Thalia

[oakapple]

Some restaurants have the buzz, and some don't. Thalia (828 8th Avenue @50th St) is one of those restaurants that's never mentioned on the food boards, but it carries a two-star NYT rating from 2000, and on last night's showing it deserves a lot more attention.

I started with the Seared Herb Crusted Tuna Sashimi, which comes with pickled vegetables, sweet soy, chive oil & hot mustard. (I am copying from their website, else my identification of the ingredients wouldn't be so precise.) The tuna was wonderfully fresh, and the soy sauce, which artfully decorated the plate, added a tangy finish to the taste.

For the main course, I had the Jerked Florida Grouper, which is served with lump crabmeat pico de gallo, sweet plantains & chipotle pepper sauce. This too was a wonderfully inventive combination, giving life to a fish that I usually find dull.

I have to report that my friend was a bit less enthusiastic. She had the crab cakes appetizer and the rack of lamb entrée. No particular complaint, but she wasn't as wowed by her choices as I was.

To conclude, we shared a Trio of Creme Brulee, which comes with three small servings of raspberry, lavender, and chocolate Pot de Creme. No complaint here, and at $10 a bargain.

Appetizers are $7-18 (the latter for a lobster salad; all others are $14 or less), entrées $13-27, and desserts $7-10 ($14 for the cheese tasting). There is also a raw bar, which we did not sample.

Service was prompt — perhaps to a fault. Our appetizers arrived seemingly within minutes, which was so quick that our server hadn't yet arrived with the wine. The wine list seemed to us expensive in relation to the menu. We settled on a $38 red that was acceptable without being special. The next level up would have required us to spend quite a bit more, which we weren't of a mind to do.

The noise level at Thalia was mercifully lower than at many restaurants I've tried lately, although there is still an audible buzz around the place. We enjoyed a leisurely meal and were able to hear ourselves talk, which is never a given in New York restaurants.

[twiggles]

I've been to Thalia quite a few times for business lunches, because I work in the area. I was always unenthused by the food, but the last time I was there, it seemed much better (and the decor slightly changed). I had a seared Tuna salad, that was quite nice. Perhaps your positive experience also means they are improving.

[alacarte]

Thanks for the informative report!

However, I'll take issue with the "never mentioned on the food boards" comment. Actually, it's mentioned here virtually every time someone asks for dining recommendations in the theater district.

edit to include links:

post-theater dining

pre-theater dining

Sunday lunch in the theater district

Comedy central dining, no joke

Edited July 29, 2004 by alacarte (log)

[Della]

I have noticed Thalia popping up in some searches I have been doing on pre-theater dining.

Has anyone been there recently? The most recent I have found are from last July (namely the above postings).

I am bringing my mother on a weekend trip to NYC. I am already planning on going to Babbo one night and I fear she is going to be a little "sticker shocked" on prices. (she is a small town lady!) We are going to the Lion King on one evening and I have been wondering where to go before hand.

Thalia seems reasonably priced and the pics on the website show the room to be quite nice.

Any opinons on the food lately?

[iheartoffal]

One of the former chefs , Patrick Frawleys, left there a little less than a year ago to helm the kitchen at Ocean 211 up here in Stamford.

[Della]

My mom and I went to Thalia a couple weeks ago. We had dinner there before going to see the Lion King. We had the tuna appetizer listed above and it was very good. I normally don't love the tuna ( or any raw fish ) (yes, I know it was partially seared) but it did enjoy it and my mom loved it. We also shared the caesar salad and it was quite good. My mom thought it was the best she had eaten in a long time. Mom had the lamb shanks with beet risotto and it was great. I ate a few bites of it myself! I had the special which was soft shell crabs and I thought it was just so-so. Which is why I guess I kept nibbling on my poor mom's dinner! We had cheese after and then the creme brule. Ours was tea, ginger and orange.

All in all it was a great meal, the service was good, we weren't rushed and we thought the restaurant itself was pretty. I would go back for pre-theatre dining.