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“Amalia”

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

e Chinoiserie panels. Overall, it’s a space that may sound a bit disjointed but actually it flows together quite seamlessly. It just allows for different moods, and diverse design personalities. Freud would be pleased.

The food is also a sort of hodge-podge—but a smart, wonderful one at that. Chef Ivy Stark, who most recently ran the kitchens of Dos Caminos and Rosa Mexicano, also did time as sous chef at a couple of three-star restaurants—Sign of the Dove and Cena—and her menu draws inspiration from all of her training (classical and modern) and from a variety of culinary cultures.  In this way, perhaps Amalia represents Freud with more than just the name. It gathers up Stark’s past, and allows her to express who she has become as a chef. What she has become is someone with a very good palate, with an adventurous soul, who cooks food that is invigorating, exciting, well thought out, and quite frankly, just fun to eat.  

One of my favorite dishes was the chorizo stuffed crispy chicken ($26), a dish that marries Spain, Mexico, and the South. What a beautiful relationship. Ivy fills a juicy boned-out chicken breast with smoky Spanish chorizo and fries the bird so its skin is crunchy and golden. It’s served with a brilliant sauce that’s sort of a cross between Romesco and mole; there’s Ancho chile in there, you can taste the cinnamon, the chocolate, the almonds. The pickled golden raisins she tosses over the top add just the right pop so the sauce is sweet, hot, and bright. (Like the perfect man.) On the side, she serves spicy braised escarole tossed with toasted Marcona almonds.

Another star on the menu is her fideau ($26)—a hot creamy paella-like casserole made of fideos (thin short pasta) brimming with tomatoes, mussels, clams, peas, and romanesco broccoli. It’s pure comfort food. Kiri and I put the cast iron pan between us and ate out of it like it was a pint of ice cream.

If comfort food is your thing, you’ll want to get some of the eggplant and goat cheese lasagnette ($12), an appetizer served in a little cast iron pot layered with eggplant, goat cheese and slow-roasted tomatoes. The only issue I had with this dish was its top layer. It’s hard to believe that I am going to write the words “too much” and “cheese” in the same sentence, but I am. There was way too much cheese on top, which made it hard to ... [more, click below]

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Posted: March 27, 2007

Other restaurants in Midtown :
+ Lever House   + Aquavit   + RM   + Joseph's (formerly Citarella The Restaurant)   + Town   + Artisanal   + The Oyster Bar   + Geisha   + David Burke and Donatella Restaurant   + Riingo   + Amma   + Cafe Sabarsky   + The Stone Rose Lounge   + BLT Steak   + V, The Steakhouse-- Closed   + Bar Masa   + Cafe Gray   + The Bar Room at The Modern   + The Cafe at Aquavit   + The Cafe at Aquavit   + Bistro du Vent-- Closed   + Shaburi   + Xing   + The Modern   + Bar Americain   + Alto   + Park Blue   + Mainland-- Closed   + Nobu 57   + Quality Meats   + Dona-- CLOSED   + Daisy May's   + 7Square-- CLOSED   + Amalia   + Fireside   + Anthos   + Patroon   + BLT Market   + Toloache   + Mia Dona   + Park Avenue Summer   + Convivio   + The Oak Room by guest reviewer Julie Besonen   + At Vermilion by guest reviewer Elaine Weiner   + Lunching at Inakaya, by guest reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Marea, by Guest Reviewer Susan Kane Walkush   + Le Bernardin   + New York Central -- A Reason To Eat at the Grand Hyatt Again   + Pampano Botaneria by Dara Pollak   

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