Perry Street

[Mayur]

They have high chairs. As to being "toddler-friendly": PS is one of the few NY restaurants I've seen that does brunch and *doesn't* feature a large infant population. However, service is impeccable, and there are enough distinct areas at which you can be seated that you can probably not feel too out of place.

[Sethro]

Every restaurant in NY over 19 seats has to have high chairs by law.

[Nathan]

I've never seen infants there but lunch/brunch is quiet with plenty of space.

[oakapple]

Every restaurant in NY over 19 seats has to have high chairs by law.

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I'll bet the high chair at Per Se is in pretty deep storage.

[Sethro]

Heh, maybe. I've seen babies at JG and we had tons of em at Nobu.

[oakapple]

Heh, maybe. I've seen babies at JG and we had tons of em at Nobu.

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But to call Jean Georges as "child friendly restaurant" is a big stretch, at least as that term is normally understood.

[chefboy24]

Every restaurant in NY over 19 seats has to have high chairs by law.

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false

[BryanZ]

Strange but solid lunch at Perry Street today. Was in the WV for a meeting later in the afternoon, so I had about an hour to kill. I stroll into Perry Street and first think the restaurant is closed. No one is at the bar or host stand. I look further back into the restaurant and see one solitary couple dining. I proceed to wait at the host stand for three to four minutes with no staff in sight. Finally a runner comes out to fill up a water glass at the one occupied table and sees me. A bit of awkwardness ensues as a waiter comes out of the back and seats me.

Thankfully from that point on all is fine. I told them of my time constraint and they got the food out in a hurry. Amuse was the celery root soup they often use a vehicle to carry other flavors. This time a light cranberry foam. Very nice. Had the shrimp with butternut squash and toasted pumpkin seeds, the tuna burger, and a new dessert of white chocolate mouse sandwiched between crisp meringue wafers with yuzu sorbet and white chocolate shavings on top. This dessert was by far the most ambitious prix fixe dessert I've had here, but I thought the dish needed more acid than the sorbet was contributing. A little too sweet and cloying. Burger was very enjoyable as usual, and the shrimp dish good if not remarkable.

No complaints besides my awkward welcoming.

[cchen]

awkward indeed, but not unusual at all. i've been many times for lunch (and the restaurant is usually empty) and that happens a lot.

had the white chocolate dessert last time as well, thought it was ok but wasn't blown away by it

[Nathan]

I can't eat lunch out during the week but based on location I would imagine that it's pretty dead. these days it's relatively busy for weekend lunch but there are always a couple tables available

[flinflon28]

I stroll into Perry Street and first think the restaurant is closed.  No one is at the bar or host stand.  I look further back into the restaurant and see one solitary couple dining.  I proceed to wait at the host stand for three to four minutes with no staff in sight.  Finally a runner comes out to fill up a water glass at the one occupied table and sees me.  A bit of awkwardness ensues as a waiter comes out of the back and seats me.

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I've had lunch at Perry Street twice (once with a reservation and once without) and went through the same ordeal.

[nikkib]

i can't seem to download a brunch menu for Perry Street but from what i've seen on other threads it is highly recommended? what is the brunch menu like?

[ulterior epicure]

i can't seem to download a brunch menu for Perry Street but from what i've seen on other threads it is highly recommended? what is the brunch menu like?

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Upon my recommendation, a couple of my friends just recently went to Perry Street for brunch. I had brunch last May and the menu seems not to have changed significantly.

My brunch included:

House-made Mozzerella (which is still on the menu as of last week - and highly recommended)

House-cured Gravlax (also highly recommended - egg-in-a-hole meets lox on a double-cut brioche toast)

Hangar Steak Tartare

Snapper (with radishes and chile oil which I believe is another staple)

Salmon

There's also a vegetarian omelet on the current (as of last week) menu that my friend thoroughly enjoyed.

There is always two dessert options. The chocolate pudding with sugared lavender seems not to have moved off the menu since I was there. The cheesecake that I had (with berries) is now a meringue cookie of some sort.

[BryanZ]

The brunch and lunch menus are the exact same, if I recall.

[ulterior epicure]

The brunch and lunch menus are the exact same, if I recall.

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No, IIRC, the brunch adds a few "brunch" items, like an omelet and the house-cured gravlax. I'm not sure about the later.

Can anyone confirm? I've only been there for Sunday brunch.

[Nathan]

a couple "brunch" items are added to the regular lunch menu on the weekends. otherwise it's the same. the menu changes constantly. items disappear and reappear and even when the item stays..its exact composition will vary.

imo, what differentiates the Perry Street lunch deal from some of the other fine ones is that its served on the weekend...making it the only one that some of us can use.

[Busboy]

Perry street for brunch. A solid "B" effort. Arctic Char Sashimi, Steak Tartare, Lemon curd thing, amuse of pea soup with a parmigiano foam. Everything was well prepared but it seemed the elusive x-factor that gives a meal a memorable zing was missing. Churlish to complain, though: Pleasant space, good service, and unexceptional Arctic Char sashimi is surely better than Eggs Benedict once again. And, for $24, hard to beat. To a friend exiled to the culinary wasteland of Amherst, Massachusetts, it was a bit of a revelation, in addition to being a perfect place to catch up after too long. You gotta love New Yorkers: when he went to scratch his head and announce somewhat too loudly -- "Jesus, I just pulled a tick off my head," no one at the adjoining tables batted an eye.

[Robin Meredith]

Somewhat problematic lunch at Perry Street yesterday. The current fresh mozzarella preparation (with black cherries and microgreens) is a bit unbalanced on the sweet side. Steak tartare was basically just raw beef with a creamy tapenade - nothing explicitly wrong there, but definitely lacking the extra "zing" this place usually delivers. Poached eggs served with gravlax came out cold (twice). The current fruit dessert (a custardy thing with meringues and a mango/kiwi garnish) really doesn't work - needs a lot more acidity. Endured some long waits between courses that weren't really acknowledged by the house (not the first time this has happened, by the way, although on at least one previous occasion our entire food tab was comped).

Having said all that, it is still a remarkably pleasant place to spend an hour or two on a hot summer afternoon, and I can't praise them highly enough for offering three well selected bottles of wine at $20 with the lunch menu. Just not sure this is one of their better menus.

[BryanZ]

Have had a couple lunch/brunches at Perry St. over the past couple weeks and the place continues to be very dependable. The fact that the $24 daytime meal hasn't gone up in price makes it seem an even better value than before. The price point and experience are just right to ensure a very nice but not overly formal or costly mid-day meal.

I wish the menu would change more, however. The desserts seem to change every few weeks. I wish the more of the savories would change every, say, couple of months. I've had pretty much everything on the menu--easily 80%--and have had many items multiple times.

A new dish that for me that I really enjoyed was the crispy calamari with yuzu-sesame dipping sauce. This dish is very simple, but the textures are right on. Crispy and toothsome with a light, tart sauce. Very JG. Not as memorable is the ginger rice bowl. A nice portion of food but perhaps underwhelming compared to the menu staples like the chili snapper, crab-mango salad, and the hangar with liquid gruyere. In general, I also think it wise to stay away from the overtly breakfast-y items. They're fine, but you'd do much better to order more daring options.

Service has generally been very good, but an experience today was a bit weird. They brought the amuse soup but soon after, like three minutes, brought our first courses. One of my party hadn't even tried her soup yet and they cleared it anyway. This was bizarre since they're usually very good about pacing meals there to suit the needs of the diner.

[ulterior epicure]

I wish the menu would change more, however.  The desserts seem to change every few weeks.

I haven't been as many times as you have, Bryan, but I'll put this out there: does anyone even go with the remote hope that the dessert will be anything worthing looking at twice?

The desserts I had at Perry Street and the ones that I've seen and heard about seem extremely boring. I don't think I'd mind, actually, if they never rotated the desserts so long as whatever it was was great.

[BryanZ]

My past few visits have seen significantly improved desserts. A few weeks back a nice cherry item with the fruit stewed and as a sorbet. This time, the signature chocolate cake with pistachio ice cream and a peach cobbler.

[ulterior epicure]

My past few visits have seen significantly improved desserts.  A few weeks back a nice cherry item with the fruit stewed and as a sorbet.  This time, the signature chocolate cake with pistachio ice cream and a peach cobbler.

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Even without eating them, those sound immensely better than the chocolate pot de creme (read pudding) with candied lavender.

[Nathan]

I was there on Sunday for lunch.

both of the desserts were the best I've had there.

the molten chocolate cake (if you're one of those people who likes chocolate) with pistachio ice cream and the peach cobbler with a (sour cream?) ice cream.

I also like the latest iteration of the shrimp dish. and that crab/mango salad is very nice.

[sickchangeup]

Heading here Sunday. Anyone eaten their sandwiches?

Roasted Chicken Sandwich

chipotle-lime mayo and avocado

Grilled Yellowfin Tuna Burger

bonito Mayonnaise, shiso and yuzu pickles

Or the pancakes:

Buttermilk Pancakes

mixed berries, maple syrup

And what's a crispy poached egg??

Gonna be damn near impossible not to see my wife order the cream of tomato with sourdough, basil and cheddar, but we're pretty open to other things. Thought the ginger rice bowl was a lock, but bryanz commented up top that it wasn't anything special. Also the hanger steak doesn't list on the current menu with liquid gruyere which seems a shame. Instead it's:

smoked paprica butternut squash and caramelized brussel sprouts

Might give it a shot since I appreciate the tinny qualities of hanger steak.

Edited October 17, 2008 by sickchangeup (log)

[Nathan]

the tuna burger is good.