Stumble It!I'm always a little unsure of whether or not I'm getting a real taste when I go to a restaurant during RW, but if this particular lunch menu was any indication, I can see now why it's gotten such rave reviews.
Anne Burrell's little Italian spot, Centro Vinoteca, is nothing like I would have imagined. It's bright white inside, with small white tiles, an oblong white bar right in the middle of the restaurant (above), wine stacked on the walls, black and ivory banquettes, glass chandeliers and black leather two tops. There is also a winding staircase leading up to a more intimate dining room which can be rented out for parties. The decor matches the menu in that it's fresh, modern and simple. We were seated promptly for our Friday afternoon reservation and were brought a wine list and menus by a very pretty, friendly waitress.
Since I like to take advantage of the bargain prix-fixe lunch of $24.07, I figured I could enjoy a carafe of white wine. I selected an Italian Tocai which was perfect for my lunch date; medium-bodied, very fruity and crisp with a nice long finish. It was a good choice for my appetizers as well; I ordered the trio of piccolini (zucchini fritters in spicy tomato sauce, crostino of chicken liver pate with balsamic onions, and a truffled deviled egg), and my date ordered the parmigiano sformato with braised roasted peppers. For entreés I decided on the braised chicken legs with pancetta & fennel over polenta and he ordered the eggplant involtini with charred tomato sauce and arugula salad.
The appetizers were a great start, but kind of a tease. I wanted more. A lot more. The two zucchini fritters were so good (but tiny) in their spicy tomato sauce, and the chicken liver pate almost rivaled my grandmothers. But you didn't hear that from me. The deviled egg was good too, but there was only one of them. If I had to pick a winner, for me it would be the chicken liver pate crostino, and for my date, the zucchini fritters - evidently liver pate is an acquired taste. The parmigiano sformato was very different and tasty, it had a shape and texture like flan. Yes; a seasoned, creamy, parmigiano-cheese flan with roasted peppers. Yum. After our table was cleared and replaced with new silverware, Chef Anne Burrell emerged flush-faced from the kitchen, but not a hair out of place. She scanned the restaurant, said something to one of the waiters and went back to work. It was very refreshing to see a head chef actually on site cooking in her own restaurant, especially during RW, something a lot of chefs loathe. A few minutes later, an incredibly thin waiter appeared at our table with two bowls of pasta and placed them in front of us. Great. Just when I thought the service was stellar, they go and mess up our orders. "No, we didn't order this," I told the gaunt waiter with a frown. He smiled and flapped his wrist at me, "I know, they're on the house." Stellar service indeed. A free pasta course? During Restaurant Week? I couldn't believe it, but I wasn't going to question it either. I dug right in to my bowl of tagliatelle pasta with rock shrimp, fagiolini and sweet corn in butter sauce. I had heard great things about Anne Burrell's pasta, and let's just say she lives up to the hype. This pasta definitely ranked high on my scale of best fresh pasta dishes.
When our actual entreés came out, I was practically full already - but I never let that stop me. My braised chicken was so tender, it fell off the bone. I know people say this cliché all the time, but I actually picked up a leg, and the chicken literally fell clean right off the bone. It was very good and the pancetta added a great flavor, but the polenta seemed to have gotten lost in the dish. All the juices from the chicken leaked into it and made it sort of soupy. The eggplant however, was just right. It was sliced very thin, NOT breaded, and rolled up with ricotta and parmigiano cheeses. It was not rubbery like most eggplant can get, but tender on the outside and a nice complement to the charred tomato sauce.
Finally, the dessert course. Fortunately there were only two choices, so we each picked one and shared. I chose the "taralucci" with salty caramel (fresh baked shortbread cookies with a salty caramel dipping sauce), and he ordered the roasted peach shortcake with sweet mascarpone. These two were so sinful, I really don't think I could pick a favorite. Neither one was rich or overly sweet, but they both had a delicate balance of flavors. The shortbread cookies made me feel like a kid again, while the peach shortcake tower was so pretty, you almost didn't want to eat it. Now THAT would have been a sin.
By the end of the meal, I was so full that if I ate one more cookie I would have exploded like the guy from Monty Python. This lunch at Centro was the best RW lunch I've had so far in 2008; I highly recommend it. If a chef can make basic sugar cookies and parmigiano flan that memorable, you would be crazy not to see what else they can come up with - almost as crazy as Anne Burrell's hair.
Centro Vinoteca
74 7th Avenue South, cross street: Bleecker St., 212-367-7470
