I was in NY for a quickie opera last week and headed to THE SMITH
which opened several months ago across from Lincoln Center where
several other incarnations used to be including my beloved Sushi A-Go-
Go.
Well, it may be pricey, but it's fabulous food and highly recommended,
if a bit noisy and clamorous.
The tables are marble surfaced, the tile floors are uncarpeted with a
painted copper (copy?) ceiling and the space is huge and open. In nice
weather, and it was, the walls lower to open to the sidewalks seating
outside. The chairs are okay, not too comfy, but the benches along the
wall are better. The rest rooms are downstairs, which could be a
problem for people who can't climb stairs (maybe there is an elevator
somewhere; I assume the law requires it).Once downstairs, it's hard to
detect which is men and women and since the wash area is joint, you
might wonder into the wrong side!
My server Kurt was a gem helping me with ideas and suggestions from
the varied menu.
I had started my diet, so I kept to oysters for first and they were
all divine:
Beau Soleil from New Brunswick
Cotuit Bay from Cape Cod that were the saltiest
Fisher Island from NY
and Montauk Pearls, also from Long Island
It was fun to have top notch NY oysters for a change and these came
with a mignonette as well as another habanero sauce which worked
perfectly to cut the saltiness of the Cotuit Bays!
I enjoyed a glass of Weissburgunder 2011 from Schrouk in Austria which
was light yet creamy and enjoyable with both the oysters and my main
course of TROUT MILANESE which came with two huge filets with a panko
mustard crust, baby kale, artichoke, fingerlings, dill aioli and
pickled onions. It was a superb fish with great flavor as well. I did
switch to a glass of Domaine Faiveley Mercurey Blanc 2009 a bit later
in the meal.
I forgot to mention that on arrival Kurt brought over both fizzy and
flat house bottled water--all at NO CHARGE!
I could not resist dessert and ate about 3 or 4 bites of a divine
SMORES IN A JAR which was homemade Graham crackers, toasted
marshmallows, mighty fine chocolate pudding and a dash of sea salt.
We have to return so Samuel can try the Liquid Center Chocolate Cake!
