INNOCENT

We dined at Susur this past Saturday evening. It was a curiously unsatisfactory experience. We went in with great expectations. Well, the service was disappointing and the food was--memorable, but not in a satisfying way. We talked about the whys and wherefores extensively afterwards. To give the chef and the experience its due will take more time than I have right now. I'll leave it to K. to fill in the blanks.

Back in the 70s when the Paramount (the Century Paramount then) had nice rooms for around $50, I used to breakfast at this HOJO regularly. The routine was that, when I asked for a cup of coffee, the crusty old waiter behind the counter would reply--"Cough a cuppee?" What the hell, it's an authentic NY memory...

Yes, it was pretty. I'd say "vague" rather than subtle. I'll write about our meals at GT, Union Sq. Cafe and Annisa when I get the chance. These were memorable dining experiences.

We arrived at db at 5:30 a few Friday's ago. The greeting was friendly and we were seated promplty in the mostly empty room. It gradually filled, but there were empty tables when we left. We let the waiter know that we had to be out at 7:30 for a Bway show. They were very courteous and reminded us towards the completion of the meal that they had our schedule in mind. The service throughout our meal was genuinely warm and professional. I ordered from the prix-fixe menu, starting with the guinea hen terrine with foie gras and housemade pickled vegetables. My wife ordered a la carte, beginning with the tomato gazpacho with avocado and ruby red shrimp. We found the gazpacho to be underflavoured. Unless some chilantro was included in the spoonfull of soup, the flavor was underwhelming. I loved the pickled vegetables that came with the terrine. They were bursting with flavour and firmly textured. The terrine itself was a disappointment. Nice texture, little taste. Of course, my wife had to order the db burger--sirloin burger, filled with braised short ribs, foie gras and black truffle, served on a parmesan bun with pommes soufflees. Now, I know that everyone raves about this burger. The honest truth is that, that evening, it was simply unmemorable. For whatever reason, it was-- BORING. When the two gentlemen at the adjoining table both ordered the burgers and then asked for salt and pepper to be brought to the table, I rolled my eyes. But the fact is, the burgers needed condiments of some sort to give them flavor. My main was the sauteed striped bass with artichoke, bacon, tomato water emulsion. The presentation was lovely. A nice piece of fish in a broth that was a spring green color with a few small red tomatoes in it. The broth looked so appetizing that I reached for a spoonful before tasting the fish. Disappointment. Underflavored again. The fish itself was fine. For dessert, we shared the tarte du jour, a lemon tart. Although the lemon filling was nice, the pastry was tough. The thing resisted our forks and glided across the plate like a hockey puck. In conclusion, I won't say that the emperor has no clothes. It's just that, at that particular time on that particular day, the food was disappointing. This was suprising in the extreme. One has to ponder the question--what's going on in the kitchen?

The bar was dead on a Sunday evening. Bring a book, or some bookends to keep you vertical.

Our apps that memorable evening at Compass were the Corn Soup (my wife) and the Rissoto Fritters. The soup was fresh and delicate, subtle and nuanced. My Fritters were served with a red pepper coulis. The texture was a bit gummy but very flavourful. For mains, I had the organic liver. This was a thick slab of liver served medium rare as ordered. Perfectly cooked and simply presented. Very tasty. The other main ordered was cod with a parmesan crust in a tomato based broth. Perhaps the broth was over sweet but the fish was perfectly satisfactory. My Lemongrass Panecotta arrived with a lovely arrangement of cut grapes. I had three panecotti (?) that week, one as part of the tasting menu at GT and one at Anissa. This one stood up very well in that company. Subtly herbal in flavour with the light texture of a daydream. Memorable for its simplicity. My wife couldn't resist the Basil Cake. We both were basically bored with it. Underflavoured and unexciting texture. This was a suprising disappointment, given the hype. A tasting of Carmelized fennel seeds was a welcome addition to freshen the palate. We also received a small glass of hot chocolate with Pastis (?). These were both complementary. The coffee was excellent. This was the least expensive dining experience of our week in NYC. Of course, in terms of overall value for the money... Our enduring food memory is the scallion biscuits that came with the bread basket. Light, delicate melt in the mouth texture with wonderful subtle flavour and aroma. They were generous when we requested seconds on these, bringing three more which were gobbled up in a flash. We were sent home with a paper sac containing two cranberry scones. Again, light, delicate and wonderful with breakfast the next morning. The four wines we had by the glass with our apps and mains were appropriate and satisfactory, aside from the mix up mentioned previously. And no, my champagne was not complementary, merely a tip of the hat to the power of positive thinking that, unfortunately, faded with the bubbles. So-- my problem wasn't with the food but with the disconnect between front of house and back of house. When both sides of the fine dining equation are so out of wack, the mood can turn sour pretty quickly. Actually, we ran into the same situation a few days earlier at DB Moderne. There, the front of house couldn't have been friendlier and more efficient, but the food!--what a disappointment all round. I'll try to find time later to go into that.

We arrived at Compass on a Sunday evening around 8:45 a few weeks ago. The greeting was friendly and we were led to our reserved booth in a timely manner. The room is spacious and well appointed. There were about six active tables in our vicinity but most of the restaurant was empty. Our red booth was comfortable and private. Maybe too private... Basically, we were abandoned at our table for 10 minutes or so. No menu, water or drinks. Finally, a waiter noticed the "thought bubbles" over our heads--you know, the ones that say--WHY ARE WE HERE AND IS IT TOO LATE TO CHANGE OUR MINDS". and brought water, champagne and the menu. We were told that another waiter would be with us shortly. Some time passed before our original waiter noticed the lack of action at our table and offered to take care of us himself. Our apps and mains were served in good time, although we had to do the dreaded "plate shuffle"--we're used to exchanging plates somewhat later in the meal to share tastes--not right off the bat. Pity they couldn't get it right--there were only two of us, although we eat like a crowd...And why were'nt we too surprised when one of the wines that was presented was not quite the wine we had ordered by the glass for apps and mains? Frankly by that point, we were just glad to have SOMETHING on the table. When the table was cleared after the mains, we were told to "just relax for a while". No water, desert order or coffee were offered. The disappearing waiter had struck again. We spotted the harassed fellow rushing around trying to take care of the three or four tables on the tier above us. Apparently, he was the only show in town. What really grated was all the active employees clearing the rest of the room for the next day. Surely all those energetic bodies (five or six) could have been better used serving the active tables? Grr... Ten minutes or so later, our waiter showed up and asked if he could do anything else for us. Well, yes. How about desert and coffee. Oh... The food was good if not exceptional. Those bisquits are heaven. But we could only conclude that Compass is in the throws of a death spiral. Surely no one with fine dining in mind would give this place more than one go? Luckily, our equanimity was restored over the next few days with memorable meals at GT, Annisa and Union Sq. Cafe.