Minetta Tavern, the restaurant of Keith McNally who also owns Bathazar, Morandi and Pastis, is an institution in New York. It has made headlines in the past because of their Black Label burger that was considered one of the best in the city. But we wanted to go so Jodi could get a slice of Balthazar’s coconut cake while I was more focusing on their steak frites, their fries being, from what I remembered, the best. We decided to go there at 5pm, when they open and were surprised to see people waiting online few minutes before. Some with reservation, others without. Still, the dining room did not fill up until probably 1h later where it was packed…and noisy.

And what a dining room: they definitely capture the feel of an old French brasserie from the decor to the outfits of the staff.

Dining room at Minetta Tavern in NYC, NY

They sat us at a table next to the kitchen, so we could see the pass. It is always interesting to see how they are organized or dis-organized as you will understand later. What is sure is that the bone marrow was the popular appetizer considering the number of them passing in front of us. I admit that I was tempted to order it, but, when I saw they had a vol au vent, stuffed with escargots and sweetbreads, I did not hesitate. Vol au vent is made with puff pastry; it is of a circular shape, and forms like a well, where the center would be filled with all sorts of saucy mixtures like mushrooms and béchamel for instance. The only place where I saw that was at La Duree. This was superb: the shell was buttery, smothered in a garlic parsley butter sauce that was divine, and with a nice amount of snails and sweetbreads.

Vol au vent at Minetta Tavern in NYC, NY

I should mention that I was sipping a cocktail was waiting for the appetizer: a Murray Sour made with Suntory Toki whisky, cardamon infused agave syrup, fresh lemon and orange. Refreshing on a hot day for sure.

Murray sour cocktail at Minetta Tavern in NYC, NY

Jodi just ordered the burrata as her main and in fact, it took forever for these to come. The burrata that was served with grilled peach, sun-gold tomatoes, basil oil and sourdough. This was her main and it took a very long time to come…Good otherwise, with the nice sweetness of the peach balancing the acidity of the tomatoes, but she was surprised by the amount of sourdough that was not much. Fortunately, we had a mini baguette from Balthazar on the table.

At least the burrata did not need to be cooked and I had a bad feeling about by steak. Well, it came overcooked (medium instead of medium-rare) and I sent it back. The manager came to apologize and promise that my re-fired dish would come quickly: It did. The meat was hard to cut and I was not sure if it was the knife or the quality of it. I understood after the first bite: it was tough and not of good quality. This was confirmed when they told me that it was a petite tender from the shoulder that is called in fact called the beef clod. This is one of the least expensive cuts of beef. If true, this is disappointing to see a place like Minetta Tavern serve this for $42. At least the béarnaise sauce was very good and the fries divine, just as I like them: thin, crispy on the outside and cooked all the way through.

Steak frites at Minetta Tavern in NYC, NY

Dessert was also a let down: the long awaited coconut cake was dry and seemed overcooked in the bottom, and the cake of the baba au rhum, that I admit had lots of rum in it, was too dense.

So yes, I was disappointed: we were so looking forward to this diner at Minetta Tavern, but it did not deliver. If we go back, I would stick to the burger but certainly would order back their vol au vent!

Enjoy (…)!

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Minetta Tavern - 113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

Dinner at Minetta Tavern in NYC, NY

I Just Want To Eat!