Scoops du Jour: Blue Hill at Stone Barns

Adam Miller is back with another review of a really great restaurant. This time he reviews Blue Hill at Stone Barns while also chipping in a little about Blue Hill here in New York City. Before we get to the review I'd like to mention that Blue Hill is one of my favorite NYC restaurants and is more affordable than other restaurants in its ilk. I also appreciate the restaurant as a true embodiment of the farm to table ideal, serving meat and produce coming from its farm in upstate New York (where Blue Hill at Stone Barns is located.)

Now I challenge Adam to write a review of a restaurant that he doesn't like at all.



Simple Fare Warrants Extraordinary Praise

By

Adam Miller

New Yorker v. B&T. Questions arise when a faux New Yorker claims to be from New York. Where do you live in the City? What high school did you go to? What are your favorite restaurants? Where do you go out to bars? If any of these are met with a glimmer of hesitation or the answer “Meatpacking and Chelsea,” chances are you’re not a New Yorker. Usually, said people are from Westchester or Long Island. However, these suburban areas do win in some regards…. Long Island has beautiful beaches. Westchester has… ummm… well, Westchester seemed to have nothing until this last weekend.

This past weekend, I ventured up to Tarrytown for Sarah’s birthday (for those of you that don’t know me, Sarah is my girlfriend). Since we both love food, I thought it would be best to take her to a restaurant where you can have a truly “foodie” experience. I went to Blue Hill at Stone Barns with very high expectations although I had been told that Blue Hill in the City is the more highly regarded restaurant. I came away with a truly incredible experience and the acknowledgement that Westchester had one-upped NYC in at least one aspect.

Blue Hill in the City is a simple restaurant in the vein of Gotham, JoJo, or Gramercy Tavern. It serves very strong food (at somewhat reasonable prices for NYC) and accentuates its strong suits (vegetables, fruit, game, etc.). Stone Barns, on the other hand, takes it further; it bends your mind (and taste buds), offering new and exciting fare in an original manner.

During the Summer months, Stone Barns shies away from a traditional menu and offers two tasting menus. This is the first thing that gets noticed when seated at the table. On the right side of the menu, Chef/Owner Dan Barber has listed all the main ingredients which could be featured in a given dish (asparagus, scallops, lobster, oysters, Berkshire pork, duck, lamb, etc.). On the left side there are four rows:

- Five course tasting menu $95
- Farmer’s feast $125
- Charcuterie plate $28
- Cheese $17

That’s it. That’s your choice. The charcuterie plate is designed for two people and is meant to start your meal while the cheese course (for one) is intended to conclude your meal. We avoided both while electing the Farmer’s feast over the smaller meal, deciding this was the true way to dine at Stone Barns.

While our choice ended there, the interaction with our waiter did not. He (along with the chef) was looking to design a meal which would flow easily but still meet all our gastronomical desires. He asked me if there was anything I did not want to see as well as anything I definitely wanted to see. “No oysters or Spanish mackerel. Definitely a pork dish. Otherwise, I’ll eat anything you serve me.” Sarah obviously told the waiter that she didn’t want any seafood.

The waiter also strongly recommended an excellent white burgundy to accompany the meal instead of a wine pairing. The 2005 Meursault recommended by the sommelier was an incredible bottle and half the price of a wine pairing for two. The thought process was that I could get a much better bottle for $100-150 than I would ever try during a wine pairing, and a great white burgundy would really develop throughout the meal. This recommendation was a huge success and really hit home.

The food was no slouch either. In fact, several courses were some of the best dishes I’ve ever had. The amuse bouches woke up my palate in a startling way. The lemongrass spritzer with mint and a cherry ice cube was followed by fresh snap peas sprinkled with yuzu. The face bacon (paper thin slices of bacon taken from the jowl of a pig) was followed by pancetta wrapped asparagus with sesame seeds. We also had pea burgers (surprisingly good) and “bread and butter” – little squares of bread served with ricotta (a la A Voce) and butter as well as arugula and carrot flavored salts, which were good but not necessary.

The first course was a green tomato gazpacho with yogurt cream. I am not a fan of cold soups, but this dish was an incredible way to start the meal. The slight texture of the cream was a great counter to the refreshingly light gazpacho. This dish was followed by crispino lettuce with spring vegetables and Barber’s patented lettuce broth. Although it may sound (and look) like rodent food, it was a surprisingly deep and meaty dish. I am not one to order salads or vegetarian dishes and I am generally disappointed when an expensive tasting menu is littered with vegetables rather than foie gras or lobster, but these starters were phenomenal.

I followed the vegetarian plates with a a perfectly cooked scallop with minty peas and pistachios while Sarah had saltouse, a leafy green vegetable from Southeast Asia with some flavors resembling sesame or peanut butter, accompanied by shitakes and morels. We also had the renowned soft poached egg over crushed zucchini and morels. However, this time the soft poached egg was flash fried to give it a crispy, slightly “breaded” coating.

Finally, the meat courses arrived. First, we had a braised pork belly dish (as requested) with spaetzle. If not for the sauce which was drizzled next to the pork, I thought this dish lacked a bit of flavor. But the spaetzle and the sauce really brought out the strong flavors in the fatty pork. This dish was followed by a neck and loin of lamb with fava beans; the lamb was perfectly cooked and delicious, but at this point, I was really rather full.

This concluded our savory portion of the meal and was followed by two desserts: steamed strawberries with sour cream sorbet and honey gelee, and rhubarb meringue with farmer’s cheese ice cream. Both were outstanding.

After finishing the meal, I was truly blown away by the experience and the flavors. Having followed the methodology of Alice Waters and other fine California chefs, Dan Barber has outdone himself (and his NYC restaurant). This was an unforgettable meal that will change the way you view food.