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“Del Posto”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Italian	MeatPacking	Break the Bank	Off the Charts

a marathon, we moved onto main courses. The lamb three ways ($30) is a flawless dish that includes a great grilled chop, a melting braised shoulder, and to toss a curve ball of fun in the mix, a few lamb tail croquettes—tiny fried minced lamb meatballs that are a great way to use the entire lamb. These should be served as a bar snack for sure, maybe with a bit of chutney or remoulade.

Adventurous eaters of every animal part (or lovers of traditional Jewish cooking from Eastern Europe) might give the bollito misto ($35) a whirl. Zach, one of the slew of cooks at Del Posto, rolled over a silver-domed cart, and from it pulled several animal parts, all poached in a brodo of capon and proseco (added because the acidity of the sparkling wine helps break down the meat). The mixed boil includes stinco di vitello, a boneless veal shank rubbed with mustard seed, testina, a pig's head that is deboned and rolled back and brined, a brined and poached veal tongue, and zamponi, the foretrotter (that would be front leg) of the pig, deboned and stuffed with sausage (my favorite of the lot). The boiled meat festival is accompanied by traditional condiments—salsa verde, a red pepper sauce and a mustarda. The bollito misto is an acquired taste, but some people love it. Zach told us that one night a very enthusiastic gentleman requested the toe of foretrotter so he could suck on it. Apparently his wife was not too pleased with his request, but he happily sucked on the toe, regardless.

Boiled meat made way for a lighter dish, the orata ($27), which was presented whole in amber parchment and then filleted. While it was super moist, and filled with herbs, the fish had a strong sharp anise flavor that didn’t work for me. After the orata, we started to work on the guinea hen ($70) for two, which was also presented to the table. With all this pomp and circumstance, I felt like royalty. The hen was rolled over in its little roasting pan, with the head, wings and feet intact. (Vegetarians are not going to fare well here.) After we oohed and aahed, it was sent off to be carved at the central finishing station and returned to the table in neat slices with sides of acorn squash filled with rice, squash and braised guinea leg (the most incredible little side dish ever). Sadly, while the skin was crispy and awesome, the actual guinea hen breast was bland and flavorless. Bummer. But my friend Sam was not interested in anything but the chicken’s feet. Whe ... [more, click below]

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Posted: January 13, 2006

Other restaurants in MeatPacking :
+ Paradou   + Florent   + One   + Bivio   + Spice Market   + Ono   + 5 Ninth   + Fatty Crab   + Del Posto   + Morimoto   + Los Dados   + 5 Ninth   + Merkato 55   + Scarpetta   + The John Dory   + The Standard Grill   + Bill's Bar & Burger   

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