Gramercy Tavern

I rarely have the inclination to write about my dining experiences when there are no nice pictures to accompany the text with. I feel that my descriptions alone cannot poignantly present to the reader what I saw, felt, and tasted, and that dilutes the overall experience one gets when visiting any dining establishment. Anticipating the meal, arriving at the establishment, being greeted by the maitre d', perusing the menu and then ordering, being served and finally tasting the food are all integral components of the whole dining process. Yes, dining is not just eating to me; it is a pastime, a budding passion, and - if all things fall in place - a heck of an enjoyment. That is why even though the photographs I took for this post were nowhere near decent, I have to write because the experience was really quite something.

Last Friday, a bunch of pals and I finally visited Gramercy Tavern for lunch. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the aroma of freshly baked pastries which tremendously whetted my appetite. We were seated at a round table in the middle of the main dining room not long after, and I fell in love with Danny Meyer's concept of casual fine-dining. The decor was tavern-themed and then jazzed up slightly to exude a classy but not snobbish ambiance. I liked how the warm lighting made me feel very invited and comfortable, as compared to other very well-lit restaurants. Of course, dim lighting is the bane of well-exposed photographs, but this is one trade off I'll gladly make. Because of the poor lighting conditions, I don't have any pictures of the Michelin-starred restaurant to show, but you can always visit Gramercy Tavern's homepage to see what I mean.

When the food arrived, my gut feeling told me to snap a few shots for remembrance's sake. The photos suck, but the food was fantastic. My starter, main course, and dessert were all executed flawlessly. The dishes were, in Gordon Ramsay's words, spot on. The fish and lamb were cooked to perfection, and seasoned just right. The pickled onion vinaigrette's acidity cut through the trout's smokiness to give the dish more dimension, and the slightly sweet cippollini puree brought everything together.


I especially enjoyed my main course. The braised shoulder of lamb was not only super moist and tender, but was also bursting with flavour. The vegetables at the side helped in resting my taste buds, but I could have gone on and on with the meat. This dish was deeply satisfying for the meat-lover that I am.


Dessert of a warm chocolate pecan tart and vanilla bean bourbon ice cream was simple but excellent nevertheless. As with all tarts, the pastry can either make or break the dish. This one was buttery and slightly crunchy, exactly the way I like it.


We finished with petit fours consisting of macarons and chocolates. Needless to say, I left my table impressed, happy, and wishing I had visited this fine establishment earlier.