Please note that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own!

Senza Gluten by Jemiko in Hell's Kitchen

Few years ago, gluten-free options were very limited, with mainly bread and pizza, people often commenting on the latter tasting like cardboard. But now, there are many more options, tasty options. I could mention for instance the donuts at Alfalfa in Hoboken that you would probably not guess are gluten-free if I did not tell you. Eating gluten-free used to be necessary for people with celiac disease or other ailments, but, many people started to adopt such diet and reported less bloating, better digestion and energy level. So, I was curious to try Senza Gluten by Jemiko, a gluten-free restaurant we passed by a couple of weeks ago, that opened 7 months ago in Hell’s Kitchen. There, I met with Chef Jemiko Solo who explained to me that he wanted to offer an Italian menu that would not only satisfy people who must eat gluten-free food, but also others.

For sure, the menu is quite extensive and I would not have known that I was in a gluten-free restaurant, the only indication besides the name being maybe the description of the various components composing the dishes that give you hints about the ingredients used to replace gluten. They have for instance a bread basket that is made up of a classic baguette (made with cornstarch and white and brown rice flour), a wholesome grain bread (made brown and white rice flour) with and an artisan style bread (rice flour, cornstarch, millet and potato), a new offering, that they bake in their downtown bakery and cafe. The bread was good, with or without dipping it in olive oil, and reminded me a bit the texture of bread made at home.

Gluten free bread at Senza Gluten by Jemiko in Hell's Kitchen

We ate a bit of bread with a nice espresso martini that was well balanced for me and an organic black cherry juice for Jodi.

For the appetizer, we had to try their arancini con quattro formaggi or 4 cheese arancini, made with with 24-month aged Parmigiano Reggiano, buffalo mozzarella, taleggio and fontina cheese and white truffle oil. These rice balls were nicely crispy on the outside and gooey on the inside, filled with lots of cheese. This was a good start, followed by Parmigiano di cavalfiore, one of the Chef's favorite made of breaded and fried cauliflower that is baked with buffalo mozzarella and 24-month aged Parmigiano Reggiano cheese in San Marzano tomato sauce, drizzled with fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil puree. This was a sort of spin on eggplant parmigiana that I found superb, the cauliflower being slightly crispy with a nice crunch.

For the entrees, I could not not try. a pasta and their flatbread that is not so flat. The pasta was fettuccine bolognese that was made with a corn based pasta in a delicious meat sauce with grated Pecorino Romano. I do not know if it is because there was a lot of sauce, but I could have never guessed that this was made with corn flour. The pasta was perfectly cooked, smothered by a robust meat sauce. Delicious. The flatbread was also superb: It is also a Chef’s favorite made with wild mushrooms, buffalo mozzarella, baby arugula and white truffle cream. Normally it has speck (smoked prosciutto), but they made it vegetarian for Jodi. Made with a bit of corn flour, the crust was thick and had a nice bite. There was lots of cheese and mushrooms, but I admit that I ditched some of the arugula as I have never been a big fan of it on pizza.

Fettuccine bolognese at Senza Gluten by Jemiko in Hell's Kitchen

The last entree we tried was their French toast made with their homemade brioche. This was my least favorite dish, mainly because the brioche had too much orange blossom in it that overpowered the entire dish.

For dessert, we went for their tiramisu that is made with homemade ladyfinger (Savoiardi) cookies dipped in espresso coffee, layered with mascapone and dusted with cocoa powder. The tiramisu was delicious, very creamy and this is another dish that I would not have suspected was gluten free.

Tiramisu at Senza Gluten by Jemiko in Hell's Kitchen

Overall, this was a delicious meal and I would not mind going back to Senza Gluten by Jemiko, even if I do not have to eat gluten free: the food was very good and I had I didn’t know it was all gluten-free, I would probably not have guessed. I will definitely go back there for dinner!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Senza gluten by Jemiko - 626 10th Ave, New York, NY 10036

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