Late Night Tasting Menus?

[brandtbl]

My girlfriend, a friend, and I are going to New York next month, Saturday, February 3rd, to see a concert (Ennio Morricone!) at Radio City Music Hall, and we'd very much like to go out for some really amazing food afterwards. The show starts at 8:00pm, and I'm not sure when it will end, but I'd guess we'd be making reservations for something like 11:00 or 11:30. It appears to me that most of the higher end restaurants stop serving food at about that time, even on a Saturday.

I've spent some time searching the forums and I've not come up with any great ideas, aside from maybe Babbo (pasta tasting menu)? Price isn't too huge of a concern as long as it's less than a couple of hundred dollars per person. Ideally I'd like the option of a tasting menu, possibly with paired wines. Cuisine is up in the air, but I think at least one of us isn't terribly adventurous when it comes to sushi, so that's about the only consideration. What other options are out there?

I very much appreciate any input! I thought these would be slightly easier requirements to meet in NYC, but I haven't had a ton of luck so far.

Thanks!

Ben

[Sneakeater]

This is in many ways unresponsive to the criteria you've posited -- surprising as it seems, I think it's going to be hard to find a full-fledged late-night tasting menu in New York -- but please consider the late-night menu at Momofuku Ssam.

(Look at the "Momofuku Ssam" thread here [ http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=92127&hl=ssam ] and see what you think. But remember that the late-night menu is completely different from the day menu, and you have to get about halfway through that thread before the late-night menu is discussed.)

Edited January 1, 2007 by Sneakeater (log)

[Sneakeater]

Also, Little Owl serves late -- and if you go late enough, you might even be able to get in!

[MarkIsCooking]

My girlfriend, a friend, and I are going to New York next month, Saturday, February 3rd, to see a concert (Ennio Morricone!) at Radio City Music Hall, and we'd very much like to go out for some really amazing food afterwards. The show starts at 8:00pm, and I'm not sure when it will end, but I'd guess we'd be making reservations for something like 11:00 or 11:30. It appears to me that most of the higher end restaurants stop serving food at about that time, even on a Saturday.

I've spent some time searching the forums and I've not come up with any great ideas, aside from maybe Babbo (pasta tasting menu)? Price isn't too huge of a concern as long as it's less than a couple of hundred dollars per person. Ideally I'd like the option of a tasting menu, possibly with paired wines. Cuisine is up in the air, but I think at least one of us isn't terribly adventurous when it comes to sushi, so that's about the only consideration. What other options are out there?

I very much appreciate any input! I thought these would be slightly easier requirements to meet in NYC, but I haven't had a ton of luck so far.

Thanks!

Ben

←

Ben -

I'm a huge NYC fan and used to live there. Since you have some dough to spend and want an amazing tasting menu, I'd suggest you consider a 6pm dinner. It's early, I know, but you'd have so many wonderful choices and anywhere you go in midtown would be able to get you through the tasting to make your 8pm curtain. Allow me to put a pitch in for Le Bernardin. If you like fish and seafood, there are several benefits. First, many consider Le Bernardin the best fish anywhere. Second, since nothing they cook takes that long, it's easy for them to assure your timing. Third, it's a rare combination of excellence in both service and food. Lastly, I spent a week in the kitchen there a few years back and I think they're just amazing.

Best of luck. I'd love to know what you end up doing!

-Mark-

[Dave H]

Mas serves very late as well--all the way until 4, actually.

But that's beside the point. You should go to Momofuku Ssam Bar, which is serving some of the best and most creative food in the city. (The thread here doesn't do it justice.) Having your dinner delayed until after 10:30 is a blessing, not a liability. If you just want good, serious food, and you don't mind using paper napkins and listening to Pavement, it is definitely the place to go.

[tupac17616]

Sneak and Dave speak the truth. To Momofuku Ssam Bar, my friend! You will not be disappointed.

[donbert]

Mas serves very late as well--all the way until 4, actually.

But that's beside the point. You should go to Momofuku Ssam Bar, which is serving some of the best and most creative food in the city. (The thread here doesn't do it justice.) Having your dinner delayed until after 10:30 is a blessing, not a liability. If you just want good, serious food, and you don't mind using paper napkins and listening to Pavement, it is definitely the place to go.

Two things to add in also suggesting Momofuku Ssam Bar. Although the setting is casual the staff are very attentive and can help you select a series of dishes to share. And the late night menu is now available starting 6pm should you want to try go before your show or some other time.

[Sneakeater]

And the late night menu is now available starting 6pm

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OH???????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Of course, at 6 PM they'd have a full panolply of options that are more in line with what they actually appear to be looking for.)

[raji]

There are a lot of Japanese and Korean options, including Momofuku, but it sounds like you want something more formal, and the wine pairings, I'd really go for Mas (farmhouse). You will not be disappointed...

My girlfriend, a friend, and I are going to New York next month, Saturday, February 3rd, to see a concert (Ennio Morricone!) at Radio City Music Hall, and we'd very much like to go out for some really amazing food afterwards. The show starts at 8:00pm, and I'm not sure when it will end, but I'd guess we'd be making reservations for something like 11:00 or 11:30. It appears to me that most of the higher end restaurants stop serving food at about that time, even on a Saturday.

I've spent some time searching the forums and I've not come up with any great ideas, aside from maybe Babbo (pasta tasting menu)? Price isn't too huge of a concern as long as it's less than a couple of hundred dollars per person. Ideally I'd like the option of a tasting menu, possibly with paired wines. Cuisine is up in the air, but I think at least one of us isn't terribly adventurous when it comes to sushi, so that's about the only consideration. What other options are out there?

I very much appreciate any input! I thought these would be slightly easier requirements to meet in NYC, but I haven't had a ton of luck so far.

Thanks!

Ben

←

[brandtbl]

Thank you all for the excellent suggestions!

I will look at Mas for sure, and Momofuku. Someone also mentioned Picholine and Telepan in a PM, both of which are certainly more formal. Any thoughts on those choices? They seem to serve 'til 11:30 or 11:45, though I would have to confirm that Picholine is willing to do tasting menus that late.

I'm not really set on something more formal, but my cohorts had suggested that they kind of wanted a big blow-out dinner, so I framed my question with that in mind. I personally just want something really amazingly delicious. Momofuku may be just the ticket in that case. Has anyone been to Momofuku that late? Is it likely to be crowded?

We actually have two nights, but the first will probably be dedicated to pizza. Lunch on Saturday will probably be a tasty deli (or two.) I've found lots of good suggestions for both of those options on this very forum!

Again, thank you all. I don't think I found any of these options on my own, and they're all definitely worth considering.

--Ben

[Sneakeater]

I love Picholine. I don't really know what more to say. If they'll serve a tasting menu as late as you'll want, then I'd certainly give you my highest recommendation to go for it. Hell, I'd even go for their normal three-or-four course prix fixe that late.

Edited January 3, 2007 by Sneakeater (log)

[Sneakeater]

Also, I've been to Momofuku Ssam several times around 11, and it's never been that crowded. I think it probably gets more crowded later. OTOH, that might change now that they serve "dinner" straight from 6:00 p.m. till closing, rather than closing at 10 and reopening with a "late night" menu at 10:30.

[brandtbl]

Hello Everyone,

I would like to say a belated thank you very much for the great recommendations!

We went to Picholine fairly late the night we arrived and had a stunningly amazing meal. We asked the sommelier to provide us with wine pairings and they were just about perfect. I've never had wine work so well with food, but I'm a relative novice when it comes to true fine dining. The wine service alone was truly inspirational.

They started us with a little selection of amuses that included a wild mushroom panna cotta, a bit of sea bass ceviche, and a totally awesome potato/cod puff sort of thing.

We all had the following 4 courses:

Sea Urchin Panna Cotta - Chilled Ocean Consomme and Caviar

Warm Carpaccio of Buffalo - Pomegranate Vinaigrette and Shaved Chocolate

Millbrook Venison - Parsnip "Pain Perdu" and Huckleberry Jus

Wild Scottish Wood Pigeon - (A special for that night) served in a ravioli with foie gras and a breast with root vegetables, chestnuts, and brussels sprouts leaves

Then we had a cheese course picked by Max McCalman to pair with a very nice sauterne which included:

Holzige Geiss - Swiss goat

Evora - Portuguese sheep

Ardrahan - Irish cow

Caerphilly - Welsh cow

Vacherin Fribourgeois - Swiss cow

This was a really thoughtful selection of super interesting cheeses that all were terrific with the sauterne and the little selection of cheese accompaniments.

We had 2 desserts:

Semoline Cake - Blood Orange-Fennel Marmalade and Olive Oil Ice Cream

Chocolate Souffle - Peanut Butter Sorbet and Malt Foam

This whole meal really was outstanding. I didn't write down the wine pairings, but the sommelier did a pretty amazing job with all of them.

So that was pretty hard to beat, but after we saw Ennio Morricone (amazing) at Radio City Music Hall the next night we went down to momofuku ssam bar at about 11:30 and were seated immediately. We had:

Seasonal pickles

Benton's Smoky Mountain Country Ham

Grilled Veal Sweetbreads

Steamed buns with pork belly

Momofuku Ssam

(and maybe something else?)

This was all really delicious too and a welcome follow-up to the relative formality of Picholine. We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves here too. The creativity here was pretty impressive. I loved the American ham served as it was. The sweetbreads were also a bit of a revelation as I'd never had them before. Really yummy all around.

So thank you all again! We'll certainly be going back to NYC again, at least for the food. There are so many other great suggestions to try.

--Ben