[Pigging by Wilfrid: December 7, 2009]
I did visit Apiary no long after it opened last year on an unpromising stretch of Third Avenue regularly thronged by thirsty NYU students, football fans headed to the Village Pourhouse (ho ho) and soccer fans bound for Nevada Smith's.
And while there was nothing much wrong with the meal, it made a sufficiently faint impression that I didn't bother reviewing it. Things have changed.
A very strong impression is now being made at Apiary by a significant toque, Scott Bryan no less, who headed the kitchen at Veritas for the best part of a decade, most of that period with three Times stars under his belt. He left, apparently to return to D.C., but has since bounced back and rebounded from Lever House and 10 Downing Street before settling in at the beehive, where he threatens to turn a neighborhood haunt into something of a destination.
Bryan is working within constraints of course. The price level is a big step down from Veritas - mains in the twenties - the menu is shorter, the dishes more concise, and nobody is throwing foie gras around. The dining room is neat and smart, but there are no tablecloths. Nevertheless, two recent visits persuade me that you can eat well here.
Knowing bryan can turn out crispy sweetbreads in his sleep, I went instead for the diver scallops on my first visit. Of course, he aces this too - fat and sweet with a touch of curry in the dressing.
Next time, almost with reluctance, I ordered an appetizer which seemed no less than a breviary of fashionable downtown ingredients. Pork belly - check. An egg (probably a farm egg), slowly poached to a wobbly doneness - check. These atop of a rich, warm lentil salad; and to finish the dish, a swirl of Pecorino. There's your protein for the week. But kidding aside, everything was just right. The egg actually was cooked, bucking the bad local habit of serving eggs with even the albumen undercooked and trembly. The belly struck an amazing balance between its melting interior fat and crunchy surface. The Pecorino was downright funky, in a good way. First rate compliance with fashion.
At the healthy end of things, an artichoke and arugula salad was fresh and attractive, but needed a heavier dressing than a squeeze of lemon. The kitchen did wonders, though, cooking off menu to create a fine savory Napoleon of red peppers, matsutake mushrooms with a balsamic reduction, basil olive oil and a really vividly flavored fennel purée (vegetarians should beware the chicken stock in the chanterelle risotto).
The meaty entrées are ribsticking without being vulgar. Peking duck breast is cut in thick, tender slices, cooked to the proper medium rare point beyond chewiness, and turnips - in this case tiny Tokyo ones - are the classic accompaniment.
A thick Berkshire pork chop was a canvas for more far-reaching creativity. An orange ginger glaze added sweetness to the meat, and black beans (some chorizo in there, I think) and spicy guacamole turned the dish in a Latin direction.
Much livelier than the more common garnishes of apples and/or collard greens.
Speaking of apples, the tarte tatin sparked a debate because, in my view, it wasn't one. A true tarte tatin is an upside down apple tart, the pastry base laid over apples caramelized in butter, the whole being turned onto a plate, apple-side up, after cooking. At Apiary it seemed more like a straightfoward apple pie in light, flaky pastry - but it's none the worse for that. Finished with crème fraîche.
Another way to go is with cheeses and some well-chosen, contrasting artisanal honeys (with those cute wooden scoops).
It's a big wine list for a restaurant of this scope, with high end Burgundies and vintages of Vega-Sicilia Unico, but there are plenty of bottles in the thirties and forties too. I particularly enjoyed a Rhone available by the glass, a Costières de Nîmes from Patrick Lesec. The carefully measured signature cocktails are better than they need to be, especially the "Peach Squared," a Grey Goose Poire, Bosc pear and ginger beer combo, sharpened with cranberries. There's a reasonable beer list too, sherry even. But unless you break the bank with the beverages, a three course dinner here should come in a little under a hundred a head - entirely acceptable for cooking of this standard.
As additional attractions, there's no corkage on Monday evenings, and Sunday through Thursday a $35 prix fixe is offered. The website is here.
