ABC Kitchen

ABC Kitchen: Jean Jorges latest and most highly acclaimed restaurant since... Spice Market? Mercer Kitchen? A while. We've had some good from this guy, and we've had some bad (Vong- yuck). But ABC just sounded like my kind of place- a market table menu, relying on seasonal produce and the Union Square Farmers Market for inspiration, and all that jazz. We had a few tapas-sized bites to begin: I tried a roast beet dish with a fresh yogurt sauce and herbs- and it was really, really good. The earthiness of the beets, mixed with the green herbs, and the creaminess of the yogurt made for a great combo.

We also tried an heirloom tomato toast, which, I have no idea how they got them, but featured tomatoes that tasted like REAL tomatoes. and SMELLED like real tomatoes!! It was sooo wonderful to get this preview of things to come!!

Ryan also tried a crab toast with lemon aioli, which he enjoyed, though I found a little bland.

For our entrees, I ordered a pasta dish with fresh sugar snap peas in a light creamy sauce of ramps, and Ryan had a piece of sea bass. We both were neither displeased nor impressed, as we found them to be slightly less flavor-forward than we typically enjoy. I love the idea that the flavors are kept pure and simple, but Ryan & I are also, as I've written before, big fans of savory flavor, and it just wasn't there. I was not disappointed, but I also wasn't wowed.

The winners for me were the market table bites- coming in around $8 each, they were flavorful and delicious. There is food service at the bar, which at 9:30 on a Saturday had seats readily available, and I could definitely see this being a pleasurable drink & snack meal stop right off of Union Square!!