[Pigging by Wilfrid: February 15, 2008]
Partly because I have been involved in an endless and inconclusive argument about whether Gray Kunz's $39 signature shortribs are over-priced on the Grayz evening menu.
(Scroll down for Tropical)
And partly because Grayz is geared up for a lunchtime crowd (it opened first for lunch, and for a time took reservations for lunch only), I though it behooved me to dig deep and come up with $27 for the lunch-only shortrib sandwich.
Grayz watchers, by the way, may be interested to know that the disposition of customers at lunch is the reverse of the dinner hour: almost every table occupied, myself solus ipse at the bar.
Sandwich? Pardonnez-moi, "croque monsieur". That, at least, is what they've taken to calling it - but in a restaurant which tosses around the term millefeuille for no apparent reason, we should expect the croque term to be treated with poetic license.
If anything, this is a panino. Where the French use sliced sandwich bread for croque monsieur, et madam bien sur, and at almost no other time, Grayz seizes a crispy baguette for its short-rib sandwich, slams it flat, and serves it piping hot.
Once past the threatening temperature, the first thing I noticed was that these ribs have a different spice profile than the evening entrée. More distinctly Asian in effect, the main difference my server could cite was the presence of some kind of red chili, alongside cinnamon and black pepper.
He recited the flavors which go into the evening ribs, but I don't have good short-hand - everything from mango to ginger and back again. It can't be emphasized enough that the signal appeal of Kunz's braised meats lies in the carefully controlled layers of secondary flavors.
Was it good? Hell yes, especially on a cold day. Alongside, precisely constructed fried grits - or grit fries? - crispy exterior, creamy within, a little tamarind chutney slipped underneath, more on the side. And the prettiest little baby spinach, pickled beet and frisée salad held to attention by a brik pastry collar.
Cheese is an essential element in the traditional croque, but played a minor part here. In fact, I'd forgotten about it until I detected some toasty cheese notes toward the end of my munching experience. Fine by me: I wasn't looking for an upscale cheesesteak.
Is $27 a lot for a sandwich? Yes, it is, and the sandwich is very good. For moderate lunching here, look to the three course (no choice) prix fixe: today a pea soup, braised lamb shank, and sorbet or ice cream, $40. When you can spend $10 on a midtown deli sandwich and a soda, that's a deal. It comes, for what it's worth, with bread service - warm, crisp pieces of baguette with goat cheese/oil dip.
Wine by the glass, of course, pushes it up, and $14 for a generous pour from a bottle which fetches $23-ish retail is too much.
Tropical (Elizabeth and Broome)
I just happened to notice the glowing green sign above this SoHo yakitori pub, and became curious. The front bar is faux tropical - what else? You enter over a sort of fake wooden bridge, past a big fish tank, and find yourself in a front room of carved wooden furniture. A young crowd, evenly split American and Asian, hugged the short bar.
In the back, a huge room given over to eight full-size pool tables. I didn't notice anything edible at first, but there's a little hot food counter in a corner at the front of the premises. No hard liquor license, so they are making cocktails with sake - fun, not serious - including a convincing piña colada.
The list of skewers is long and very, very inexpensive. $2 and up a piece. They were out of tongue, but I tried marinated pork and chicken gizzards. The latter were in the fast-cooked crunchy style which doesn't appeal to me. The former chewy but pleasant.
That's a spicy mayo drizzle atop the pinchos. Curious little spot: not a destination unless you feel like a game of pool and sex on the beach.
