Trip to NY: two four-star restaurants

Two New York Times four-star restaurants in New York: Bernardin and 11 Madison Park


The New York Times rating system is closely followed by foodies and the rare four-star restaurant is a much pursued destination. During this wonderful trip to NY, I had the fortunate opportunity to sample two of these temples of cuisine: Eleven Madison Park (newly elevated to four stars) and Le Bernardin which has had four stars since its inception over 20 years ago. The lunch at Le Bernardin, for 68 dollars is well worth it. There are numerous choices in every category and everything is beautifully and deliciously prepared. I went with my cousin, Jenny, who loves delicious inventive cuisine as much as I.

At the table was rillettes de saumon (smoked salmon) served with toasted country bread. The bread server then made the rounds with several choices of wonderful bread including brioche bread which is my favorite.

For starters, Jenny had tuna that was pounded flat and layered with foie gras, and I chose soft shell crabs served with a lime sauce. We shared everything. For our main courses, there was codfish stuffed with sweet peppers and octopus and topped with a red wine reduction, and crispy black bass served with a braised celery and parsnip custard. The final touch was Iberico ham topped with a green peppercorn sauce.

Desserts were very light and interesting: Pear with cinnamon and caramel, Pistachio mousse with a caramelized white chocolate cream. Neither of us felt like drinking too much at lunch so we ordered wines by the glass. With coffee came a basket of warm financiers.

Le Bernardin is an exquisite New York institution that I discovered in Paris years ago before the Le Coze brother and sister moved west. I recommend the lunch as it is quite reasonable considering the calibre of the cuisine.

The other four-star restaurant I was lucky to experience is Eleven Madison Park. My cousins, Larry and Boots took me there and we had a splendid meal. The amuse-bouches alone were worth the trip: cornet of crisp sweetbreads, warm gougères, radish with butter and sea salt, tortellini of manila clams, quince gelée with foie gras on a savory butter cookie--all lovely and delicious.

I had an extremely superb and interesting appetizer: slow poached egg with farro, sweet corn, frogs legs and summer truffles--like a thin risotto (the farro) garnished with many textures and flavors. Boots had a gorgeous roulade of avocado, Hawaiian prawns, avocado, lime and yogurt. All my favorite things in one dish. Larry chose a lovely salad with jamon Iberico, melons, basil and heirloom tomatoes.

For the main courses, Boots and I shared the best duck I have ever had. It was rare, juicy and crusty at the same time, glazed with lavendar honey and served with butternut squash, figs and other spices. The duck legs came confits with fresh figs and herbs. Larry had a beautiful roast suckling pig with stunning vegetable garnishes. The wine we chose was spectacular: Edna Valley Topanga Syrah 2005. It was really a remarkable wine.

For dessert we had a chocolate-caramel tart, an ice cream sandwich with mint chocolate ice cream and a vanilla soufflé. Throughout the meal we were surprised at how consistently superb and splendid everything was. This is a great discovery and I just hope that chef is happy in his kitchen and stays there for many years.