Daniel Humm's Eleven Madison Park (New York, NY)
Currently ranked number one in the US and fifth in the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, Eleven Madison Park is situated on the ground level of the Credit Suisse building across the east side of Madison Square Park. Its atmosphere, decor, food and service are laid back and unassuming, and reservations are not difficult to come by if you book 28 days in advance.
The 16-course tasting menu, somewhat theatrical and undoubtedly experimental, consisted of a mix of simple and complex dishes, some of which were accompanied by drinks such as tomato-basil soda, pale wheat ale brewed by Ithaca Beer Co., and Laird & Company apple brandy. Every course is a surprise as they don't hand out the menu until the end of the tasting, so you don't know what you'll be eating until they serve the dishes. However they did tell us that there would be a foie gras course, which would be seared or brûlée, and beef or duck depending on our choice.
To start, we were presented with a box of savory black and white cheddar cookies with apple chutney, followed by a tiny portion of sea urchin snow with smoked cantaloupe and yogurt, which had a refreshing, cooling effect on the palate.
Then, my favorite dishes of the entire tasting menu: surf clam (tomato, beans and bacon), littleneck clam (Manhattan chowder, razor clam and scallop), tomato (confit with lobster salad and bonito), and the foie gras (seared and brûlée with summer berries and beets).
The surf clam was unexpectedly rich and creamy with just a hint of bacon, whereas the Manhattan chowder was a total different take on the classic chowder. EMP's version was a broth, served on a tea pot and meant to be sipped directly off a small cup. The assortment of shellfish was beautifully plated, but what I loved most was the freshness and contrasting flavors and textures.
My absolute favorite and the one dish I’d want more of was the tomato confit with lobster salad (buttermilk and olive oil on the side) and goat cheese stuffed lobster claw duo. The confit was a celebration of tomato and lobster, and the stuffed claws were creamy and tangy. Also part of this course, an interestingly odd tomato-basil soda that tasted just like tomato-basil soup, except cold and carbonated.
The bread, accompanied by two types of butter (one regular, one duck fat infused) and sea salt, was good, but I wouldn’t have mind trying other types of bread. In fact, I’m surprised they didn’t offer different choices like many other top, 3-star Michelin restaurants in New York City or London.
The melt-in-your-mouth foie gras was complemented by seasonal berries. The brûlée version, reminiscent of crème brûlée, was rich and smooth with a little sweetness and bitterness from the torched sugar. The seared version was equally tasty. In fact, both tasted better than the foie gras I had at Per Se last fall.
Almost half-way through the meal, we had the grinder clamped onto the table, so we knew the DIY carrot tartare course would be next. We were each given rye toast and a board with condiments that included mustard oil, horseradish, egg yolk, sunflower seeds and sea salt. And while the presentation certainly had a wow factor, the ground carrot was too mushy and the condiments didn’t do much for it. This DIY carrot tartare seemed like a great idea but the fascination died as soon as I had my first bite. I would’ve preferred to see a diced carrot tartare or perhaps a carrot substitute.
The eighth course was poached black bass with zucchini and ratatouille-stuffed squash blossom. The fish was buttery and perfectly cooked, but the true star of the dish was the squash blossom.
The following course was the least tasty and most flat: Sunflower barigoule with sunchokes and black truffle. I still don’t understand this dish and/or how it adds value to the tasting menu. It is memorable, but not in a positive way.
For the main protein, we were given two choices: 140-day aged beef or roast duck. The fact that the entire table was forced to choose between duck and beef was upsetting because some of us wanted the duck and others wanted beef. We ended up settling for the roasted duck with apricots and fennel only because we assumed it’d be as delicious as the roast chicken served at Daniel Humm's NoMad restaurant. Big disillusion. The duck was a tad bit undercooked for my liking, and even though the skin was well seasoned and crispy, the meat itself was bland.
The cheese course was presented in a picnic basket. Greensward cheese, pretzel, honey mustard, pickled green tomatoes, and beer were all part of the course, which I have to say, wins the most creative and elaborate cheese course award.
Next, we had the pre-dessert. Egg cream with vanilla, seltzer and olive oil drops, which the server prepared table side.
The first dessert was a sassafras sorbet with banana cake, caramel and vanilla. My only complaint is that the sorbet tasted medicinal-like. The sassafras aftertaste was off-putting and not nearly as refreshing as other herbs like basil or mint. The rest of the components did work well.
The second dessert was red pepper cheesecake with strawberry and cashew. The taste of the red pepper was overpowering, and I would even go as far as saying that this dessert was slightly more savory than sweet. But, the unexpected and clever card trick that accompanied this dessert was actually entertaining.
Hidden under this dish was a small plate with a piece of chocolate. Basically, the server plays a card trick and the cards you end up choosing end turn out to be a match to the chocolate flavors hidden under each person’s red pepper cheesecake.
To finish, we had chocolate covered pretzels sprinkled with sea salt, apple brandy to drink, and also sweet black and white cookies with apricot.
In terms of novelty and showmanship, Eleven Madison Park was a good experience, but I wasn’t mind blown. I applaud the level of inventiveness and format (e.g. DIY tartare, cookie boxes, and picnic) because I had never experienced anything like it, but at the same time, part of me resents the fact that my expectations were not fully met or exceeded.
Servers were friendly and informal, but service was highly inconsistent. At times, I felt rushed and did not enjoy the fast paced food service. Also, we did not see the main server after she dropped the bill-- she did not ask about our experience at the end of the meal or said goodbye as we left-- though I was given a small granola jar to take home.
Cocktails are reasonably priced, but you do have to pay for the sparkling water and coffee, and gratuity is not included. It isn’t as expensive as Per Se ($295+ per person, gratuity and non-alcoholic beverages included), but you still end up spending $250 per person at the very least. Will I be back to Eleven Madison Park? Probably not, unless they make drastic changes, add more excitement to their tasting menu, and improve their service. I was excited to try EMP and I wanted to love it, but it let me down. In my book, Per Se is superior to Eleven Madison Park.
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