Borgo

[Wilfrid]

I finished work for the holidays and went down to Borgo for an opening time walk-in. Easy. Six of us in line and there is plenty of bar seating.

Lovely transformation of the old I Trulli space.

[Wilfrid]

And slammed by 5.30.

[Mitchell101]

NYC right now is crazy. I missed my train  at GCT and went to bar at Grand Brasserie at 9:15 and place is packed. In a train station.

[MitchW]

Borgo is high on my list; I can wait until mid-January, however.

[Wilfrid]

It ended up disappointing. It had all started so well. Lovely room, great service. First course, sweetbread spiedini, absolutely glorious. Sweetbreads charred on the outside, soft inside, charred leeks and a delicious sauce.  A glass of Tortuga Libertango orange wine with that.

Pastas served either side of me looked and smelled great; but I try to avoid pasta. I ordered the only red meat on the menu, roast leg of lamb. How difficult can it be to get that right? The plate was garnished with fiercely vinegary green leaves in a vinegary sauce. The lamb, garnished with prune pieces, had just not been cooked long and slow enough. There were a couple of big, inedible pieces of gristle; generally it was just chewy. Not as chewy as NYC duck breasts, but chewy. A glass of red wine, Occhipinti.

Sigh. No dessert, a grappa and espresso.

Check for two courses with drinks? $200 before tip.

I am not going to blame the glasses of wine this time. The lamb (clearly portioned for one person not for sharing) was priced ludicrously at $64. That would be too expensive even if it was good.

Appetizer and a pasta is clearly the way to go, although the pasta portions are modest.

[Simon]

27 minutes ago, Wilfrid said:

I am not going to blame the glasses of wine this time. The lamb (clearly portioned for one person not for sharing) was priced ludicrously at $64. That would be too expensive even if it was good.

 

Even Torrisi charges less for a much more substantial portion of lamb!

[MitchW]

1 hour ago, Wilfrid said:

It ended up disappointing. It had all started so well. Lovely room, great service. First course, sweetbread spiedini, absolutely glorious. Sweetbreads charred on the outside, soft inside, charred leeks and a delicious sauce.  A glass of Tortuga Libertango orange wine with that.

Pastas served either side of me looked and smelled great; but I try to avoid pasta. I ordered the only red meat on the menu, roast leg of lamb. How difficult can it be to get that right? The plate was garnished with fiercely vinegary green leaves in a vinegary sauce. The lamb, garnished with prune pieces, had just not been cooked long and slow enough. There were a couple of big, inedible pieces of gristle; generally it was just chewy. Not as chewy as NYC duck breasts, but chewy. A glass of red wine, Occhipinti.

Sigh. No dessert, a grappa and espresso.

Check for two courses with drinks? $200 before tip.

I am not going to blame the glasses of wine this time. The lamb (clearly portioned for one person not for sharing) was priced ludicrously at $64. That would be too expensive even if it was good.

Appetizer and a pasta is clearly the way to go, although the pasta portions are modest.

Wow - maybe I can wait until mid-June.

1 hour ago, Simon said:

Even Torrisi charges less for a much more substantial portion of lamb!

We ate at Torrisi recently; I was kind of surprised at the somewhat reasonableness of the check; the food mind you, not the drinks.  And the food was very good.

[backyardchef]

2 hours ago, Wilfrid said:

It ended up disappointing.

The lamb (clearly portioned for one person not for sharing) was priced ludicrously at $64. That would be too expensive even if it was good.

That's $64!? 

Edited December 19, 2024 by backyardchef

[Wilfrid]

I blame myself for not really paying attention to the price when ordering. Given all the raves I think I ordered badly. Rosner doesn't mention the lamb. Neither does Cuozzo, but it looks like it was a $64 veal shank when he went.

[rozrapp]

The menu on the website does not have prices.

[small h]

And you can certainly see why.

[Anthony Bonner]

Did I see a $68 dollar whole Branzino on the menu? That's just offensive. 

[small h]

And unfortunately not uncommon.

[Wilfrid]

If a slice of lamb is $64, it's hardly surprising.

[Wilfrid]

Swordfish steak and fries at Otter, same price: $68. But they also have entrees in the 20s and 30s, quite a spread.

[backyardchef]

1 hour ago, Wilfrid said:

Swordfish steak and fries at Otter, same price: $68. But they also have entrees in the 20s and 30s, quite a spread.

$68 swordfish steak and fries!? 

[Wilfrid]

The au poivre sauce looks nice...