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Walking into ABC Kitchen was like stumbling into
enchanted woods, dusted with white snow and pretty fairy lights. Or wandering
into the refined interior of a farmhouse with white details, exposed bulbs and
comfortable armchairs. They were washed over with rustic moments, modern
elegance, and white. The space created a blurry white afterimage, fuzzy from
satiety and fond moments.
They managed to
sneak for an early dinner that Sunday, sans reservation but full of hope.
Wishes were granted, white seats were taken at a white table, and farm fresh menus
were studied. Dizzy with excitement and forgetting the time constraint, they
ordered with big eyes.
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The housemade ricotta and fig market table starter
was a dream, served with slightly charred grilled bread to bring mouths back to
reality. The dense ricotta and syrupy fig compote felt like dessert, smooth and
creamy, where the dark bread and drizzle of olive oil reintroduced the savory.
Even the white of the cheese and the distressed brown of the figs echoed the decor.
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However, the crab toast with lemon aioli spoke to a
different kind of sweetness. The crab was so fresh that it hardly tasted like
crab, but just sweet and juicy meat, doused in a delicate but present acidic
charm. The lumps were garlicky and bright as well, absorbed by thick dark toast.
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Even the raw diver scallops brought alive the
beauty of fresh and organic elements, mimicking some of the tastes in the crab
toast; the seafood, the citrus, the pleasure. The tart lemon and spicy chilies
danced in the appetizer, and each thin slice of scallop induced new feelings.
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The squash blossom pizza was salty and
tangy, bready and light. The cheese countered the acidic grape tomatoes, and
the whole-wheat crust added balance. But the pretty farm-to-table blossoms were
decorative and delicate, last of their season.
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Many of the
mains featured fish, but the suckling
pig entrée tempted with in
season tiny white turnips and a
sweet and spicy bacon marmalade. The
dish was too rich and heavy in comparison. Even though the dark green leaves
were left on the root vegetables, the dish lacked that light fresh appeal.
Turnips have a heaviness, a starchy creaminess that perpetuated the decadence
of the fatty pork. The bacon marmalade’s heat proved useful to cut the fat, but
the gummy chunks of bacon were too large and superfluous.
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Dessert
continued the downhill with the almond
cake with poached pears that brought
the meal to a standstill. The cake was light and crunchy with little sweet
crystals that recall marzipan, but it was dry and the poached pears felt less
fresh. The tangy housemade yogurt
broke up the odd monotony, but was too savory for the limp dessert. The
cinnamon and the pears were inharmonious, an unexpected clash when most of the
meal was well orchestrated.
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The freshness
that ABC Kitchen is known for sang in every dish, resonating in their mouths
and minds. The drinks also felt clean like the very last light of summer and
the new beginnings of fall. But fall was creeping into the menu, highlighting the
newly available ingredients. The squash blossoms were vanishing, and concord
grapes replaced by cherries and strawberries. The menu morphs as Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten focuses
on the organic here-and-now at ABC Kitchen, only using relevant produce and
seasonal gifts.
NOTE: Since this
meal, the menu has changed. Some items are the same, while others have
different produce elements, like the ricotta market table item, the pizza and
the almond cake dessert.
RER
10.10.13
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