Parea

[cbarre02]

any one know if parea (new greek place down by gramercy tavern) is open yet. if so have we had any takers?

[cbarre02]

slated to open may4th

[Nick Soapdish]

I was in nyc earlier in the week and it was open. didn't eat but took a quick look inside and it looked beautiful.

ns

[Michael Ruhlman]

I and seven other friends ate there last week. symon's a friend i've written about, so i'm completely biased, but if it had been shit, i wouldn't post. I was really happy, the food was excellent. he and his exec chef jonathan sawyer did a phenomenal job. from octopus to veal breast even to some midwestern walleye he slipped in there, definitely two-star caliber restaurant. great house cured and dried meats, too.

[Artichoke]

Bruni wrote a review of Parea today, giving it two stars.

I ate there recently and found a lot of what he wrote to be accurate. One item I was most looking forward to I found to be dissapointing the evening I ate there, the lambs brains served with potatoes and pickled onions. Bruni describes the way they should have been, crunchy on the outside, molten within. The evening I was there, they were overcooked and had been sitting out of the fryer too long. I did share his experience with the "Greek doughnut holes", which he describes as "dreadful — chilly, chewy", exactly the way mine were served.

I was dissapointed to learn when I arrived that the pickled tongue was off the menu, my waitress said it simply did not sell. One thing not to miss if ordering the "sea bass for two" are the cheeks. The fish was huge and the cheeks were incredibly tender nuggets of flesh. Fortunately my dining companion wanted nothing to do with the head .

Two items that Bruni does not mention, that I thought were two of the best, were the Greek sausages and the crispy goat dumplings. The sausages were plump and full of spices like cinamon and chili and were absolutely delicious. The goat dumplings were like small, fried empanadas and also filled your mouth with a a great blend of spices.

Lastly, I found the service at Parea to be exceptional. My waitress was excellent, but if she did not happen to be around when someone in my dining party needed something (like having the head and tail taken off the sea bass and sent to my end of the table) the maitrede was there in a flash to help.

[daisy17]

Dined at Parea last night. (Those of you familiar with Michael Ruhlman's beautifully-written Soul of a Chef will recognize Michael Symon, chef/partner of Parea.) The space is very striking and unique, but the noise level rose throughout the night and it was difficult to hear across the table (as noted by Bruni). Our table wasn't available until about 45 minutes after our reservation, but the maitre'd handled the situation skillfully, buying us a round of cocktails and dessert. We appreciated his attentiveness, and the service was professional and pleasant throughout.

The food was excellent, and I need to go back to sample more of the menu. The menu is mostly comprised of meze and appetizers, which are perfect for sharing. The zucchini keftedes (crispy and flavorful, dipped into a cool and soothing feta sauce) and tuna spinialo (raw, marinated in olive juice, studded with almonds) were fantastic. The pork belly was snatched up before I could snag a piece but received rave reviews from my friends. Could have skipped the cured meats. The tender lamb and the whole sea bass roasted with onions and served with tzatziki were outstanding entrees. We all really liked the doughnut holes, and I especially enjoyed the mouth puckering lemon sorbet that accompanied what I think was a lemon custard in phyllo. Rice pudding could have used more of a kick.

A bit of constructive criticism - it was a very enjoyable night all around - but I was slightly disappointed by the bar. The large, sleek bar/lounge area (as noted by Bruni) invites you to enjoy a cocktail, or four, before dining. Vodka is overrepresented on the menu, and a white peach/rum cocktail that sounded refreshing was anything but. When I asked if a watermelon cocktail could be made with gin I was told no, it was a vodka drink. Parea could be a fantastic place to meet for drinks as well as for food, but the bar, in my opinion, needs some tweaking.

[edsel]

I went to Parea for dinner late Monday evening. The service was friendly, relaxed and attentive. The food was terrific.

We started out with the cured meats board and the bbq lamb ribs. The meat board had a variety of thin-sliced cured meats, some sausage, and a bit of feta and some pickled raisins. I don't recall exactly what all of the meats were, but I particularly enjoyed the cured duck breast and the pork cured with fennel. The spicing was more subdued than I had expected.

The lamb ribs were falling-off-the-bone tender. The sauce was subtly sweet, accented by thin strips of crisp orange zest and some sort of mild peppers.

I had the pan-seared skate wing wrapped in crisp pork. The skate was slightly more done than I like, but still moist and tasty. The pork wrapping gave it a nice savory crunch, and the accompaniment of braised cardoon and olives was very flavorful. My colleague had the strip steak which he seemed to enjoy quite a bit. He said the fries were very highly seasoned (he liked them). The steak is served with an unusual condiment - a Greek yogurt cut with a bit of veal stock. Greek yogurt tends to be very thick, but the stock loosens it up a bit and adds a savory touch.

We had the walnut tart and the almond-pear phyllo pastry for dessert. The pomegranate sorbet served with my pastry added a nice tart accent. The desserts struck me as being a bit less adventurous than the ones Cory makes for Symon's Cleveland restaurants, but both were well-executed and nicely presented.