wd-50 2008 -

[Tiny]

I ate there friday night and had an AMAZING meal. Bone marrow, Lamb tenderloin, pork belly, coconut dessert, jasmine dessert, white chocolate and beer dessert, cherry covered chocolate dessert.

The pork belly was the single best pork belly plate I have ever had, the lamb dish reminded me of "all that is man"...meat potato, pretzel, beer, mustard....Every dessert was spectacular with the coconut being my favorite and I normally hate raw coconut. I have never had Mr Mason's desserts but Mr. Stupak's are borderline flawless....his kung fu is strong.

Over all, one of the top 5 meals of my life!

Edited May 29, 2008 by Tiny (log)

[Shaina]

hey i finally made it to wd-fifty. i did enjoy the pizza pebbles, and the overall experience was great. i even got to meet wylie dufresne, and i had an awesome meal. check out my dining experience + leave me some feedback on my site

http://getinmebelly.wordpress.com/

[Nathan]

pretty new menu (to me anyway).

smoked eel app was meh.

striped bass with wood ear mushrooms and chicken sausage consomme was darn good. liked the concept behind the pork sparerib entree more than the result...but it was still pretty tasty.

coconut cake with brown butter sorbet is fricktastic.

[NY_Amateur]

pretty new menu (to me anyway).

smoked eel app was meh.

striped bass with wood ear mushrooms and chicken sausage consomme was darn good.  liked the concept behind the pork sparerib entree more than the result...but it was still pretty tasty.

coconut cake with brown butter sorbet is fricktastic.

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I ate there about 3 weeks ago and I think overall it was a much better experience then the last time, the food just seemed tastier to be, I was seriously underwhelmed my first visit (about 18 months ago) but overall it was pretty delicious this time. My dining partner in crime is a vegetarian but wd-50 did a great job accommodating her, I guess the coffee gnocchi was pretty bleh but I didn't taste it. Overall I really feel like it was just so much better then last time and I am glad I tried it again, unfortunately 200~ for dinner is a bit out of my weekly meal pricerange but I think I will stop in here more often for ala carte, not to mention that the deserts which are always ridick. I just got my egullet account and didn't even know this thread existed or I would have posted an in detail review at the time. I do remember the palm seeds cooked in angosutra bitters with the tongue being RIDICULOUSLY good. as were the chocolate packets.

[tan319]

hey i finally made it to wd-fifty.  i did enjoy the pizza pebbles, and the overall experience was great.  i even got to meet wylie dufresne, and i had an awesome meal.  check out my dining experience + leave me some feedback on my site

http://getinmebelly.wordpress.com/

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Went to the site, saw no article?

[Kent Wang]

Grub Street says: Dusfresne offers lunch beginning April 23.  7-courses for $75, in addition to special lunch dishes.

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Has anyone tried this? Is it a good value, say compared to Momofuku Noodle/Ssam, or Jean-Georges weekday lunch ($72 gets you four plates). I realize those might not be the most fair comparisons, but it's what I'm trying to decide between.

[BryanZ]

So I was actually weighing nearly the exact same options recently. Neither NB or SB offer any kind pf prix fixe so you might as well hold off for dinner unless you only have one meal and really want to try one of the Momos. Not sure where you're getting that $72 figure from for JG, perhaps you can clarify. When I called wd~50 to ask about the lunch the other day I was told it's about nine courses for the same $75. Sounds prettty awesome. I'd also highly suggest the lunch tasting menu at EMP for $58, however.

[kathryn]

Ssam Bar has a tasting menu, actually, but it's not written on the standard menu. $75 I think. Not sure if it's dinner only though, I'd call and ask.

[BryanZ]

No prix fixe at lunch. Incidentally, you can't really call Ssam anymore. Everything is done via email.

[ulterior epicure]

No prix fixe at lunch.  Incidentally, you can't really call Ssam anymore.  Everything is done via email.

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Soon it'll be like the Emerald City.

So when did the momos start offering prix-fixes? Sorry, I've been kinda out of the loop for a while.

[Kent Wang]

So I was actually weighing nearly the exact same options recently.  Neither NB or SB offer any kind pf prix fixe so you might as well hold off for dinner unless you only have one meal and really want to try one of the Momos.  Not sure where you're getting that $72 figure from for JG, perhaps you can clarify.  When I called wd~50 to ask about the lunch the other day I was told it's about nine courses for the same $75.  Sounds prettty awesome.  I'd also highly suggest the lunch tasting menu at EMP for $58, however.

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JG weekday lunch is $28 for two plates, $12 for each additional plate, so that's $72 for four plates -- if memory serves me well.

EMP sounds ok but I think I'd rather splurge for wd-50. Their kind of cuisine is really something that I can't get back home.

I'm definitely leaning towards wd-50, but I'd like to hear if others have tried this lunch tasting menu.

[ulterior epicure]

So I was actually weighing nearly the exact same options recently.  Neither NB or SB offer any kind pf prix fixe so you might as well hold off for dinner unless you only have one meal and really want to try one of the Momos.  Not sure where you're getting that $72 figure from for JG, perhaps you can clarify.  When I called wd~50 to ask about the lunch the other day I was told it's about nine courses for the same $75.  Sounds prettty awesome.  I'd also highly suggest the lunch tasting menu at EMP for $58, however.

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JG weekday lunch is $28 for two plates, $12 for each additional plate, so that's $72 for four plates -- if memory serves me well.

EMP sounds ok but I think I'd rather splurge for wd-50. Their kind of cuisine is really something that I can't get back home.

I'm definitely leaning towards wd-50, but I'd like to hear if others have tried this lunch tasting menu.

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I believe that additional plates at JG are now $14, if that makes a difference.

[gatilgan]

So I was actually weighing nearly the exact same options recently.  Neither NB or SB offer any kind pf prix fixe so you might as well hold off for dinner unless you only have one meal and really want to try one of the Momos.  Not sure where you're getting that $72 figure from for JG, perhaps you can clarify.  When I called wd~50 to ask about the lunch the other day I was told it's about nine courses for the same $75.  Sounds prettty awesome.  I'd also highly suggest the lunch tasting menu at EMP for $58, however.

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JG weekday lunch is $28 for two plates, $12 for each additional plate, so that's $72 for four plates -- if memory serves me well.

EMP sounds ok but I think I'd rather splurge for wd-50. Their kind of cuisine is really something that I can't get back home.

I'm definitely leaning towards wd-50, but I'd like to hear if others have tried this lunch tasting menu.

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JG weekday lunch is $28 for two plates and $14 for each additional plate. So , it's $56 for 4 plates which is awesome deal with included amuse bouche and mignardises.

[Kent Wang]

Dang, not only are my numbers out of date, my math was just wrong. So that's actually 5 plates for $70. But wd-50's 9 courses for $75 is pretty competitive, assuming it's any good. I also went to JG in March already.

[Sneakeater]

JG's plates aren't tasting menu sized. I don't see why you'd want five of them for lunch.

[sickchangeup]

JG's plates aren't tasting menu sized.  I don't see why you'd want five of them for lunch.

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Agreed, I leave hungry after a few tasting menu's even, but I left pretty darn stuffed after 4 dishes during lunch at JG.

[docsconz]

Dang, not only are my numbers out of date, my math was just wrong. So that's actually 5 plates for $70. But wd-50's 9 courses for $75 is pretty competitive, assuming it's any good. I also went to JG in March already.

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We all know what lunch at J-G is like. Why don't you fill us in on WD-50?

[kathryn]

No prix fixe at lunch.  Incidentally, you can't really call Ssam anymore.  Everything is done via email.

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Actually, this is incorrect. A friend of mine had the prix fix lunch at Ssam on Friday. Three courses, $28. A pretty good deal but not as good a deal as Jean-Georges.

If you were to choose between the prix fixes at J-G, WD-50, and Momofuku Ssam, where would you go?

[BryanZ]

As of whenever I emailed, I guess a week and a half ago, they were not offering the pf lunch. I had emailed because weinoo had posted it was on offer and I wanted to check it out. I'm glad that it's changed, unfortunately a bit too late for my lunch outing.

[Kent Wang]

We all know what lunch at J-G is like. Why don't you fill us in on WD-50?

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Will do. I have reservations this Friday. Will report back soon.

[docsconz]

Watching tonight's episode of Tony Bourdain's No Reservations Diner Conversation at WD-50 reminded me that it has been too long since I've been back. That meal looked to sensational and lots of fun. This was one tasting menu that Bourdain did not seem to have a problem with. Curiosly, though his desserts were served (I presume), there was no mention of Alex Stupak.

[danielcollins]

I'm bringing my girlfriend to NYC to celebrate our anniversary next month, and hope to have a meal at wd-50 as the 'centrepiece' of the trip (we have been lusting after this restaurant for a good long while now!), but I have a couple of queries that maybe you lovely new yorkers can help me with?

Ideally we would be taking the tasting menu, but my girlfriend can't eat red meat, is that likely to cause problems? Also, how much do the wine pairings enhance a meal here? The last menu I had paired with wine was at Cinc Sentits in barcelona and I really felt that it elevated the food, however wd-50 are doing a bit of a wine deal at the moment (half price bottles when you order a tasting menu) and I'm torn...

Thanks in advance, and i'll be sure to post a report (possibly complete with cack-handed photographs) once I've been.

Cheers,

Daniel

[BryanZ]

I was just about to mention the half-price wine bottles with the tasting menu. You might even see if they're discounting the pairings at all and arrive at some serendipitous compromise anyway.

But here's what I would do if you really want to make an evening of it and drink A LOT of wine. This of course assumes that the 50% discount applies to multiple bottles.

You're willing to spend up to $150 on booze, since the pairings run $75/person. Nice bottle of rose champagne for $45. Then a bottle of the Scholiumm 2006 for $45 more. That's an interesting wine that should work well with a lot of the cuisine. I think it was being poured over at Ko for a while. Then there are plenty of medium-bodied reds with some fruit that you can drink with the later courses and ease into your desserts. Finish with a shared class of moscatel for $12.50 and you're in at $147.50. That's a free subway ride right there with the change.

Cinq Sentits is good and all, but wd~50 really slaughters with real creativity.

[oakapple]

Ideally we would be taking the tasting menu, but my girlfriend can't eat red meat, is that likely to cause problems?

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Restaurants will practically always agree to substitute a dish in that case. Call them in advance to settle your mind on that score, but I'm positive they'll do it.

[pkeibel]

Wylie has always substituted non-meat dishes for our vegetarian friends and they were not disappointed. Just tell the waiter when you are ordering what dishes she would not like to eat