Go On with Your Bad Self, Mr. Bowien

The end of the year is a time when food critics weigh in on all that happened in the restaurant industry over the last twelve months. In place of a review this week, New York Times critic Pete Wells wrote "12 Restaurant Triumphs of 2012." "At the end of my first year in the restaurant critic’s chair," he writes, "the New York dining landscape still looks like a wonderland to me." The list of 12 restaurants is arranged as a countdown, described as "a cardiogram, with each spike in the chart denoting a restaurant that made my heart race this year." Among the excitement-inducing restaurants are Gwynnett St (12), Calliope (11), Blanca (10), Pok Pok Ny (7), Atera (4), and The Nomad (3).

Landing the number 1 spot is Danny Bowien's Lower East Side smash Mission Chinese Food. "For its bravado, its inventiveness, its low prices, its attempt to ease the suffering of those waiting at the door by tapping a small keg of free beer, and its promise to give some of its earnings on each entree to a food bank, Mission Chinese was the most exciting restaurant of the year."

The free beer while you wait, the donation of .75 cents from the sale of every entree to the Food Bank for NYC, and the low price point at Mission Chinese (with the exception of the cumin lamb breast [$16] and the veal breast a la orange [$24], nothing on the menu exceeds $13), are part of the formula at a restaurant that has quickly established itself as an exciting venue for those seeking a delicious, affordable, vibrant, unique take on Sichuan cuisine in a room unlike no other in the city. "No other restaurant I reviewed this year," Wells explains, "left me feeling as exhilarated each time I got up from the table."

The New Dinner Format at Eleven Madison Park Includes Beer from Ithaca Beer Company

“Flower Power”, “Cascazilla”, and “Partly Sunny” are some of the playful names of beer being made in Upstate New York.  They are all being brewed at Ithaca Beer Company.  Dan Mitchell founded the brewery in 1998 and has been committed to making quality craft beer ever since.  Last Friday, September 7^th, the public was given its first chance to taste “Picnic Basket,” the newest addition to Ithaca’s roster.  The difference between “Picnic Basket” and the other beer being made 30 miles south of Syracuse is Picnic Basket Pale Wheat Ale is only available at Eleven Madison Park.

Intrigued by the collaboration between one of the world's greatest restaurants and the small, Upstate brewery that is Ithaca Beer, Digest NY reached out to Eleven Madison Park to learn more.

Click to read more ...

Three Stars for the Wandering Nomad

Pete Wells awards three stars to The Nomad.  The restaurant is "loose, alive, genuine, deliberate."  This is intentional.  "Daniel Humm and Will Guidara talk about modeling the restaurant on the Rolling Stones.  They went through a branding exercise, writing down words that defined the band."

Perhaps that's why the atmospher is "Fancily if impersonally decorated, like a Riviera home rented out to a rock band."

Wells finds the signature chicken for two as "the uncontested prima donna.  If served at a dark no-reservations tavern in the Village, it would be enough to put the place on the map."

"When things can go so right, you notice when they go even a little wrong."  This was sometimes the case with certain dishes, the flaws of which are "minor demerits for a kitchen that takes on as much as the NoMad's."  In addition to the 120 seats in The Nomad, the kitchen is responsible for room service and the five-course tasting menu that launched last week on The Nomad Rooftop, the hotel's alfresco sibling.

A hotel is not complete without a bar and The Nomad does an excellent job in this department. "The selection of cocktails, an entire fleet, is surely one of the best in the city."  The Turf Cocktail is "an absinthe-fortified martini that could easily become a habit, but it's probably not the kind described in “Sister Morphine.”"

The Nomad came up just shy of four stars.  "But while the NoMad seeks its tone, there are so many reasons for patience."

The Air Up There

The Nomad Rooftop opened to the public last week and operates with a same-day reservation policy.  The decision to serve the $125 five-course tasting menu is dependent on the weather.  To purchase tickets, you have to create an account or log in to the restaurants website.

Unfortunately, TNR will not be open tonight, but Eater hints its downstairs brethren might be getting the Pete treatment in this weeks Times review.  Maybe Daniel Humm is the "those guys" Pete mentions in yesterday's tweet.

T R O T N

The Roof Of The Nomad (TROTN) is launching dinner service tonight.  Turns out, it's called The Nomad Rooftop and, as of this morning, you can make same day reservations to "sit under the stars and have an ultra-refined meal," as Will Guidara mentions in an interview with Eater.

Operating a restaurant that is exposed to the elements provides an interesting set of circumstances for Daniel Humm (Chef) and Will Guidara (GM), the managing partners in Eleven Madison Park, The Nomad, and now The Nomad Rooftop.  "It's weather dependent," Mr. Humm says, "you have to prep in advance, even if you end up not opening. It's a headache in many ways."

The alfresco dinner comes in the form of a six-course tasting for $125.  "We're starting off with a menu that has a dish of tomatoes, some bread with tomatoes. We will serve a tomato soda with it that comes in a custom-made soda bottle that the guest will have to open."

The Rooftop experience is stamped with the Guidara Guarantee: "We know that the way to get a reservation here is a pain in the ass, and I'm sorry to the dining public for that. But we couldn't think of a better way to do it, and we will work to make it so it is worth your while"

There is a cupola on The Nomad Rooftop that will "ultimately become a private dining room."  It seats ten and can be booked like any other table.  It's also enclosed, so it'll be open year round.

For reservations, call 347.472.5660.

Adam Platt, in the Parlour Room, with the Chicken for Two

Adam Platt recently visited The NoMad and left it with a two-star review.  He enjoys the "flawlessly executed egg appetizer" and "best of all" are the "snow peas, flavored with mint, Pecorino, and little hidden nuggets of pancetta."  He finds "the weakest part of the menu are the snacks, but after that Humm’s cooking begins to click into high gear, like a well-engineered European sedan."

Due to the restaurant's hotel location, and the responsibilities that go with it, "room service and a whole host of high-volume party events, there’s a vague assembly-line feel to the proceedings that is compounded by the prices."  Price is the recurring theme and while "the main courses at NoMad are accomplished, none of them are cheap."  At $39, Platt pins the cracked lobster dish as "extravagantly priced."  "If you don't mind paying $20 for those carrots (and some at my table did mind), I recommend you order them with the duck ($32)."

Daniel Humm and Will Guardia have set the bar pretty high with Eleven Madison Park.  According to Platt, the efforts that have gone into EMP have resulted in "the finest restaurant in the city."  Its success is somewhat of a double edged sword as he seemed challenged to be blown away at The NoMad.  While he refers to other entrees as "pricey barnyard creations," he finds none to be "as satisfying as the chicken for two ($78)," but that hasn't left the dish out of public crosshairs.

NYC People and Places Shine at the JB Awards

The annual James Beard Awards took place last night at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center and some of the city's talent walked away with great honors.

Paul Grieco won for Outstanding Wine, Beer, or Spirits Professional, PDT won for Outstanding Bar Program, and La Grenouille gets the Outstanding Service award. 

Christina Tosi, the mind behind Momofuku's Milk Bar empire, won the Rising Star Chef of the Year award, one that is given to "A chef age 30 or younger who displays an impressive talent and who is likely to have a significant impact on the industry in years to come."

Responsible for the kitchens at The Nomad and Eleven Madison Park, Daniel Humm takes home the Outstanding Chef award for his work at EMP.

After some time away from the kitchen to recover from open-heart surgery, Gramercy Tavern chef Michael Anthony won the award for Best Chef: New York City.

Here's the list of all the winners and photo's from last nights event.

What Do You Mean I'm Funny?

The Nomad is the new project from the Eleven Madison Park team.  It opened in the The Nomad Hotel on Broadway and 28th last Monday.  On Friday, to celebrate the end of the week, and the immediate success of the restaurant, Henry Hill Daniel Humm and James Conway Will Guidara star in this Goodfellas-inspired video that takes us through their kitchen and dining room.

NoMad from Eleven Madison Park on Vimeo.