Irving Mill, November 30, 2007

Irving Mill

Irving Mill could be my kind of restaurant. It makes a great effort to create country charm in a bustling part of the city. I love the imported mill stone in the center of the restaurant and the Legend of Sleepy Hollow text on the banquettes brings a modern edginess to the room - despite the antique typeface. The for-asthetics-only wood beams, tall ceilings and otherwise appropriately appointed room creates a very warm and inviting space.

Service comes with a smile and is, as reported elsewhere (Grub Street/New York Magazine I believe), very attentive. Then again, there weren't many people having lunch there the day I visited.

The menu is fairly limited...and though everything looked good, nothing at first really grabbed my attention. The appetizers that I thought looked good didn't seem to have an entree companion that would make sense.

In the end, I went for the chicken liver crostini to start and the monkfish dish with chorizo and potatoes as my main. Both were good. The crostini was equal in quality to the amuse you get at BLT Prime - but that being said, the one you get at BLT Prime is a freebie. The monkfish was cooked adequately but didn't necessarily wow me. The menu needs to get deeper here but the cooking, decor and service tells me that this place has legs...it just needs to be brave enough to show a little more of them.