NYC Restaurant Review - The National

Welcome foodies! I had a spectacular meal at Geoffrey Zakarian's restaurant The National. Read about my experience below.

The National      557 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022

(Dinner - Summer Restaurant Week 2012)

First impressions are always crucial. The National showed its simple, rustic and vibrant character with a delicious bread basket of olive bread, white bread, and bread with oats. For the first course, the Shrimp Salad was cooked perfectly and seasoned with a lot of flavor. The grilled peaches that accompanied the shrimp was the star of this appetizer. In addition, the Gazpacho with avocado and croutons was refreshing and flavorful. For the main course, the Roast Chicken had an amazing crispy skin that rested in an herbaceous barley risotto. The Grilled Branzino was a great dish with a tasty corn chowder. The Ricotta Cheesecake for dessert was amazing with a unique balsamic ice cream that beautifully paired with the cheesecake and figs. The Yogurt Panna Cotta was scrumptious, as was the passion fruit sauce that it sat in. As a bonus to my meal, I had the opportunity to meet the very gracious and friendly Geoffrey Zakarian. I had a wonderful meal at The National that I hope to repeat soon.

Shrimp Salad

Grilled Branzino

Yogurt Panna Cotta

Ricotta Cheesecake

I really enjoyed my meal at The National. It was such an honor to meet Geoffrey Zakarian. Come check out Foodie Finders NYC on Facebook and Twitter for more food pictures from The National and other great restaurants.

-Mike

NYC Restaurant Review - The Harrison

Hello foodies! A few days ago I enjoyed a wonderful dinner at The Harrison during New York City Restaurant Week.

The Harrison      355 Greenwich St. & Harrison St.  New York, NY 10013

(Dinner - Summer Restaurant Week 2012)

At The Harrison, everything is done right. The Chilled Corn Soup was a fresh and flavorful dish with a pleasant smokiness courtesy of the smoked trout. The Crispy Pork Belly was a surprisingly cold dish that was absolutely unique. The scrumptious pork belly was served with pieces of watermelon and cilantro. For the second course, the Almond Crusted Bluefish was a buttery masterpiece. The perfectly cooked fish sat on top of an amazing leek puree and string beans. In addition, The Pulled Pork was great with crumbly and yummy cornbread and corn and black bean salad. Lastly, The Sunday Sauce was a beautiful dish of pasta, sausage, and creamy mascarpone that rounded everything out. Both dessert selections were scrumptious. The Chocolate Tart with caramel and maldon sea salt was made even better by the sweetness that counteracted the tartness of the crème fraiche. The Peach Melba was an awesome interpretation of a classic. This almond semi freddo was accompanied by peaches and raspberries. Overall, the service was very inviting, which always adds to the experience, making my meal at The Harrison incredible.

Chilled Corn Soup

Sunday Sauce

Peach Melba

The Harrison is one restaurant among many restaurants participating in the 20th anniversary of NYC Summer Restaurant Week. Take advantage of Restaurant Week until August 10. For more information on NYC Restaurant Week go here. Also The Harrison is participating in Restaurant Week for lunch as well, offering their full menu. For more pictures go to Foodie Finders NYC on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

-Mike

NYC Summer Restaurant Week 2012

Hi foodies! NYC Summer Restaurant Week is starting July 16 and running through August 10. A  limited amount of restaurants in New York City will be offering a three course pre fixe menu for dinner and some menus for lunch. The price of the lunch pre fixe is $24.07 and the price of the dinner pre fixe is $35.00. For a list of the participating restaurants go the NYC Restaurant Week page.

-Mike