Dinner at Eric’s
A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of eating at Le Bernardin, Eric Ripert’s restaurant in New York. I think this is the first time I’ve eaten at a 3-Michelin star establishment, so I was pretty excited.
And indeed my first impression didn’t disappoint, as literally the first thing I saw when I walked in was Woody Allen. I discreetly alerted my Dad, and when he didn’t immediately confirm, I thought I perhaps I was mistaken…until I looked across Woody’s table and saw Soon-Yi. I had no intentions of trying to talk with them or anything, but still it was kinda cool.
My shameless star-gawking was interrupted by a stylish hostess, who greeted us with a charming “hello, gentlemen”. I tried to give her my most winning smile, only to be deflated by her slipping a suit jacket on me while whispering “We require jackets in the dining room, sir”. Yeesh! Somehow that detail had escaped me when I read up on the place earlier. Yeah, just a wee bit embarrassing there. The jacket fit perfectly, though that offered little comfort, but my mortification soon subsided as we were led off to our table.
Before long the amuse-bouche arrived — a fantastic bluefin tuna sashimi. Definitely lived up to my high expectations for the meal.
When the menus arrived, we took our time poring over the options, savoring the possibilities and trying to construct the best combination of courses. The all-seafood menu is composed of three sections: “Almost Raw”, “Barely Touched”, and “Lightly Cooked”, and we were to select two courses from the first two and one from the latter.
I chose
- Thinly Sliced Geoduck Marinated Peruvian Style; Freeze-Dried Corn
- Bacalao: Grilled Salted Cod Salad; Arugula — Lemon Confit Pesto; Almond and Chorizo Oil
- Pan Roasted Monkfish; Israeli Couscous Tabbouleh; Black Garlic and Perisan Lemon Sauce
Dad had
- Seafood Salad of Marinated Shrimp, Calamari, Octopus and Lobster in Citrus Vinaigrette; Honeydew–Cucumber Gelee; Wasabi Emulsion
- Sea Urchin Risotto; Toasted Nori; Urchin–Citrus Emulsion
- Baked Langoustine and Wild Striped Bass; Confit Tomato Agnelotti; Bouilabaise Consommé and Curry Emulsion
We both tried some of everything. My favorites were the geoduck and the risotto, I think. I’ve never had geoduck, and it was prepared almost as a ceviche here, with some toast points. Amazing. And the risotto was so smooth and rich and flavorful. I was a little disappointed in the monkfish — compared with the earlier dishes it seemed to lack a real “wow” flavor — but it was the first time I’ve tried monkfish, too (had to, didn’t I, after watching so much Iron Chef?), and perhaps the delicacy of the taste was lost on me.
Overall, it was a spectacular experience, and I had a wonderful time sharing it with my Dad. Not something I’ll soon forget.
