[nuxvomica]

it's opening tomorrow (Jan. 23) at 37 e 28th St. btwn Park & Mad. here's a little preview from a friends & family night.

menu on fri. was small (3 apps, 3 mains, 3 desserts), i imagine they ran different dishes on each night. we liked what we tried:

ostra escabeche: malpeque oyster, saimfaina brunoise, oyster juice gelee - 5 or 6 oysters, out of the shell, topped with the brunoise, surrounded by two sauces. good but not unusual

sopa de crustaceo: poached scallops, mussels, potato cylinders, puffed rice. beautifully presented & delicious. i remember one very large scallop and mussel. don't recall the puffed rice, perhaps the scallop was sitting on top of it. the scallop was outstanding - barely cooked, just perfect.

mar y montana: serrano, caramelized apples, poached gambas, chorizo vinaigrette & micro green salad. 2 pieces of a layered terrine but don't remember what the layers were - it was fantastic and disappeared too fast for any notes. the shape was rounded and smaller than a typical terrine. everyone at our table loved it.

bacalao pochado:cod with portobello confit, spinach, creme fraiche and avruga herring roe sauce - i'm not a big fan of cooked fish but LOVED it. plump, flaky cod that tasted like salted cod. it is salty but wonderful.

costilla de cordero: roasted rack of vermont lamb, cashew nut puree, swiss chard, black trumpets - this is what everyone else at the table ordered and it was excellent. everyone loved it.

one dish we didn't try: pollo en dos texturas: braised chicken breast, confit thigh, artichoke puree, caramelized leeks, smoked chorizo, foie gras foam

donuts y cafe: donuts, coffee balsamic glaze, espresso gelee, coffee milk foam, frosting ice cream - aaaah, donuts! yummy. don't remember the ice cream, possible it was gone by the time the plate got to me

ensalada de citricos: pink lemonade gelee, citrus salad, grapefruit custard, blood orange tapioca, yogurt sorbet - very refreshing

remolacha con chocolate: beet pana cotta, chcolate sauce, chocolate cookie, orange salt, sour cream ice cream - also delicious

the room is a little plain (art comning), lights too bright (which seems typical of pre-opening meals i had recently, wonder why) but the food was very strong. both alex urena and pastry chef caryn stabinsky are doing a wonderful job, if that meal was any indication. of course, it was a very controlled situation - small menu, only half-full, etc. but it seems very promising and i plan on going back in a few days to try more food :-)

[Lippy]

Do you have a connection to this restaurant?

[tanabutler]

You must admit it's a pretty bad name for a restaurant, given its proximity to a couple of English words that are less than appetizing.

[Orik]

Well, secretes has closed.

Sounds good, nux, thanks for the report.

[nuxvomica]

Lippy, on Jan 22 2006, 10:16 PM, said:

Do you have a connection to this restaurant?

yeah, the "friends" part of "friends & family," ha ha

if you are asking whether i have any business connection - no, i don't. i liked alex's food at marseille and think he is very talented. he is also a very nice person and very modest. hope he does well.

[nuxvomica]

i agree the name is not the most fortunate - but it is his last name and it's his own place. were i his pr person, i would have recommended "Alex Urena" - better on many levels

[Rose]

The worst part of the name will be when people refer to it as Urena's.

[Orik]

They're going to open a tapas bar soon - Bar Fical

[tanabutler]

Rose, on Jan 22 2006, 07:17 PM, said:

The worst part of the name will be when people refer to it as Urena's.

Rose, you slay me on a regular basis. It took a little for that to sink in.

Maybe it's not too late to change "Alex Urena"?

[Wilfrid1]

Note also that this is an interesting extension of the nuevo latino concept, with the chef taking the food in a direction apparently quite different from Rodriguez. (Older readers can mutter to themselves about carb-laden stodge here).

I look forward to visiting.

[cabrales]

Has anybody else visited?

[nuxvomica]

no but i did go back last week - jusat too busy to post. will soon. i remember some excellent skate and foie gras but forgettable duck and rabbit. service kinks to work out nad tha light!

the foie gras is a play on textures and delicious - two out of three are kind of confusingly similar (the yoghurt and praline are both rather boozy - in a good way :-) had the breakfast dessert too and it was good an dfun but i really need ot ge to bed now...

[Wilfrid1]

I looked at the thread on eGullet, but it seemed to be a discussion of the chef's history - I didn't notice any reports (I might have overlooked one).

I am very keen to go, but I can't see a gap in the diary right now.

[Wilfrid1]

A very curious review by Platty. It concludes with a one star rating, which must be viewed as disappointing, and yet the food sounds consistently delicious. I think the problem (apart from the decor) is that the cuisine's resemblance to vintage Bouley is taken to be a negative. Anyone who thinks standards in upscale New York restaurants have declined over the last ten years might see things differently.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmm

[g.johnson]

That room is the dowdiest I've ever seen occupied by an upscale restaurant.