Craft, Etats-Unis, Gennaro -- a quick trip to NYC

[mogsob]

A quick trip to NY was the perfect time to return to an old favorite (Etats Unis) and try two new places (Craft and Gennaro).

Etats Unis

An old favorite, so I'm a bit biased.  Gnocchi in a sage sauce was a perfect starter -- subtle yet with endless layers of flavors to explore.  Rack of lamb followed well -- simple and perfectly prepared.  The justly famous date pudding followed, which is quite simply the best dish prepared by any restaurant anywhere.  A Bea Rosso (a sagrantino based wine from Umbria) was the perfect complement.  As Steve Shaw says, like dining at home (if you had all day to source the best ingredients, had a professional kitchen, and had a staff to assist you).

Craft

One of the most disappointing meals in recent memory.  For a restaurant that prides itself on getting the best ingredients and cooking them perfectly -- I was suprised, to say the least, that many dishes underperformed on both counts.  Starters included sweetbreads (good, but nowhere near as good as the sweetbread starter at GT), artichoke hearts in white wine (tasted like canned hearts), white asparagus (overcooked to the point of being mushy) and a saffron rissoto (ok).  My wife and I split the porterhouse main on Steve Shaw's recommendation.  It was indeed perfectly cooked, with a brilliant crust of many flavors.  For the first time, the flavors actually penetrated into the heart of the steak -- very impressive.  However, the meat was quite tough (even the fillet side) and did not have that dry-aged flavor or texture I prefer.  Indeed, although I did not see the raw meat, I would swear that it wasn't even prime beef.  A good and well-priced Gruaud Larose was plucked from a decent wine list.

Gennaro

The nearly hour long wait was well worth it.  Gennaro delivers a very good Italian meal for a very moderate price.  We started with gnocchi in a simple tomato and basil sauce.   Perfect in every way.  Mains of grilled veal chop and suffed chicken were fresh with clear flavors that define the essence of italian cuisine.  A decent Allegrini Valpolicella was the best of a rather boring, and slightly overpriced, wine list.  A textbook tiramisu rounded out a great meal.

[Liza]

Thanks, Mogsob, as you've got me interested in trying that date pudding.

[Pan]

Good God! A rave review of an Italian restaurant in my folks' hood - the West 90s! Does anyone have an opinion on how Gennaro compares to the best the East Village has to offer - I Coppi, Mosto, Col Legno, Lavagna, et al.?

What kind of prices at Etats Unis? Sounds like a nice meal.

[mogsob]

Pan, I would commend you to Steven's review of Gennaro which nicely sums up my experience better than I could.  I would say that Gennaro is at least on the level of the Village restaurants mentioned below, although I like the atmosphere in the Village better.

Prices at Etats Unis are quite reasonable.  Figure $10 for a starter, $25 for a main.  The real savings is on the wine list, where numerous bargains abound for those willing to look beyond the usual.  A great 1994 Gran Reserva from Montecillo, the aforementioned Paolo Bea wines, Mas Julien from the Languedoc and numerous selections from Germany and Austria await.  They also have a wine bar across the street with a somewhat similar, but simpler menu.  But, outside of the date pudding and the chocolate souffle (also a classic, but not in the same league as the pudding), every other dish on the menu is market driven.  You can go 15 times without seeing a starter or main repeat.  My advice -- if there is a gnocchi starter, get that.  For the mains, anything with the word chop is very good, be it pork, veal or lamb.  Also, they age their own steak on premises in very small quantities.  If it is available (it rarely is), it is also very good.

[Pan]

I guess Steven's review would be on his web site.

Thanks for the info, Mogsob. It sounds like Gennaro may well be worth visiting one of these days, though I have to say that I seldom eat anywhere but chez les parents when I'm in that part of town.

[Jim Dixon]

Mogsob...

I've been trolling these posts for restaurant ideas for our upcoming trip to NYC...saw your mention of Bea Rosso.

When we were meeting with Marco Bettini to discuss importing his olive oil, we drank his family's sangrantino (both rosso and passito, the old style sweet wine) and were blown away. He said he'd love to give us some, but they were out. He said one of his childhood friend's family had a winery nearby, called them, and took us over..it was Bea (Paolo Bea), and we drank quite a bit there, bought a few bottles of rosso for later, and carried back the passito for hoarding at home.

Etats Unis sounds really good...where exactly is it?

Jim

[Liza]

Etats-Unis

242 E. 81st St. b/w 2nd and 3rd

212-517-8826

[Jim Dixon]

Thanks Liza