Seasonal – Austrian/American (new) – Midtown West

plumpdumpling — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:00:06 +0000

When my boyfriend suggested Seasonal Restaurant & Weinbar because it was awarded a Michelin star this year, I pictured a lively Austrian pub type place with comforting foods like bratwurst and sauerkraut and girls named Brunhilda serving them. What I got was a sleek formal dining room with an inventive menu that put me in the mind of wd-50 or Degustation.

This is one of those unfortunate cases where I had the dinner a couple of months ago and was so overwhelmed by the idea of writing about all of the awesomeness I experienced, so pardon my slim review and (hopefully) enjoy the photos.

The tasting menu:

octopus amuse bouche

I basically love anything with one of these green purees. They always taste so refreshing, and they make me think I’m eating something more exciting than leafy vegetables. I’d be so healthy if my life involved more green purees.

salmon with some sort of awesome powder stuff and the BEST, most flavorful microgreens

white asparagus soup, rock shrimp, morcilla, spring onion

I’ve had an interest in white asparagus since Leah said on season 5 of “Top Chef” that it’s her least-favourite ingredient (because, you know, she’s my least-favourite “Top Chef” contestant). Besides tasting fresh and springy, it also has the dubious honor of being the vegetable most resembling a penis. Win-win!

sweetbread, celery root, onion

The best-looking sweetbread you’ve ever seen, am I right?

soft poached egg, lobster, maitake, porcini

This might be the dish that really brings me around to mushrooms. I can handle mushroom flavor but hate the look of the things, so putting them in a foam is genius. And hiding the other kind of mushroom underneath that foam is über-genius. I think this may have been my favourite dish of the night because it was difficult and yet delicious.

trout, goat cheese, pumpkin seed, radish

wagyu, parsley root, black garlic, cipollini, lime

I still think about this dish once a day. There is no reason that lime flavor and steak go together, and the fact that they not only go together but bring out all of the best flavors in each other is mindboggling.

I have no idea what this was, but it really looks exciting, right?

extra dessert!

Seäsonal
132 West 58th Street
New York, NY 10019 (map)

“Restaurant” Review: Schnitzel & Things Street Food Truck

plumpdumpling — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 14:30:37 +0000

You’ve no doubt seen the Schnitzel & Things food truck on a T-Mobile commercial without even realizing it. And little did you know that your subconscious spotting of it made us thisclose, because the schnitzel truck is one of my favourite lunch spots and one of my favourite things about New York City right now.

The menu is concise: a few kinds of breaded and fried meats, a burger, a sausage, a handful of sides. The line from the truck’s window can be a half-hour long, and it’s not cheap by street food standards–$8 for a sandwich and $10 for a platter with two sides–but the food is huge, comforting, and delicious.

The first time my co-workers and I stopped by the truck for lunch, I got the last pork schnitzel they had, and boy, was I the object of hatred around the office after that. The chicken schnitzel everyone else got was fine and all, but the pork is ten times as flavorful. I chose the chickpea salad and the beets and feta salad for my sides only because they were out of french fries and potato salad (yeah, so I wanted to get two potato-based sides; suck it), but I wasn’t disappointed in the end. The flavor of the feta was overpowered by the beets, but beets really can’t help themselves. Plus, I was just excited to get something even mildly nutritious from a street cart.

There are several condiments for your sandwich or platter that range from the standard ketchup and mustard to the pesto mayo, which I highly recommend.

If you want to get an idea of how big a schnitzel is, here’s my co-worker Anthony holding one up. And he does not have a small head, letmetellyou.

If you’re into burgers, the Schnitz Burger is for you. It’s breaded, fried beef, folks. And while mine was a tad on the dry side, I’m willing to overlook that for the breading and the delicious crunchy-on-the-outside-pillowy-on-the-inside roll it comes on.

Don’t ask me whose fingers those are in my panna cotta. There are usually a couple of dessert choices, but the Tahitian vanilla is the standby. It’s not a blow-your-mind kind of dessert, but it’s light and refreshing, and it’s the sort of palate cleanser a sweets freak like me needs after every meal.

The service from the Schnitzel & Things truck is friendly and familiar, as if they see you every day despite their being parked in different locations around the city throughout the week (which they tweet daily). They even have a call-ahead number (347-772-7341) so you don’t have to brave too much of the cold for your schnitzel fix. But if you choose to stand in line, you’ll feel mighty special, because every single person who passes wonders why they didn’t know about the truck and stops to look at the menu.

Thanks to Midtown Lunch for finding the T-Mobile commercial.

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Seasonal – Austrian/American (new) – Midtown West

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