Alto

[BryanZ]

Looking for a hatue, modern-ish Italian meal and Alto came to mind. Has anyone been recently? The last time I was there for restaurant week this past summer, so I'm not familiar with dinner service beyond what's in the somewhat older posts listed here.

[LPShanet]

Looking for a hatue, modern-ish Italian meal and Alto came to mind.  Has anyone been recently?  The last time I was there for restaurant week this past summer, so I'm not familiar with dinner service beyond what's in the somewhat older posts listed here.

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Haven't been in months, but when I was there, I found it very good, though not nearly the value of L'impero, which had been better as well as cheaper. It's also a bit more formal, and the crowd (what there is of it) older.

[Fat Guy]

Seen on Grub Street: Scott Conant said to be leaving Alto and L'Impero.

[BryanZ]

So probably not a good time to eat there then. Hmmm.

[ewindels]

Based on the Times' recent review, I ditched a reservation at Anthos to revisit this property last night, which I had very much enjoyed when it first opened (see upthread). The space is showing tiny signs of wear (notably the continually flickering and fluctuating sconces behind us, which was irritating), but remains a handsome and attractive property with sleek, masculine décor. This was not much reflected in the general clientele last night, which consistently almost entirely of grim suited, cadaverous-looking captains of industry collectively suggesting a convention of funeral directors, and whose general mien gave little indication of enjoying much of anything in life, particularly what they were eating.

The revamped menu under chef Michael White seems designed to appeal to the tastes of such gentlemen. Gone are the carefully, delicately conceived and calibrated dishes of Scott Conant, based on the cooking of north-western Italy, which I’d heard described, pejoratively I think, as a bit effete. In their place are much more straightforward, hearty (in comparison with their predecessors) options which show a much broader range of Italian influences and suggest a preference for Emiligia Romana. The portions are certainly larger, and devoid of the foams and gastriques and emulsions and such. As there were only two of us, our sampling of the menu was admittedly limited, but gave what I think is a fairly accurate idea of the new ethos.

There are three ordering options: a la carte, a four course for $79, and a 7 course for $150, all with lots of extra incidental charges depending on what you’re ordering (truffles black or white, foie gras, certain seafood, etc.). The white truffle risotto alone is $150, which isn’t surprising given what I understand is the scarcity of the item this season. My aunt’s salad of frisee and arugula, topped with parmeggiano slices, was huge and could easily have been a meal unto itself, but was pronounced very nice. I started with a miniaturized version of cotecchino with lentils, which I suppose is an interesting reimagining of an ordinarily hearty, rustic dish. The sausage was under-spiced for my taste, but the dish on the whole was pleasant. I followed this with the meat-filled agnolotti, and my aunt with the duck confit ravioli with duck consommé. Hers was pretty wanly flavored, mine hearty and napped with a slick, thick brown gastrique suggestive of much demiglace. And since hearty meats seem to be the thing at Alto now, we followed up with lamb for her and venison for me. Neither was as flavorful as I anticipated or have had elsewhere, and I swear my venison was sauced with the exact same thing as the agnolotti. The lamb portion was certainly substantial: two large double-chined chops at least 2” thick. but again the meat didn’t sing to me Both entrees came with a vestigial slick of potato puree and a spoonful of something else (chanterelles, in my case). Desserts were a pear “mondarlo” for me (a sort of financier) and a hazelnut semifreddo for my aunt, both fine, neither mind blowing.

The extensive wine list remains breathtakingly expensive, with the preponderance on options of $100 or (usually) much more. I was intrigued by a Fruilian Cabernet Franc, which I’m pretty sure was the cheapest option amongst the reds (or at least the ones I read through). The sommelier, sensing fiscal conservativeness, didn’t really challenge the idea, which is probably more my fault than his, though I wish he had: for all the enjoyable pepper and upfront bite, the result overall was a bit thin and didn’t harmonize as much as I’d have liked with the meats.

Service could use some polishing: the staff on the whole tend to be somewhat short and squat (my aunt likened it to a Hispanic pro wrestling audition), making for some clumsy maneuvering among and between the tables. There was a little more asking about how everything was, etc., than was really necessary. At least, I think that’s what was being asked, though the issue of the incredibly thick accents verges into politically incorrect territory which I’ll avoid, but which nonetheless left both my aunt and I nodding helplessly during most of the conversations since we couldn’t understand what was being said to us (the bread boy, in particular, was completely incomprehensible and reduced us to just pointing). There was a 25 minute delay between our starters and pastas, due to the order not being placed or having been dropped, which no doubt explains the slight under-doneness of my agnolotti and the appearance of our entrees almost before the pastas had been cleared. This was recompensed by a glass each gratis of fragola with our desserts, which while a nice gesture didn’t complement either of our selections (a proper moschato d’asti would have been more appropriate and welcome).

With an order of decaf and tip, the damage came to $272. I can’t say as I think it was worth it. Shoulda stuck with Anthos. Oh well—next time.

[ulterior epicure]

Has anybody been recently?