy pine nuts.  As someone who has little or no interest in hot fudge sundaes I have to say, This was pretty good.  The mint was milder than I expected, but the crunch of the pine nuts was an excellent touch. 

The food was good enough that I am eager to go back and keep looking at the menu on-line trying to decide what I want to try next.  The service was good, and the room is cozy but comfortable.  I'm not sure how many more casual Italian sputino and trattoria-style restaurants the Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill/Boreum Hill crowd can support, but I think there is definitely room for Po.

Po Brooklyn (781 875 1980) is located at 276 Smith Street, between Sackett and DeGraw, and accepts American Express.