Perry St. / Minetta Tavern

I went to Perry St. for restaurant week, had their house-made mozzarella and tomatoes, peekytoe crab salad, (their take on) fried chicken and molten chocolate cake. The cake was standard- I mean, I’ve never met a molten chocolate cake I didn’t like (same thing with presents) but the rest of the meal was quite outstanding. The chicken was incredibly creative- there were elements of thai chili and lemongrass in the crispy skin and the meat itself was extremely moist. There was a great lemon butter sauce on the side, as well as a side of corn kernels which were sweet and surprisingly satisfying for just being….corn. The appetizers were great as well- the mozz was superb and the crab salad was an amalgam of crab, sweet peas, mango, and something crunchy. All ingredients were fresh and beautifully displayed. In my opinion, it was a steal at $35.

And finally, I went to Minetta Tavern, which is conveniently located directly around the corner from me on Macdougal between Bleecker & West 3rd. It was a pure, unadulterated, ravenous, animalistic experience. There were no DeNiro or Madonna sightings- but I was too enraptured and high off of the excellent food I was eating to notice, even if they had been there. The service was impeccable. The bartenders were cute (omg) and their libations: flowing. Like wine! I had two of their signature cocktails: one a curious mix of a dark & stormy and hard cider (if you went to college with me- you will understand how fantastic this is to me) and the other a ginger cocktail. For an appetizer, I had their roasted bone marrow which comes in the form of two enormous bones cut in half, roasted, and a side of a shallot and pork confit. Holy shit! The waiter accurately described it as “the richest, beefiest butter you’ve ever had”. I couldn’t have said it better myself. I had never had bone marrow before, but I am a convert. Should you ever see it on a menu, ORDER IT.

After that, my entrée arrived. The most fantastic New York strip I’ve ever eaten. An aged, enormous, perfectly charred slice of heaven, cooked medium-rare, not garnished in the least. It tasted so fantastic I literally moaning throughout the entire meal to the point where the waiter looked over at me and laughed. As a side, I had the potatoes Anna, which is an au gratin kind of dish that was equally superb. For dessert, I had the chocolate soufflé which tops the list of any and all I’ve ever had (the list is long). As an aperitif, at the suggestion of my dear father, I had absinthe which truly put me over the edge, to the point where Milan and I (who came to Minetta as well) walked to BROOKLYN from the village. We brown bagged it with a Delerium Tremens on the way, had a Beer Lao and a lychee martini upon arrival in Williamsburg, and took the L back. We were literally giddy and giggling the entire 2 hour walk; that’s how fantastic this food was.

The cocktails:

Gin Blossom miller's gin, st. germain elderflower liqueur, aperol, fresh grapefruit

Stormy Cider goslings black seal rum, fresh apple cider, chinese five spice infusion, fresh lemon

Frank Bruni’s description of the beef at Minetta:

But were you prepared for a côte de boeuf like Minetta’s, a sublime hunk of glorious meat that you dream about hours later, pine for the next day and extol in a manner so rapturous and nonstop that friends begin to worry less about your cholesterol than about your sanity?

No, Frank. I was not prepared.