A Perfect Lunch at Bouley-Sunday, September 24, 2006 120 W. Broadway, 212-964 2525 Bouley
We unsuccessfully tried for a late check out at the hotel. The bed was way too comfortable and the alarm went off way too early. So, we had to check out before heading to lunch. I was just a tiny bit grumpy that I could not come back from lunch and prepare for my endless flight. What happened at lunch made up for any inconvenience caused by the hotel.
We knew we would have a great meal at Bouley, we just weren’t prepared for how great of an experience it would be. Here is what Zagat had to say about the restaurant: "Star chef David Bouley is back at the top of his game at this “triumphant” TriBeCan serving “spectacular” New French cuisine in a lovely “vaulted” space via a “stealthily attentive” “pro” staff; connoisseurs “clear their credit cards” for this “mind-blowing” but “expensive” experience, or capitalize on the “extraordinary prix fixe lunch” deal."
First the room: it is painted in a burnt Siena, with arched door ways, plush upholstery and beautiful bouquets on each table. Everyone was dressed in their Sunday best, a contrast to the night before at A Voce, where I expected to see outfits from Sex and the City but saw grungy jeans instead. There were at least 2 staff members per patron. Our first treat was an amuse of tomato gazpacho with a watermelon gelee and Greek yogurt sorbet, served in a tiny espresso cup. Wow. Next they brought a trolley with artisan breads: I had pistachio and Arnie had roasted garlic. Huge chunks of pistachio and roasted garlic in soft pillows of bread. We started with the beverage one has before drinking wine, a ½ bottle of Sinsky Pinot Blanc. We choose the tasting menu of 5 courses ( 8 when you count the amuse and the 2 extra dessert treats, but who was counting).
I started with a little seafood medley: fine threads of phyllo dough wrapped around a prawn then fried; a diver scallop, scored on top, then sautéed so that the top was crispy but the inside was creamy; perfect grilled baby squid; a lump of Maryland crab so succulent it brought tears to my eyes. Arnie had Sashimi with shaved fennel in herbal oils. Mine was so good I paid no attention to his.
My next treat was a 3 oz. portion of wild king salmon with celery and Granny Smith Apple puree (forget mashed potatoes!) surrounded by a grain mustard sauce. The skin on the salmon was crisp and the interior of the salmon was still red. I thought it looked underdone but it tasted like butter. Arnie had the halibut with seasonal vegetables and carrot-orange emulsion. Yummy!
Then we opened the red wine, a bottle of 2003 Gigondas Rhone. Happy time.
I stuck with the duck theme from the night before and had roasted duck breast on a bed of diced celery root and a pistachio emulsion. The emulsion added an almost sweet note to the duck, which was done to perfection. Arnie had a roasted loin of pork, dusted with ground dried porcini mushrooms, served with slow cooked onions, broccoli rabe and star anise sauce. He said it was the best pig a man could ask for.
Next, to cleanse our overwhelmed palates, came a shot of concord grape soup with apple cider and ginger gelee and a dollop of fromage blanc sorbet. I’ll never look at a concord grape the same. Now that our palates were cleansed we were ready for dessert.
I had the hot Valrohona chocolate soufflé with maple syrup ice cream, vanilla ice cream and chocolate sorbet. What can you say about chocolate perfection?
We must have looked hungry as we waited for the bill, or maybe it was to soften the blow of the bill, but they brought us a plate of tiny little, half-bite sized pastries that evaporated before I could even take a picture. Then, to reward us for not making a fuss about the amount, and paying the bill, they brought a tray of chocolates with our receipt. We must have still looked hungry because they gave us a beautifully wrapped loaf of orange cake when we left. That served as a great treat on our long journey.
The loooooooooong flight to Rome.
We left Bouley restaurant more stuffed than a Christmas goose, took a cab to the hotel, picked up our bags and went to the airport. I didn’t realize that taxi driving in New York was a contact sport. The driver seemed to aim directly toward a pedestrian each time the “walking” man symbol was illuminated, like a bull charging a red cape. New York pedestrians are good: there was no blood shed. Our trip to New York coincided with the United Nations Summit. The city was crawling with security, swat teams, secret service and every other kind of uniform imaginable. The driver complained that streets were blocked off so that diplomats could go shopping. Many of them were also going to the airport. There were armed patrols on every overpass on the way to the airport. I felt especially safe, that is until I was allowed to, inadvertently, bring ¼ ounce of tooth paste past the security check point. If they let me have toothpaste, God only knows what else they let past! Overall the airport experience was civilized. There was no security line. We did this trip on American Airline miles. They put us on Iberia airlines, which turned out to be great. British Airlines shares its business class lounge with Iberia. The physical space was beautiful, very tranquil, light wood, greenery, natural light. Beverages of all varieties were free flowing as were the snack foods. Keep in mind that we just finished a 2 hour mega-meal, so all I managed was water. I think Arnie sampled a few wines. There was free internet access and showers. Sadly, Iberia does not contract with the Molton Brown Spa, so I did not have access to free massage. I can’t complain too much, the business class seats were free.
We were delighted when we actually got on the plane and saw that the business class seats fully recline, that’s right, we had a bed! Once you’ve gone flat, you can not go back. We waited for take-off, which was delayed by about an hour, took our sleeping pills, snuggled up in our be and slept for 6 hours. We woke up outside of Madrid, had breakfast and landed in Madrid when it was still dark. There was 2 hour wait before boarding our flight to Rome. What a let down to be in an ordinary seat. But, we got to Rome safe and sound and after a relatively good night’s sleep.
