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“The Monday Room”

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

onday Room was named for this guy in New Zealand who actually built a "Monday Room" in his offices where he would go on Monday evenings to drink a glass of wine and transition into the week.” Sanjit and Craig laughed. “Wait, he transitions into his week Monday night? So his week really started on Tuesday?” Craig asked. “Well, maybe he’s doesn’t really need a Monday Room,” Sanjit added. Well, they do have a point. Maybe a Sunday Room would have made more sense. Nonetheless, the folks at AvroKO were keen to the fact that unwinding might be something that New Yorkers would be apt to do more than one night a week so their Monday Room is open seven nights a week. And after your first visit, you might want to extend your stay.

You see, there’s more to The Monday Room than wine and sexy serenity. There’s the food. And this ain’t just any ole grub. This is chef Brad Farmerie’s cuisine, and he’s one of those chefs whose talents, in my humble estimation, have not really yet been fully acknowledged. Here’s a guy who makes food that’s fearless and inspired, that brings together contrasting flavors, temperatures, and textures and far flung ingredients from New Zealand, Australia, Asia, and our own USA. This is food that makes you say WOW. I’ll be honest. I love it. And I hope you will too. Have a few glasses and a few small plates to take the edge off your day, or if you’re up for it, as we were last week, I recommend you do a five-course tasting menu with wines for $75 per person. It’s a great way to learn about the wines and really relax and unwind with friends.

Ruben, a charming gentleman from Ribero del Duero, has an incredible amount of wine knowledge and a blessed amount of genuine enthusiasm for sharing said knowledge. He’s also quite an individual, cut from his own cloth. The night we were in, he was wearing a slim cut dark velvet suit (I want to say it was purple, but I cannot be sure), with wide heavy black eyeglasses framing his face, and atop his head, an impressive swooping wave of thick dark hair that you would bet would be a wig, but in fact is real. His hair alone is something to behold. I don’t know why but in some way, he sort of reminded me of the Pink Panther. In any event, Ruben is not someone whom you will soon forget. And aside from looking like he should appear on the pages of Men’s Vogue, he w ... [more, click below]

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Posted: February 26, 2007

Other restaurants in Soho :
+ Balthazar   + Savoy   + Blue Ribbon   + Lupa   + Public   + Kittichai   + Lure Fishbar   + Barmarche   + Porcupine-- CLOSED   + Ama   + La Esquina   + Jerry's- Closed Now   + The Tasting Room   + Papatzul   + Shorty's.32   + The Monday Room   + Ed's Lobster Bar   + Aurora   + Provence   + Tailor   + Hundred Acres   + Delicatessen, By Guest Reviewer Julie Besonen   + The Mott   + The Dutch   + Cherrywood, by Guest Reviewer Dara Pollak   

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