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“Knife and Fork”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	New American	East Village	Moderate	Great

uo; The homemade bread was warm and soft and sliced into thick wedges and fanned out on a rustic farm board topped with a slate saucer that contained a few hand-cut cubes of butter and a mound of flaky sea salt. It showed attention to detail, and it matched the sensibility of the room and the restaurant. That would be check one for Knife and Fork.

Brassel starts every table off with an amuse bouche (yes, on East 4th Street). Ours was a hot tomato tea consommé, which possessed the amazingly clean and lively flavors of a ripe summer tomato. It was just the right thing, even on a mercilessly hot summer night, to wake up the palate. Perfect. Check two.

Then the real food started to arrive. Courses were nicely paced throughout the evening, and portions were modest in size but nowhere near skimpy. Our first course was a salmon, seared so its skin was crisp as a potato chip and its flesh almost melting. It was set in a smashingly tart and pulpy broth made from cucumber, green apples and passion fruit. It was pure Pow! (In a good way.)

Our second course was more advanced in technique and concept, and I didn’t like it as much as the first. It presented a surprisingly mild (read: bland) and meaty filet of mackerel over a salad of shaved fennel that was dressed with tarragon oil that seemed to flatten the fennel’s flavor as well. That fish was redeemed by a startling spoonful of tapioca that was folded in with reduced orange juice, vanilla and a bit of cinnamon. While the mackerel was a shy introvert, that tapioca was brazen and outspoken, and did make up for it.

At this point, I pointed out that she needed to remember that the reviewer in her novel should be observing the crowd and the service in the restaurant throughout the meal. First, what sort of crowd is it? Young and hip? Older and more sedate? A mix? Do other tables seem content, or are they craning their necks to get waiter’s attention?

Here at Knife and Fork, every table seemed to be enjoying their meal and happily focused on their conversation and food, not on finding a waiter or a busser. The service was attentive and warm. As far as the crowd, there were a few guys in jeans at the bar sharing a few pints and having a chat, and in the dining room nicely spaced tables were filled with casually dressed friends and couples. All in all, people were relaxing over their meal in a room that was actually quiet enough to hold a c ... [more, click below]

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Posted: July 23, 2006

Other restaurants in East Village :
+ Yujin-- Closed   + Jack's Luxury Oyster Bar   + Mermaid Inn   + Five Points   + Lavagna   + Five Points   + Bond Street   + Jewel Bako   + Alphabet Kitchen   + In Vino   + Bao 111   + Chikalicious   + Il Buco   + Hearth   + Lima's Taste   + Mercadito   + Hedeh   + Momofuku   + Una Pizza Napoletana   + Winebar   + Uovo-- CLOSED   + Mo Pitkin's House of Satisfaction   + Gotham Bar & Grill   + Colors   + Chinatown Brasserie   + Knife and Fork   + European Union-- NEW CHEF; SEE APRIL 2007 Review   + Aroma Kitchen and Winebar   + Stand   + European Union   + Mercat   + Gemma   + Back Forty   + The Smith   + Seymour Burton   + Belcourt   + Graffiti   + The Redhead   + Double Crown    + Apiary   + Joe Doe   + Apiary by guest reviewer Kiri Tannenbaum   + DBGB   + Northern Spy   + Goat Town   + Saxon + Parole   + Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria   + Acme   + Calliope   + Nicoletta   + JEPPNEY by Claire Jaffe   + Feast   

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