Bar Corvo vs. Al di La

After a gorgeous sunny day at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens on Saturday, a few of us hit an early dinner at the new Bar Corvo in Prospect Heights. The couple behind Al di La created a more neighborhood-style vibe at Bar Corvo, with the ambiance more like a modern Frankies 457 in Carroll Gardens than a little sister of the almost Victorian-chic style Al di La. The menu at Bar Corvo reads more like the New American, but its awfully similar to the trattoria. In fact, it was pretty hard not to compare every dish to the ones I've had at Al di La. I didn't write notes or take pictures the cold night I went to Al di La on Superbowl Sunday, so I'll use Saturday's experience to boost my memory and review both here.

The farro salad to start. Both grainy salads have dollops of tangy goat cheese, nutty hazelnuts and a light vinagrette; at Bar Corvo, brussel sprouts instead of Al di La's cauliflower. Both versions are more impressive than they sound.

They had a good concept with the oxtail, and brought something similar, but less complex, to Bar Corvo. It is slow simmered and rich, like a tender pot roast, poured on top of polenta. At Al di La, cuttlefish gives the dish a darker, saltier taste.

The malfatti, a dish I think Bar Corvo does better. The swiss chard and ricotta stuffed gnocchi at Al di La swims in sage brown butter; here, the same pasta is given lighter treatment with a creamy olive oil sauce and walnuts.

They know dessert at Al di La and Bar Corvo. Specifically, they know panna cotta -- light, creamy, a tiny bit tangy. Bar Corvo's creme fraiche panna cotta topped with a sticky blood orange caramel comes with two small cookies... just like at Al di La. I think I had the rhubarb panna cotta at Al di La, but I might have had a few too many glasses of high quality wine to properly remember. Maybe it was cherry? Anyway, we also tried some chocolate bread pudding with red wine cherries. 

While Bar Corvo doesn't have that worn in, comfortable and cozy yet consistently crowded feel of Al di La, you can still get a good idea as to what they're about at Bar Corvo. I recommend whichever you're closer to.


Bar Corvo
791 Washington Ave
Prospect Heights, Brooklyn


Al di La
248 Fifth Ave
Park Slope, Brooklyn

Wintry Dinner at Convivio

On Saturday, I headed up to Tudor City for a nice early V-day dinner with Rob. I hadn't been up to my favorite elevated midtown oasis in months, so the walk up the steps and past the park was an extra enjoyable little trek. It's so hushed and quiet and dark and snowy, a hazy view of Brooklyn beyond the East River. And then into loud Convivio, lots of old men in suits, cramped tables, low lighting and beautiful Southern Italian food.

Even if we weren't being treated with the best Christmas present ever (thanks, Greg & 80!), we probably still would have gone with the $64 four course prix fixe. It gets you an antipasti, a primi (pasta), a segundi (pesci or carni) and a dessert. It was the perfect amount of food, plus it gave us a little room to explore the wine list (I had a Prosecco di Conegliano and later, a dessert wine from Cyprus.)

Everything we tried was stellar and expertly cooked. The only complaint I have is that most accompaniments were plain and (I thought) the dishes would be much better off without. Like the duck sausage antipasti with grilled endive. Scrap the endive, and give me 18 more duck sausages! It was so delicate and flavorful and perfect. The endive was just kinda... there.

Rob had the amazingly beautiful yellowtail crudo with blood oranges and olives. The fish melted in your mouth, and the orange/olives gave it a nice sweet/salty balance. This is maybe the one exception where the accompaniments really helped the dish shine.

Rob's primi was the gnochetti with crab and sea urchin I had this spring (it's still amazing), but my tuna belly raviolios blew it out of the water. There's something special about homemade ravioli when its eggy and tender, even before its stuffed with perfectly moistened bits of tuna. The sauce was used so sparingly I have no idea what it could be, but it was so rich and lemony and flavorful. I bet it would make a good soup. I even loved the capers in this dish.

We shared the next course evenly... although I was tempted not to share my second lamb chop! So meaty and fatty with a fantastic salsa verde and breadcrumb topping. It sounds heavy, but it was really super light and delicate. An expertly crafted dish, though I could have done without the tomato and cannelli beans (zzz). The scallops were really well cooked and surprisingly a lot denser than the lamb. This could have used a sauce in place of the oily pepper strips, though.

Dessert was amazing. Rob had the meyer lemon tartaletta with huckleberry compote and coconut gelato. Very heavy on the lemon with nice accents of tropical fruit. I absolutely loved my zuppa di cioccolato, a very dense mint bergamot semifreddo with a hot chocolate soup poured tableside. It was like a subtly flavored mint chocolate chip sundae that started extra frozen and got even better as it got meltier.



This was my favorite meal in a long time. I already can't wait to go back and try the arancini, the fusilli with pork shoulder, the oxtail ragu. Maybe my next four-course meal at Convivio? I'll be very happy finishing with the semifreddo zuppa again.

Convivio

45 Tudor City Place

212-599-5045

Convivio

Last week I was treated to a special birthday lunch at Convivio!

This was my first Michael White experience, and expectations were high. Tudor City is like a magical little oasis in midtown and Convivio fits in perfectly, a modest but majestic brick alcove right across from the park.

If you've ever wanted to try a 3-star restaurant but thought it'd be absurdly priced, head over at lunch. At Convivio, the business lunch is $28 for any two courses you want; any additional is $12. I've had crappy salads in midtown for more than that!

I started with the sgombro, two beautiful slices of raw yellowtail with olivada (olives, oil garlic), pistachios and scallions. So simple and yet so exquisite!


Next was the malloreddus, a perfectly textured Sardinian saffron gnocchetti with crab and sea urchin. The crab was plentiful, and the bits of sea urchin moistened each bite. Frank Bruni said it best in October '08 when he noted that the texture of the crab mimics that of the dumplings, "its taste proving another whisper of the sea."Dessert was a trio of freshly spun gelato: espresso, cream cheese and chocolate. The cream cheese was a little too richly tart for me, but the espresso and chocolate were perfect.


The caramel sea salt tart with vanilla ice cream was as tasty as it was pretty, the salty/sweet combo a perfect end to an amazing Southern Italian meal.


Micheal White will be hearing from me again. Marea, you're next!

Convivio
45 Tudor City Place, betw 42nd &43rd streets
(212) 599-5045

Plain Vanilla at Anella

I don't mean it in a bad way at all. In fact, it's a really great thing that Anella keeps things so simple. It's refreshing. Nearly everything on their brunch menu is served on bruschetta and topped with fresh ingredients from their herb garden -- tomatoes, basil, parsley, mint, etc. If they don't grow it, it probably comes from local Rooftop farms. No hollandaise or anything to mask it. Just plain, simple and delicious.

It was super hot today and we needed something cold and refreshing, but nonalcoholic. Luckily they had a few really great sounding virgin cocktails. Rob had the orange basil spritzer (it usually features grapefruit instead of orange, but they were out). It was perfectly balanced with simple syrup and club soda.

My mint mulberry lemonade was refreshing as well, with just the right amount of sweetness.

The interior is made up of two long skinny rooms with lots of charming old wood. There's seating in their garden out back and lots of light throughout. I could see us coming by here for a drink, just to get a change of scenery. The bar area is semi-rustic and reminds me of an old ship, for some reason.

They brought out complimentary scones with just the right amount of frosting before our meal. It gave our sad blood sugar levels a much-needed boost.

Rob had the salmon with chive cream cheese, tomatoes, some kind of marinated red onions (maybe it was soaked in vinagrette?), and capers on bruschetta. He loved it, but the red onions made it a bit too acidic for my taste.

I had the spinach with prosciutto on bruschetta with tomatoes and basil. It was like biting into a fresh garden. The proscuitto tasted more like serrano ham to me, but no complaints on that, obviously. Each dish was served with roasted sliced potatoes that seemed homemade (some pieces were crispy, most were soft in the middle). My only complaint was that they weren't salty enough, and there was no salt on the table. Rob pointed out that asking for some would be an insult to the chef, but people are entitled to their own personal saltiness tastes, right?

Overall, it was a great, quiet place that had a nice secretive quality to it. It was nice to eat in the sunshine without baking in it, too. Can't wait to try dinner; their pastas and grilled veggies are supposed to be amazing.

Anyone else notice that everyone likes to name their restaurants slightly asymmetrical names (Anella, Anissa, Perilla)? I'm starting to think it's the mark of greatness.

Anella

222 Franklin Street (between Freeman & Green St)

Brooklyn, NY 11222

(718) 389-8100

Aurora by Morning

There are not many Italian places to dine in uber-Polish Greenpoint. This is a fact, and I have accepted it. So when I get a craving for a heavy carb meal like my grandma used to make, Rob and I usually head to Williamsburg for some Fiore action. While its good and all, the menu can get old kind of fast and I've been craving something different. This is where Aurora on Grand Street -- also in Williamsburg -- comes in.

I've seen it many times on my sporadic trips to Sprout, the cutest little flower shop you'd ever hope to see. I never thought to go back, though, until Shivaun was in the area for a small eclectic jewelry shop. I guess the Grand Street/Wythe Ave area really is a great destination for odd shopping.

It turns out to be the perfect spot for brunch. There was no wait, unlike most places near our apartment at noon on a Sunday. The atmosphere was rustic and quaint. We sat in the clear-covered garden area so we could both enjoy the sun and not freeze. AND they were playing Elliott Smith. This is basically my idea of brunch heaven.

The menu had quite a few interesting and unique items. I was intrigued by the fried poached egg option, as I've never had a poached egg prepared any way but regularly poached. It was actually really good, crispy on the outside but not too affected on the inside. In came sitting atop smoky prosciutto and a small mound of soft polenta. The flavors and textures played really well together, but it was not enough food for a hungry person such as myself.

So that's why I ended up eating a lot of Shivaun's frittata. Sorry Shivaun. (How did this blog become such a forum for apologies?) It was baked with goat cheese, zuchiniand a few other goodies. I thought the goat cheese was a really great touch, as I've found that frittatas tend to blandify when they're baked. Goat cheese to the rescue!

Rob took the fancy route and ordered the L' Anatra -- duck confit & bacon hash with organic poached egg & baby spinach. Great combination of flavors and one of the more fun brunch items I've seen in awhile. Unfortunately, he didn't get much of a portion either. But that's really the only negative thing I can say about Aurora's brunch. Well, that and no credit cards. What's with all the cash-only places recently? Since when is cash king again?? I demand to know.

I was so enchanted by brunch that I dragged Rob out to Aurora for dinner a few days later. It was good, but not as impressive as I had hoped. I guess the place is aptly named, then, since Aurora is the Roman goddess of the dawn. In my eyes, she is the Brooklyn goddess of the poached egg.

The appetizers were definitely the strongest points of the meal. The ricotta tart was simple and rustic, with the outer layer of dough gently folded over the cheese. Pork belly with seared scallop and beans were also really good. I love these items together, despite the fact that they are not a very original threesome. The fresh flavors and soft textures do a great job piquing your appetite.

The entrees, on the other hand, were a little weak. The pasta was obviously fresh, but both our dishes were a little tasteless. I was expecting anything but bland when I ordered the chestnut flavored, roughly cut pasta with braised beef short rib ragu. I did not detect any chestnut flavor, and while the short rib had a great consistency, it was definitely missing something. Rob felt the same away about his dinner, spaghetti with clams and tomatoes. Maybe they were a little too lighthanded with the salt that evening?

Dessert was an apple tart with caramel and vanilla ice cream. It was a nice way to end the meal.

Well, despite dinner being sort of a disappointment, this place has its redeeming factors. Brunch, for instance. Appetizers. A really great wine list and a pretty authentic rustic vibe. Can't you just feel the warmth by looking at this terribly lit iPhone pic?

(My apologies for forgetting my real camera. And now I'm done apologizing... at least for this post!)

Aurora

70 Grand St (between Kent Ave & Wythe Ave)

Brooklyn, NY 11211

(718) 388-5100