Since winning his first James Beard Awards his work at the Gramercy Tavern and for his cookbook, Tom Colicchio has gone on to become a fully branded celebrity chef. Along with being the head judge on Top Chef, his Craft and Craftsteak restaurants have taken root in some of America's premier culinary hot spots.
After our terrific experience at Perilla this winter, it was no surprise to me that Cara wanted to try Craft for her birthday this summer.
The dining room is incredibly modern. Its opulence comes from a liberal use of contrasting woods, lighting that is both romantic and masculine, and an architectural curve that softens the industrial layout. The floor plan is fairly genius and, from my vantage point, I could not find a bad table.
After a terrific amuse, the menus arrived on single sided placards that allow all items to be seen at once. This is important because at Craft dining is family style. There are no plated dishes on the menu. Each diner chooses dishes and sides and these are placed in proximity to the orderer, but are intended for the entire party to share. This is perfect if you have a finicky eater in your group. Meals can be tailored to avoid flavors and textures one might find offensive. It was my least favorite part of the meal. Instead of ordering whatever I was in the mood for, I felt compelled to do my part to keep the plates balanced.
We began the meal with cocktails and wine. The tables each have a drawer that slides out to the the server for a simple, yet incredibly effective, staging platform. The bottle of wine Chrissie's glass was poured from temporarily resided on this platform and the ceremony helped temper the price of the pour. I can't imagine why more restaurants do not employ such a useful and impressive device.
There were two low points of the evening and the first involved the sommelier. The wine list is immense, covering more than twenty pages. It is also expensive. The sommelier recognized our frustration as we struggled to find a bottle we would all enjoy and the we could afford. I explained our predicament, made a clear point of our price restrictions, and asked about two specific bottles. She made little to no mention of the bottles we were interested in and started selling wines that were twice as expensive. In case she had misunderstood I clearly explained we were there for the food and were not interested in spending that much on a bottle of wine. She then became a bit of a bully and got insistent on her selections. Feeling cheap and ignorant, I almost folded, but I kept my composure and told her we would discuss it further and thanked her for her time. We wound up ordering a bottle of Catena Malbec that we had initially inquired about. It would have done wonders for that five minute cross section of dinner had she simply said the wine would be perfect for our price point or told us why we would best be served elsewhere on the list.
We were in good company that night and I quickly forgot about the sommelier. Our first course was presented. I ordered the roasted quail and found it delicious. The girls, who both got tiny quail legs as their portion, were not impressed. It made me wonder about the whole family style concept. If my quail dish wasn't designed for sharing, there must be other dishes that don't divide well also. Cara's crispy bacon dish, on the other hand, was clearly designed for sharing. Inch square cubes of bacon were an essay on the various textures and flavors that can be composed with a single piece of bacon. Brian ordered the Wagyu carpaccio. It was decadent and flavorful. The best appetizer at the table was Chrissie's foie gras. I can often take or leave foie gras and leave it to Chrissie to enjoy. This piece was generous, perfectly seared, and accompanied with an incredibly complementary sauce. I made the mistake of cutting myself a thin slice as her plate went around expecting to take another later. There was no later.
The girls both ordered the dry aged sirloin for dinner. Because Cara ordered hers medium and Chrissie requested medium rare, these were almost two different meals. Chrissie's was just under medium rare and melted in the mouth. Cara's was just past medium and had developed a delicious sear that highlighted the sauce. Brian ordered the beef short ribs which came as a delicate portion served in a small bowl. The flavor on the short ribs was intense. The line between beef and supporting ingredient was negligible. Each bite was interesting and rewarding. With all of that beef at the table I ordered seafood. I could not have asked for better scallops. The sear was thick on one side, yet the scallop retained a perfect translucence at center. Again, my dish seemed the least compatible for family style dining. My four scallops were quickly consumed and the dish was gone, leaving me to scavenge off of everyone else's plates for the remainder of dinner.
Along with the main courses, the waitstaff suggests each person orders a side. We had the wild spinach that was served slightly creamed, sugar snap peas that were taken just beyond raw and were superb, a polenta that was fine, and corn and bacon risotto that stole the side show. I think a side per person might be over kill. We would have been just as sated with three.
Dessert is ordered in a similar a la carte fashion. Established combinations of a pastry base, fruit, and ice cream are offered, but dinners are free to mix and match to create their own individual plates. We ordered a serving of doughnuts with blackberries and vanilla ice cream. The doughnuts came with three great dipping sauces and did not require the extra sides we ordered. For the sake of experimenting, we also ordered a chocolate tart off of the prepared dessert list. It was good, but I didn't understand it as the signature chocolate dish.
Lastly, we ordered a cheese plate to go with coffee and after dinner drinks. This is when the second misstep of the evening occurred. The timing of the cheese, when compared with impeccable timing of the rest of the meal, was off. We soon discovered why when our server was surrounded by a manager and more experienced cheese server. His instructors were correcting him and prompting him through the cheese service. I don't think anyone else at the table minded, but I was offended. They should be training him in the back and should not release him to the floor until he is adequately prepared. At Friday's when a new waiter walks around with an experienced server I don't mind. At Craft on a Saturday I feel the covenant between the front of the house and the customer has been broken when I have to be the on the receiving end of someone's training. Had they asked if we minded or if they had offered to comp the plate, or even a portion of the plate, I would not have minded, but they did neither.
High Points-
- The philosophy of the food is perfectly executed. Fresh ingredients and expert cooking are evidenced above all else
- Craft is now the holder of the best foie gras in recent memory at A Man Has to Eat
- A great restaurant to ease the apprehensive into fine food
- Stunning dining room in a great neighborhood
- Pushy sommelier who was less than helpful
- At these prices I don't expect servers to be trained on my table without my permission
- I did not enjoy the family style plating (though the rest of my party did)
On a side note, Grub Street has reported that Tom Colicchio is planning to get back in the kitchen in a new restaurant that will plate composed dishes from a small fixed menu. This sounds more my speed.
Craft is located at:
43 East 19th Street
New York, New York 10003
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