Gramercy Tavern

I love family birthdays. My dad is having a birthday next week, which means that I am able to talk my parents into coming to a restaurant of my choice that I normally wouldn’t be able to/want to pay to go to. My choice for Dad’s birthday was a restaurant that has been around since 1994 that I know is good yet have never been able to eat at: Gramercy Tavern.

Up until this point I had actually been to every one of Danny Meyer’s restaurants except for Gramercy Tavern. Given the hype generated by the food of new Chef Michael Anthony, and the general comfort I associate with Danny Meyer restaurants, I thought dinner at Gramercy Tavern would be a logical choice for a birthday celebration.

Despite much anticipation (which in my case usually leads to a letdown when dining out) the restaurant lived up to my expectations. Although pricey, I found that the food came as advertised—refined and perfectly executed while being rustic and fiercely seasonal at the same time. Chef Anthony comes from Blue Hill and the Dan Barber way of thinking where if something isn’t growing, it.s not on the menu. With this mantra, winter menus might seem sort of dull, but I found chef Anthony’s menu extremely satisfying. My smoked trout appetizer was warm and tender, full flavored and smoky and had just enough of a kick provided by a pickled red onion vinaigrette to bring all the flavors together, It was about as good as smoked fish can get. My mom’s Pappardelle with beef ragu and scallions was juicy and satisfying with the scallions again keeping the appetizer from being too heavy.

For the entrees, I really enjoyed my venison cooked sous vide served in a bowl over cannelloni beans, garlic spiked venison kielbasa, sunchokes and swiss chard. The venison was melt in your mouth tender and was accented by the awesomely flavorful house made kielbasa. Mom had a perfectly cooked striped bass and dad have the smoked lobster over pasta with a saffron broth which I enjoyed but thought could have been a bit less chewy. In addition to the beautifully presented dishes, I really enjoyed the fact that several of them were served in bowls with broths or sauces that ensured no loss of flavor and provided a nice spot for dipping a crusty piece of bread.

How does Gramercy Tavern stack up to other Danny Meyer restaurants? Without having died in the main dining room at The Modern (I’ve been to the bar room several times) I would say that the quality of the food is above that of Tabla and Union Square Café and most equivalent in quality to Eleven Madison Park. However, while Daniel Humm’s food at Eleven MP might be readily described as flashy or daring, chef Anthony’s food is much more comforting. Its grounded in good flavors and good ingredients prepared exquisitely well. I’m not sure if one is better but they’re definitely different. The grandiose décor large windows and high ceilings of Eleven Madison Park scream once in a lifetime experience while the wood beam ceilings, wood paneled floors and freshly cut flowers make Gramercy Tavern feel like a comfortable place to escape to. If I was trying to impress someone I would take them to Eleven Madison Park while Gramercy Tavern is the kind of place I’d take someone who I’ve already impressed several times and want to keep satisfied.

I’m actually intrigued to see how Gramercy Tavern stacks up to Blue Hill, Chef Anthony’s former restaurant and the place where I will be eating Friday night. Both restaurants, along with Telepan uptown, appear to be leading the way in the farm to plate movement and are serving the best seasonal produce dished up by some of New York’s top chefs. I’m interested to see how they all compare.