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“Irving Mill”

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

too precious for the setting and the menu. It seemed completely out of place, like it made a wrong turn at somewhere and was scared and lost.

One of my favorite dishes is also no longer on the menu but hopefully will return (along with the roast chicken): a Columbia River sturgeon with roasted baby beets, sorrel and horseradish ($26). This is a fish that I don’t feel has not gotten enough play on menus and Skeen shows us that it should. His is a thick but silken filet, dressed up like a Russian in winter with a horseradish sauce and beets. All you need is a shot of vodka and a fur hat and you’re all set for a night in Moscow.

I should also mention that Irving Mill is not a place to go with any of your vegetarian or vegan friends. There is nothing, and I mean nothing, other than plain greens, for them to eat. Even sides are rendered off limits by glorious amounts of meat. A saucy macaroni and cheese is topped not with breadcrumbs but with (what else) pork rinds for texture ($8), and cubes of roasted butternut squash are adorned with cashews and bacon ($8). Leave all non-carnivores safely at home.

Well, that is unless they might like to make a dinner of dessert, which is a tempting option because they were all excellent. We loved the banana parfait with roasted banana ice cream, coconut macaroon, vanilla custard and chocolate ($9) and the warm sugared apple fritters with vanilla ice cream ($9), not to mention the warm pecan tart brown butter ice cream and Wild Turkey sauce ($9).
While I imagine many people will still rush to Irving Mill for the burger that made Ryan Skeen a foodie’s household name, there’s much more here to enjoy, from the salt and pepper pork ribs to the pastas, roast chicken (please bring it back), and more. It’s tough to be a reliever. And he’s done a marvelous job and is to be praised for tackling this project and turning it around, making a graceful save for the team.

Irving Mill is located at 116 East 16th Street, between Irving and Union Square West, 212-254-1600.

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Posted: February 8, 2009

Other restaurants in Gramercy :
+ Casa Mono/Bar Jamon   + Pure Food & Wine   + Parea   + Gramercy Tavern (Lunch)   + 15 East   + Tocqueville   + Irving Mill   + Bar Milano   + Irving Mill   + Maialino   + Asellina   + Corkbuzz Wine Studio   + Breads, by guest reviewer Tracy Weiss   

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