After a way too big Thanksgiving dinner, I really wanted to keep the
Friday dinner lightweight, especially with a 4-1/2 hour opera that
night. I had read about SEASONAL (www.seasonalnyc.com) which opened
two blocks from Carnegie Hall about a year ago and decided to give it
a go. I was on my way from Times Square (Billy Elliott matinee with
Samuel) to Lincoln Center (Don Carlos at the Met), sp 132 West 58th
Street was right on the way.
Seasonal is small, cozy and subdued with a couple dozen wooden tables
(with those silly woven mats), black leather comfy chairs, modern and
traditional artwork and a small eight seat bar in the center (if it
gets busy it could create some noise, but not a soul was there last
night). Speaking of bar, the Austrian wines are impressive, but I knew
I had to skip wine tonight and went for a bottle of Saratoga water.
Black & White breads were brought out with two creamed cheese spreads
(pumpkin seed oil in one and a second I never did figure out).
There was a tasting menu that I will surely return to in the future,
but this time I stuck to three lighter courses starting with an
amazing novelty POCHIERTES EI. The cuisine here is devised by two
Austrian chefs who run the kitchen and they have deconstructed and
reconstructed Austrian traditional cuisine with great flair. This soft
poached egg (actually it was cooked medium) came with 5 huge chunks of
tasty LOBSTER, HEN of the WOODS foam and crunchy PUMPERNICKEL bread
that was broken up and then cooked in a flash fry it seemed. So the
dish had some slight crunch from that as well as superb flavors that
changed with each of the various ingredients.
ZANDER is the perfect dish for someone keeping it light. The WALLEYE
PIKE is cooked skin-on to perfection and has a Parsley Puree that only
highlights the fish itself along with an Egg Sauce, Small tasty root
vegetables and potatoes and a Horseradish Powder. This was clearly a
salute to the chemical chefs we know today, but also a salute to
excellent fish without any overpowering flavors.
For dessert I chose the PFLAUMEN STREUSSEL which was a plum compote
and plum-beer sorbet. The descriptions of the dish list only the main
ingredients, so don't be afraid to ask specifics before you order. The
Austrian head waiter/maitre d' is more than accommodating. When I told
him I adored Austrian wine, especially desserts (but could not have
any due to the long opera), he brought me a taste of a German1997
(wow) Riesling from Mosel that had huge acidity, low alcohol, medium
sugar and paired brilliantly with the intense plum sweetness. The
dessert itself was a tart with the plum compote covered with poached
plums and the crunchy streussel bits actually inside the superb
sorbet. I loved it, and it was also not overpowering or heavy.
To boot, the coffee is some of the best European style I have ever
had.
Whatever the season, SEASONAL is in!
