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“InTent: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	French	Chelsea	Moderate	Don't Bother

e Gong please!

The bric-crusted branzino ($21), a beautiful filet of fish tucked into a crispy crepe wrapper was terrific actually, though the potatoes it was served on were lumpy. A signature turkey osso bucco ($19) with chickpeas, harrisa and broccoli rabe with Moroccan spices offered tender braised meat, but again there was no punch, no heart. The sauce was thin and weak and could have been reduced down to add some body to it. The final nail in the coffin for us was the slow braised pork ribs ($18). Yes they fell easily from the bone but they fell off into ropey lengths that were overcooked and were overwhelmed by so much sweet honey and cardamom that I thought I was eating some sort of Indian dessert. Pork ribs that taste like cardamom dessert are not good.
We then realized that we had never gotten our order of Panisse—chickpea fries ($5). Our waitress had not come over to see how we were doing or if we needed anything else, so we had to flag her down. It took a few tries. Soon she noticed the white napkins flailing in the air and she came over. She apologized and soon brought our panisee over. Perhaps it would have been better to have forgotten them. They were like dust, disintegrating in my hands as I lifted one up. I was now defeated.

The best part of dinner at Intent (other than leaving and discovering a great wine bar across the street called Vin Noir) was dessert (all $9.50). While on the small side (and for $9.50 they should not be), we loved the red wine poached Medjool dates, cooked down so they are jammy and served over a petite feta cheesecake, a nice contrast in textures and flavors. I also liked the Mission figs served three ways—bruleed, sticky figgy pudding and a quenelle of port wine poached fig ice cream. Lovely.

No one wished us a good night at Intent. We left, unnoticed and hungry, not so much for more food (though the portions all around are small and the idea of going to pizza at No. 28 Carmine was raised), but hungry for a place with soul. InTent was a major disappointment, especially considering its owners. They need to get down there and put some people in that room that can, in the eternal words of Project Runway’s Tim Gunn, Make it Work! Because right now this place is a restaurant in name only. They serve food, mediocre food at best, but they don’t serve anything else. There’s no love here, no feeling, and no—excuse the pun—intention.
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Posted: August 6, 2006

Other restaurants in Chelsea :
+ Matsuri   + La Bottega   + Tia Pol   + Bombay Talkie   + Cookshop   + D'Or Ahn: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED   + Buddakan   + Crema   + InTent: THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED   + Trestle on Tenth   + Klee   + El Quinto Pino   + Socarrat   + Txikito   + Co. (Company)