Let Gilt Lead Your New Year Pleasures

By JULIETTE ROSSANT As 2007 nears its end, Super Chef wondered: where to go for dinner in New York City before the parties and dancing start on New Year’s Eve? Our answer is Gilt, the sumptuous restaurant at the New York Palace Hotel. The complex is part of the Dorchester Group, owned by the Sultan of Brunei. So far, His Majesty the Sultan himself has not dined at Gilt, so we decided to see whether it merits royal patronage physically and not just financially. After all, New Year's is fast approaching--and Gilt has a few seats left for its first seating that evening, allowing celebrants plenty of time to go on to midnight festivities. Gilt is somewhat a rarity among restaurants in that its tasting menu manages to surprise diners while avoiding with confidence the common mistake of over-feeding. More unusually, its food dazzles amidst a handsome ornate room, with walls of dark wood paneling warmed by red lighting and ceilings of elaborate gold ornament. At one end lies the door to the kitchen, open, basking in a calm glow. Two Christophers lead an all-star cast: executive chef Christopher Lee and restaurant director Christopher Day. Chef Lee relies on pastry chef David Carmichael and sommelier Jason Ferris. Day directs an array of well-tailored wait staff, all debonair, a few even devilishly handsome and quietly amusing. In order to make our recommendation properly, Super Chef indulged in what Christopher Day called a "five-course" tasting menu. Chef Lee opened with a tiny torchon of foie gras with hazel nut dusting to bring out rich, sweet flavor. Following this came a wild mushroom soup with pancetta and mascarpone swirled into thick puree. At this point, the winter’s cold weather had receded to distant memory. Next came Alaskan Red King Crab. This came with a thin slice of Lime Radish that was slightly sharp but also citrous. Also accompanying the fresh crabmeat were pieces of winter citrus (orange, blood orange, grapefruit) and a tarragon-yogurt dressing. The striking red color of the crab, the green of the radish, and the colors of the fruit heralded the main courses. Nantucket Bay Scallops arrived with seared foie gras, seared Concord Grapes, and surrounding dots of Meyer lemon. Every combination of ingredients proved pleasing: one, some, or all. Nothing was superfluous: each ingredient stood on its own but added to the taste of the overall dish. Gilt’s signature dish is Yellow Fin Tuna Wellington. Green spinach and porcini mushrooms surround the tuna, contained in pastry. Further surrounding all were two, yin-yang sauces of foie gras and red wine reduction. Each bite was decadent. More importantly, thanks to tuna (rather than the filet mignon traditional to the recipe), the dish was magically light. The last savory course from the kitchen was a dish of sliced New Zealand lamb loin, accompanied by cardoon, crosnes, and black truffle jus. The lamb was mild and tender yet withstood the assertive taste of the truffles without being too rich and heavy. By this time, the diner felt restored but still light--despite an earlier lunch of comparable proportions. Pastry Chef Carmichael sent out a sorbet of mango in a kiwi sauce, accompanied by a strawberry meringue, to cleanse the palate. He then sent out a Chocolate Ginger Bread Pudding with Honeycomb Ice Cream, and a decadent Valrhona Chocolate Mouse with Ovaltine foam and circles of chocolate decorating the top. Clearly chef and pastry chef had conspired to make sure dessert would find room. As for the wines, suffice to make two important notes. First, whether or not you would choose any of these wines alone is immaterial: each one complimented its course splendidly. Second, sommelier Jason Ferris has worked with Chef Lee for many years, and his wine pairings underscore the importance of a sommelier's intimate understanding of a chef's recipes. After having sampled the fare, what then would be Super Chef’s recommendation to the Sultan of Brunei? Were His Majesty the Sultan to dine at his own restaurant, he would find Gilt worth its weight in gold. We would only suggest, humbly, that His Majesty might wish to order two desserts, simply to keep pace with the quantity of savory dishes in the tasting menu. However, were New Year's dancing to follow, one dessert would more than suffice. For New Year's Eve, we recommend the first seating (see menu, below). Just give Christopher Day a call, mention Super Chef, and enjoy the evening. GILT New York Palace Hotel 455 Madison Avenue, New York NY 10022 www.giltnewyork.com (212) 891-8100 FIRST SEATING MENU New Year's Eve (December 31, 2007) Russian Osetra Caviar Warm Califlower Custard Chilled Canadian Lobster Tropical Fruit, Mache, Toasted Almonds, Lemongrass Dressing 2005 Sighardt Donabaum Riesling, "Brandstatt", Wachau, Austria Apple Chestnut Soup Seared Foie Gras, Candied Apples, Black Trumpet Mushrooms 2006 Bourillion Dorlean, Vouvray, "Coulee d'Argent", Loire Valley Yellow Fin Tuna "Wellington" Porcini Mushrooms, Flat Leaf Spinach, Red Wine Reduction 2000 Domaine Coursel Pommard, "Les Epenots" 1er Cru, Burgundy 21 Day Aged Strip Loin Barley Grains, Hen of the Woods Mushrooms, Cashel Blue Cheese 2003 Opus One, Napa Valley, California Chocolate Trio Banana, Hazelnuts, Caramel Video: Christopher Lee on The Today Show David Carmichael on The Today Show Previous articles: Wolfgang Puck's Spago: Where Ever You Are The Rise of Restaurant Michael Mina Mother's Day: Perry's New Year's Resolution: Eat Well, Help Others Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging --> back to Super Chef