Lobster Thermidor

City Crab & Seafood Company, 235 Park Avenue South, New York 10003 [site]

It was the end of Restaurant week, which sort of turned into Restaurant month, which I’m not surprised due to the recession, but I wanted to go to City Crab for a special item on their menu, the Lobster Thermidor. Frank didn’t get one of the Restaurant menu prix fixe because his original choice, the Crab meat stuffed Idaho Rainbow Trout, ran out (I guess there was no more trout). Frank got a lobster bisque for an appetizer, but it was a bit too salty.

My Crab Cake Trio was actually quite nice, albeit small. It consisted of Maine peekytoe, Maryland and Louisiana crab cakes, with a bacon in the middle (really odd, but tastes good). I’m not sure which is which, but one of the crab meat does taste a lot better than the others.

Helen’s appetizer was a creamy lobster dish in a puff pastry shell. She didn’t seem too enthusiastic over it.

Helen loved her main dish though, it was the perfect salmon for her. I didn’t like the taste of ginger or salmon, so I’m not really really good critic for this dish.

Frank’s dish taste good, but he seemed a little disappointed. Maybe because he anticipated rainbow trout.

And then, my Lobster Thermidor came! It tasted really good, aside from the fact it was probably a little bit overcooked, which made the meat a little tougher than usual. It wasn’t as heavily creamy as the lobster thermidor from London Lennies, so I don’t feel too overwhelmed by it at all.

My key lime pie was a bit on the sour end, but I guess that’s how key lime pies are suppose to be.

Frank’s cheesecake was delicious though. I kept picking at his dessert, which probably isn’t good table manners.

We didn’t try Helen’s sorbet, but she didn’t seem able to finish it, so it was probably a bit too standard for her.

Fancy me, French cuisine?

La Grenouille, 3 East 52nd Street, New York 10022 [see menu]

*WARNING* – I forgot to bring my camera to this event, sorry ^_^;;

La Grenouille from Vanity Fair magazine

So instead, I shall list my courses for that evening, along with Frank’s.

My Menu:
Appetizer: Les Ravioles de Homard à l’Estragon (Lobster and Tarragon Ravioli)
Main Course: Homard et Lotte aux Endives (Lobster and Monkfish with Endives)
Dessert: Poire Fondante au Saint Nectaire (Melted Pear with Saint Nectaire)

Frank’s Menu:
Appetizer: Aumônière d’Oeuf Poché Périgueux (Beggar’s Purse of Poached Truffled Egg)
Main Course: Le Magret de Caneton Braisé aux Coings et Miel d’Acacia (Braised Duck Breast with Quince and Acacia’s Honey)
Dessert: Soufflé Chocolat (Chocolate Soufflé)

Frank’s dessert was a lot tastier than mine, since my pear was a bit bitter which lost its sweetness as a dessert (it’s no longer on their menu). Overall, I think my main dish was the best lobster dish I’ve ever tasted. That and I found my new favorite fish: the monkfish. It almost taste like… lobster.

Besides the food listed above, we also had a complimentary pea soup in the beginning, a choice of 3 varieties of fresh made bread (I chose olive), sweet biscuits and light cookies after the main course (the madeleines were so soft in the inside and crispy on the outside), and chocolate truffles after your desserts. It felt like an abundance of food, even in small portions.

Logistics of eating at La Grenouille: There is a free coat check that you need to tip later, a jacket is require for men (so dress up ladies), you will need to tip the captain and his waiters at the end of the dinner, but there are no towel lady at the restrooms (it’s only one stall).

Eating in Toronto

Pier 4 Storehouse Restaurant, 245 Queen’s Quay West, Toronto ON [see menu]

After sightseeing at the CN Tower (November 14th), Ting and I decided to go take a look at the Harbourfront, since we were so close by. Dinnertime came and we saw a restaurant by the pier. Looked like a tourist restaurant, but we stopped inside with a mood for fresh seafood. Ting order the Lobster Special, and I got the Drunken Chilean Sea Bass.

We got complimentary Beef Satay. It tasted pretty good even though it wasn’t something you would expect to find in a seafood restaurant. The peanut sauce was executed nicely.

Ting was insistent to take a picture of her chicken noodle soup. She had no complaints. I thought it was weird that chicken noodle soup was the soup of the day, I was expecting clam chowder or seafood bisque.

When her Lobster came, it was very nicely arranged. It also tasted pretty fresh (I tasted it too ^_^). The garlic butter came in a small dish that was on top of a candle to ensure that it won’t solidify. I didn’t use to much of the butter due to its unhealthy nature, but Ting gobbled it up since it was so delicious.

My drunken Chilean Sea Bass finally came, and it was delicious. Seared sea bass brushed with miso, romanced by vodka beurre blanc with tomatoes & fine herbs and served with wild rice. I have to say the vegetables were alright, nothing really to be desired, but the sea bass was cooked perfectly. There was no toughness to it (I know it’s really hard to mess up this fish, but I went to a restaurant that did mess up before -_-;;). I definitely satisfied my chilean sea bass cravings.

Ting’s special came with vanilla ice cream with caramel topping. It was also delicious, but I didn’t feel like taking pictures anymore. ^_^;;