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“Bar Blanc”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	New American	West Village	Moderate	Good

few squat house-made drumstick chicken sausages that add just the right amount of levity and punch to the dish. These sausages will make you smile. They’ll also make you want to have them for breakfast with eggs and grits.

Then again, if the chicken is a soft talker, the braised lamb shoulder lasagna ($24) is a baratone opera singer. This dish has some guts. Cesar layers thin sheets of pasta, almost crepe-like in texture, with judicious amounts of his wine-braised lamb, and continues the layering so it’s almost like a delicate savory Napoleon, rather than a traditional chunky and clunky lasagna. To make it a bit effete, he trims the edges and forms it into a circle the size of an appetizer plate. The presentation is a bit precious for me, especially with strength of the flavors in that braised lamb, but at some point you realize it’s all gone, so the presentation is not really relevant anymore. All that matters is how good it tasted going down.

While I loved the lasagna (especially on these cold winter nights), I think his signature at the restaurant will become the porclett ($32)—a beautifully roasted suckling milk-fed pig that’s accompanied by a pig head terrine and a slab of luscious braised pork belly capped with a crispy skin, plated in a puddle of natural jus brightened with cinnamon and orange with diced brussel sprouts and an earthy chanterelle puree. I was supposed to be sharing this dish with Steven but I have a feeling he didn’t get much time with it.

The only off beat of the night was the gently poached salmon ($24) which met an unfortunate and cruel death due to an overload of tomato puree apparently soaked in vanilla. This was the only misstep on the menu, and despite that gorgeous preparation (that salmon was like buttah, baby), it was inedible.

Pastry chef Daniel Keehner matches the haute savory menu with desserts like a Meyer lemon souffle that’s served in a browned disc and tastes like a fluffy creamy custard, and a super rich, one-bite-is-enough, bittersweet chocolate cake with salted caramel ice cream ($10 each).

While the food is great, the issue with Bar Blanc is the rest of the outfit: thoughtless, absent-minded service and lousy acoustics. And these two pieces turn this entire ensemble into a bit of a mess. How can you appreciate food this good in a restaurant where (a) waiters rarely stop by to check in to see how your meal is pro ... [more, click below]

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Posted: January 21, 2008

Other restaurants in West Village :
+ Jefferson-- Closed   + La Palapa Rockola   + Sumile   + Babbo   + Tasca   + AOC Bedford   + Home   + The Spotted Pig   + Barbuto   + Numero 26   + Mas   + August   + Alta   + Cru   + Blue Mill Tavern-- Closed   + Employees Only   + Lassi   + Metropol--Closed   + Turks and Frogs   + Bellavitae   + Yumcha-- CLOSED   + Gusto: SEE EARLIER REVIEW; THIS CHEF HAS LEFT GUSTO   + Perry Street   + Home   + Ditch Plains   + The Little Owl   + Cafe Condesa   + Cafe Cluny   + Gusto   + The Waverly Inn   + Morandi   + P*ONG   + Perilla   + Soto   + Market Table   + Centro Vinoteca   + Barfry   + Dell'Anima   + Bar Blanc   + Smith's   + Commerce   + Elettaria   + Bar Q   + Cabrito   + 10 Downing   + Minetta Tavern   + Braeburn   + Scuderia, by guest reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Bar Blanc Bistro by Guest Reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Joseph Leonard   + Bar Henry, by Guest Reviewer Kathleen Squires   + Kin Shop   + Monument Lane   + Wong   + Bin on Bleecker, by Dara Pollak   + Ristorante Rafele   + Cole's Greenwich Village by Guest Reviewer Claire Jaffe   

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