Visit to Le Bernardin, NYC

I went for the bigger tasting menu with accompanying wines.

King Fish-Caviar
King Fish-Osetra Caviar Tartare; Smoked Crème Fraîche Emulsion
Yuki No Bosha, Yamahai Junmai Sake

Very subtle, under salted tartare, nice caviar not enough of the emulsion to make out what it tasted like. The Sake was very nice on the nose, but - of course - without the proper acidity to match the food. (Not much of a Sake lover, I admit.)

Lobster
Lacquered Lobster Tail; Herb Spring Roll Lemongrass Consommé
Krug, Grande Cuvée, France NV

Lobster undersalted and without much taste, served too cold. Killed by the lemongrass. (Do not care too much for American lobster either.) Krug GC is always nice, but would have preferred a blanc de blancs or even better a Mosel Kabinett. (And cut down on that lemongrass!) Just a statement pairing, now.

Langoustine
Seared Langoustine-Foie Gras; Pickled Hon Shimeji Sauce Perigord
Riesling, Terrassen, Thomas Pastuszak, Finger Lakes, New York 2013

Nice dish accompanied by a nice, mineral driven Riesling.

Salmon
Barely Cooked Organic Salmon; Baby Peas and Favas Mint-Tarragon Emulsion
Meursault, Clos des Magny, Domaine Vincent Latour, Burgundy, France, 2013

Very much undercooked salmon (baby food?), that was killed by the peas(!) and the tarragon. One of the least appealing dishes I have ever had in a Michelin restaurant. The wine was another story: a producer to follow, very modern, fresh white Burgundy. I like!

Halibut
Poached Halibut; Manila Clams Wild Mushroom Casserole
Pinot Noir, Wind Gap, Sonoma Coast, California 2014

Undersalted and for me not ready halibut with nice clams and a mushroom casserole. Perfect match with a very nice PN, though.

White Tuna-Japanese Wagyu
Grilled Escolar and Seared Wagyu Beef; Fresh Kimchi Asian Pear, Soy-Citrus Emulsion
Le Manoir de Gay, Pomerol, Bordeaux, France, 2011

Beautiful dish that I enjoyed a lot. Did not want the Pomerol - the sommelière tried convincing me to taste it but I only gave it a sniff: cold macerated, young modern Merlot, yuk - so got a 2013 Barbaresco from Castello di Verduno instead. Perfect match again and a very nice early drinker. Might even go out and buy some!

Cucumber “Pisco Sour”
Tokaji, “Cuvée Patricia,” Kiralyudvar, Hungary 2008

A dessert for a Tequila lover and the 100% Sarga Muskotály Tokají is very easy to love.

Coffee
Coffee Caramel Crémeux, Roasted Almond Mousse Zweigelt, Beerenauslese, Alois Kracher, Burgenland, Austria, 2012

Very elegant dessert, fingerlicking good and with a wine match made in heaven. A red BA from Kracher, why not?


In all a fabulous restaurant with food that does not always appeal to me. Too bland, too subtle, too undercooked. Ambience, staff, wine service etc close to perfection.

Greetings from Sweden / Fredrik L

Interesting experience, I must admit that after reading your reviews of each course I was not expecting you to call the restaurant 'fabulous' at the end. Because you seemed to point out technical flaws, not just things that were a matter of taste. (Although undersalted is not something one commonly hears in reference to high-end restaurants!)

I only ate at Le Bernadin once, in 2001, to celebrate my acceptance into PhD programs. It was truly fabulous for me and I detected zero flaws (although I was probably a less discerning diner at the time).

So even a place with the stature of Le Bernardin is calling Escolar "White Tuna"? Interesting.

I have grown used to using "lite" salt or sea salt at home and tend to think most restaurants oversalt their dishes so I might have welcomed the restraint. Recently I dined at Bloomsbury Bistro in Raleigh and noticed there were no salt or pepper shakers (or pepper mills) on the table. I guess the chef wants to be responsible for the seasoning in the kitchen. However, for me, the grilled vegetables had too much pepper which is a spice I don't really relish. (I prefer herbs to spices most of the time.)

[Jenise]

Joe, that surprised me too--that came up in a recent discussion on FLDG.

JC--I honestly can't remember the last time I saw s&p on a table in a fine dining restaurant. If you're used to it, must be a Suthun thing.

Fredrik--interesting report, I've not been. Was glad to see some good wine names there, though; for instance Wind Gap. Excellent example of the progress being made with that grape in California.