With so many excellent dining choices in Manhattan, how does a restaurant find a way to stand out in the best possible way? Gabriel Kreuther, a two Michelin star restaurant with various awards, seems to have figured it out. One word - lightness… Let me explain. You had a long day or week hustling and bustling, perhaps running late here and there, sitting in the usual city traffic, or walking through a tense crowd hurrying through the somewhat filthy streets with skyscrapers blocking the sun and sky from your day, but then you walk into this restaurant and… all that is left behind.
You are in a room designed with all the details to make you feel at ease - high ceilings, lots of glass and light, little crystal birds embellishing the ceiling, large room with open space concept. All tables have nice views, and none are placed awkwardly, as one can often find to be the case, even at the nicer restaurants in NYC. One larger table is located right in the kitchen (how cool?!), but most other tables can see the cooks quietly doing their magic of creating the night’s dinner as well.
By now, I’m sure you are ready to hear about the food. You can choose between 3 or 4 course meal. In my opinion, 3 courses were just enough to make me full and happy. Once we placed the order, we were served amuse-bouches, which included quite a few items, each one delicious and unique in different ways.
From refreshing green tomato gazpacho with a touch of peppers, to red velvet cornbread with crispy red beets and light sauce, to tacos with edamame purée and pickled lime - bursting with flavors in your mouth in contrast to their simple neat look; and just some bread served with extremely light crème fraîche with chives, adding a fresh herby flavor to the slightly sour taste. The truffles with unexpectedly runny, fresh, and citrusy liquor locked in the thinnest shell of white chocolate were also served as hors d’oevres, but I left them for the dessert (and did not regret that I did).
All the flavors, and we haven’t even got to the actual dishes… but here we go!
First course # 1: Sturgeon and Sauerkraut Tart, served in a cloche with deep smoky aroma that spread around when it was opened (I should’ve taken a video!).
The tingly sensation of the slightly sweet sauerkraut and hollandaise sauce over deliciously fresh sturgeon created a perfect combo topped with royal kaluga caviar and served in a crispy ‘light as a feather’ tart.
Second first course we tried was Poached Local Farm Egg. The flavors cozily warm up your mouth as you try the first spoon of this soft as a cloud dish with light earthy touch. Served with a frittata with cheese sauce and sesame sour cream, which was also very light, yet with some bite to it. I believe it was cooked sous-vide.
Our second course choices were 2-Week Aged Hay Smoked Duck Breast and Miso-Marinated Prime Strip Steak. The Duck was perfectly soft and natural, very lean and light, served with two different sauces - both accentuating the flavor of the meat. Served with saffron-fennel purée, charred broccolini and a couple tiny pieces of marinated onion that just immediately took me back to my childhood, as it seemed to be the same marinade my grandma would make back at home.
Strip steak was very tender served with grilled chicory, drizzled with a crunch on the top. Gruyère gratin, caramelized onions, and reduced beef jus perfectly complimented the dish.
Before we get to the dessert courses, let me take a quick break here, and just say that while all the flavors were so unique and special, it’s really the whole experience that you indulge here. The presentation of the dishes and the humble professionalism of the servers; the light, elegant background music and the perfect timing when each dish is served; the just enough attention of the wait staff and the details of the whole set up. All this is your full experience at Gabriel Kreuther.
And now, it’s time for the desserts: Mandarin Panna Cotta was my favorite, even though at first I was concerned with the whole panna cotta thing. To my surprise, although I didn’t expect anything less at this point, it was nothing like your regular panna cotta: there was a thin layer of panna cotta itself covering the same thin layer of soft biscuit, wrapped with citrus grenade marmalade and served with fresh pieces of fruit.
Apple Tatin Frappé Brûlée was also excellent. Crunchy cookie on the bottom with pieces of apple topped with pear sorbet and served in a cup; so cute and delicious!
The meal concluded with bite-sized delicious and light Chantilly cream choux with sesame seeds and passionfruit cream bonbons.
To wrap up the experience at this beautiful place we asked for a quick kitchen tour where we got to see the final steps of the creation of the beautiful dishes served that night, and to meet super nice kitchen staff.
After all, as you come outside dreading the hustle and bustle of the city, you realize that this experience of lightness follows you for the rest of the night, and the city now tunes with your tempo and not the other way around.
Gabriel Kreuther Restaurant - click here to explore official website.
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