Telepan

photo courtesy of New York Magazine

Telepan
72 W. 69th Street

Lunch with some colleagues today was excellent. Restaurant Week menu was better than most I've seen in the past...probably because it pretty much the same lunch menu they regularly offer.

Just a brief report:

Appetizer:
I ordered the Roast Quail served with duck and dried fruit sausage, autumn panzanella & dried fruit vinaigrette. The half quail was cooked and seasoned just right. The duck and dried fruit sausage (3 pieces) was good, but cooler than room temperature, which seemed a bit odd to me. The autumn panzanella was okay - sounding better "on paper" but still good. Nice.

Entree:
Lobster Bolognese in a shallot-garlic-tomato broth and light herbs ($5 supp.). This was, I admit, pretty to look at but perhaps I expected to see more. But my eyes deceived me. The lobster tail, still tucked in its shell must have been poached in butter or something similar. It was over the top, but still keeping its lobster flavor intact. Really rich. The pasta was different...not in a bad way, just different. Overall, this dish was really very good.

Photo courtesy of John Mariani

Dessert:
Brandy Bread Pudding with brandied cherry ice cream and brandy sauce. Delicious. The brandy flavor was nicely evident, the bread pudding had just the right amount of crispness on top and plushness in the middle. I think there was vanilla in the ice cream too, which was excellent as well. Solid.

Overall one of the best RW experiences I've had. Service from our waitress and bus team was perfect...despite being sent to Siberia...which I credit to the slightly smug maitre d' (we were by far the youngest in the restaurant). The space is interesting. I want to like the photos of the fruit, but seeing them up close is dizzying/unsettling...the runner was all out of whack and looked like a bad backdrop to a grade school photo. Also, the tables are too high for the booths. Either that or the booths are too low. No. The tables are too high. Doesn't make for a comfortable dining experience.

Great food, good waitservice, boring exterior (really blah), questionable interior and bad table height. Worth going for the food alone.