Quick Bites: Chile To Centrico Came

[Pigging by Wilfrid:  June 29, 2009]

Thanks to ProChile, the trade commission for that long and narrow country, I enjoyed a "Flavors of Chile" lunch at Centrico while the rain hammered the sidewalks of Tribeca outside.

 

The meal, showcasing Chilean produce, was directed by Centrico's chef Aaron Sanchez, with desserts by Double Crown's Ryan Butler.

Sitting through the speeches, I tried to think of an actual Chilean restaurant in New York, and came up empty, although the shrewd multi-blogger to my right recalled Chilean hot dogs somewhere in Queens.  Eating in Translation has that covered, as usual.

The ceviche of Chilean salmon was a timely reminder that chef Sanchez is a master of marinated seafood and sends out an excellent ceviche sampler on the regular Centrico menu.  There was some habanero in here, imparting a slow-building heat to the passion-fruit juice, but the main novelty was the deployment of Chilean myrtle berries, fruit of the luma apiculata.  They were described as somewhat like blueberries, and I can do no better - they imparted sweetness, and a little bit of seedy crunch.

Centrico also sends out little crab tostadas; today they were made from Chilean king crab and dressed with merken-spiced oil (it's smoked, seasoned cayenne powder.

Chilean strip loin was shrouded in salsa verde made with Olave olive oil - an oil with which I'm familiar, but simply hadn't particularly noticed was Chilean.  A tasty picadillo of fingerling potatoes and cactus was the garnish.  With this arrived my favorite wine of the day, a Casa Lapostolle merlot.

Serving a minty Pisco sour-style pre-dessert helped the blood alcohol too, and I was in a good mood for Ryan Butler's olive oil cake.

This was an attractively balanced plate.  Light cake on a smear of goat-milk dulce de leche, topped with a Chilean honey ice cream.  Shreds of a pleasantly chewy fruit called carica - not unlike papaya was the consensus - finished the dish.

It looks like there's still a chance to sample some of these flavors through July 3.