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“Shorty's.32”

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

uring the week for more of a meal with a bunch of friends, as I've done in the past with Jamie, Alison and Kiri. We were in early on in the days of Shorty's and sat at the corner table for four near the edge of the bar. We started off with the Jerusalem artichoke soup ($7), a rich yet delicate soup that's tastes like somehow a flat of Jerusalem artichokes has been turned into a nutty form of liquid cashmere. The fresh cavatelli, made in house on an old-fashioned hand-crank cavatelli machine, was also on our menu, tossed with arugula and wild mushroom ragu, though I wouldn't mind a little more heat and another handful of greens in there with the cavatelli. We also added the roasted squash salad, a beautiful ode to these sweet and starchy vegetables, adorned with sheets of pink proscuitto and cubes of fresh ricotta salata tossed in a Banyuls vinaigrette ($10).

Dinner was a tale of two fishes. First came the pan-roasted cod ($23)-a snowy filet balanced on a square of grilled bread, and a bed of Swiss chard and tangles of caramelized onions, set in a pool of Gruyere cheese broth. Yes, liquid cheese, like some deconstructed French onion soup. Second was the skate, which is now served with brown butter, capers, lemon and parsley ($19), but was then baked and smothered with a ragout of bacon, onions and tomatoes ($18) that I'd have eaten with a spoon, skate or no skate.

But Shorty's also beckons for an intimate dinner for two. While I haven't yet managed to find a night to have dinner there with Craig, I'm hoping we can score the corner banquette near the French doors one of these wintry nights. Since we generally agree on what to eat (read: he lets me do the ordering), I'd say we'd start with the braised pork belly with cranberry bean salad ($12), and the crispy crabsticks with basil remoulade ($14)-sweet King crab meat fashioned into Long John Silver-styled "fish sticks" that really eat like overly generous crabcakes that just happen to be rectangular in shape.

Next, we'd have the short ribs, braised until transformed into butter, with elbow macaroni and baby leeks grilled until soft and caramelized (a high-minded riff on beef with noodles, $25), and the roast chicken with chilled green bean salad, mashed potatoes and fried garlic ($19), another superb take on a home cooking classic. This sort of cooking lets you know that even though you're eating regular old chicken and potatoes, the guy who's cookin' that bird, blanchin' those ... [more, click below]

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Posted: February 11, 2008

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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