Blue Hill at Stone Barns, May 20, 2007
Blue Hill at Stone Barns
Pocantico Hills, NY
So by now anyone that has read this blog knows that this is my favorite restaurant anywhere, anyhow.
Therefore, it was the perfect place to celebrate my wife's parents' wedding anniversary. They hadn't been yet, and with ramps season just about to conclude, there was only one thing to do...off to Westchester...
Consistency is one thing. Jean Georges is a perfect example of a restaurant who is consistently consistent in preparing beautiful, perfectly balanced dishes. But when a restaurant gets better every time you visit it - even at your 6th or 7th visit during the course of almost two years, you are experiencing something very special.
I've had it three times in the past, but I felt the need to order it again. The field greens with soft-boiled and pan-fried panko crusted egg was as good as it could possibly be. Yum. Gooey goodness from the egg just brought it all together. Delicious. Everyone at our table got it and was equally impressed. You can taste the fact that one, maybe two, people touched the lettuce before it got to your plate, and that it was cut from the soil that morning.
I followed this up with Pancetta Wrapped Trout, served with local nettles, ramps, spinach puree and a meyer lemon vodka sauce. I was nervous that this would be smaller than it actually was. Served more like pinwheels and sliced into pieces, I really enjoyed this dish.
We ordered for the table a side order of ramps and carrots ($6 each supplemental charge) but, which happens a lot here, they also accidentally brought out an order of bok choy. Instead of bringing it back to the kitchen, we were given an added treat that was delicious. The ramps, of course, were fantastic and the carrots were also delicious - though Danna and debated whether these were better than the one's at BLT Prime. Danna was in favor of BLTs, and I'm still unsure. Both great but somehow different.
I was able to sample the gnocchi (ricotta cheese, morels, pine nuts and asparagus) which was excellent. You might not think of going for the handmade pastas at BHSB because it isn't an "Italian" restaurant by any stretch of the imagination...but you really need to consider it. It helps to actually see the entire room of the kitchen (in the way back) dedicated solely to making pasta fresh daily.
For my main course - I went with the grass-fed beef which was served with morels, asparagus, and local (stone barns) bok choy. Again, fantastic. Perfectly cooked, flavors, aroma and texture in perfect harmony with each other...simply perfect.
I honestly don't recall what we had for dessert - and it's not that it wasn't memorable (well, I guess it really wasn't), it's just hard to remember everything.
If you do happen to go up there, say hi to Pete the bartender, a friend of mine who I remet while in St. John's earlier in the month.
Pocantico Hills, NY
So by now anyone that has read this blog knows that this is my favorite restaurant anywhere, anyhow.
Therefore, it was the perfect place to celebrate my wife's parents' wedding anniversary. They hadn't been yet, and with ramps season just about to conclude, there was only one thing to do...off to Westchester...
Consistency is one thing. Jean Georges is a perfect example of a restaurant who is consistently consistent in preparing beautiful, perfectly balanced dishes. But when a restaurant gets better every time you visit it - even at your 6th or 7th visit during the course of almost two years, you are experiencing something very special.
I've had it three times in the past, but I felt the need to order it again. The field greens with soft-boiled and pan-fried panko crusted egg was as good as it could possibly be. Yum. Gooey goodness from the egg just brought it all together. Delicious. Everyone at our table got it and was equally impressed. You can taste the fact that one, maybe two, people touched the lettuce before it got to your plate, and that it was cut from the soil that morning.
I followed this up with Pancetta Wrapped Trout, served with local nettles, ramps, spinach puree and a meyer lemon vodka sauce. I was nervous that this would be smaller than it actually was. Served more like pinwheels and sliced into pieces, I really enjoyed this dish.
We ordered for the table a side order of ramps and carrots ($6 each supplemental charge) but, which happens a lot here, they also accidentally brought out an order of bok choy. Instead of bringing it back to the kitchen, we were given an added treat that was delicious. The ramps, of course, were fantastic and the carrots were also delicious - though Danna and debated whether these were better than the one's at BLT Prime. Danna was in favor of BLTs, and I'm still unsure. Both great but somehow different.
I was able to sample the gnocchi (ricotta cheese, morels, pine nuts and asparagus) which was excellent. You might not think of going for the handmade pastas at BHSB because it isn't an "Italian" restaurant by any stretch of the imagination...but you really need to consider it. It helps to actually see the entire room of the kitchen (in the way back) dedicated solely to making pasta fresh daily.
For my main course - I went with the grass-fed beef which was served with morels, asparagus, and local (stone barns) bok choy. Again, fantastic. Perfectly cooked, flavors, aroma and texture in perfect harmony with each other...simply perfect.
I honestly don't recall what we had for dessert - and it's not that it wasn't memorable (well, I guess it really wasn't), it's just hard to remember everything.
If you do happen to go up there, say hi to Pete the bartender, a friend of mine who I remet while in St. John's earlier in the month.
posted by Michael Mahle at 11:00 AM
1 Comments:
Completely over-rated restaurant, food is less than lackluster and WHAT is the deal with them serving fish? JOKE JOKE JOKE. The serving theatrics are absurd. It was the worst grand we ever spent.
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