The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Located in The Park Hyatt Hotel, The Back Room is an impressive restaurant. Overlooking Carnegie Hall, this place has a sophisticated decor combining modern and luxury elements. There are a few things that I really appreciated there besides the food: the noise level that was perfect (it was louder near the bar area, located at the entrance), the music being in the background, allowing people to have a conversation; second were the tables that were not too close to each other; and last, the service that was not only courteous, but also unhurried, letting us not only talk, but also enjoy their meal. The latter is not surprising considering the kind of hotel this restaurant is located into, but still.
Entrance at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Bar area at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Table at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
The Back Room serves an all American menu, crafted by Executive Chef Sebastien Archambault, who was born in Texas to French parents and raised in France, where he discovered his love of food. More focussed on seafood, it also offers some nice steak dishes that would satisfy any carnivore. The meal started with some delicious bread: an onion bread that was delightful, as well as sourdough (on demand).
Onion bread at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Sourdough bread at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
The meal was in fact their prix fixe, a $54 deal for an appetizer, entree and dessert: a good price considering the location and the quality served. They also offer a wine pairing for $35 that I chose, allowing me to switch between white and red wine, as my meal was both seafood and meat (each pairing is half a glass).
For the appetizer, I ordered the Lobster Bisque. It was served with a tarragon crème fraîche and American caviar.
Lobster bisque at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
First, I liked the presentation where they came with the plate that had onions and caviar, on which they poured the bisque that had a nice kick and was very creamy. It was paired with a Pinot Gris, Eyrie, Dundee Hills, Oregon 2013:
Pinot Gris, Eyrie, Dundee Hills, Oregon 2013 at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Pinot Gris, Eyrie, Dundee Hills, Oregon 2013 at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
For the entree, I decided to go with the Tri-Tip Wagyu Beef, that was served with creamy potato (fantastic), mushroom (succulent) and a red wine jus that was perfect as it was not overpowering at all.
Tri-tip Wagyu beef at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Tri-tip Wagyu beef at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
It was overall a good dish, although, as it was a Wagyu beef, I was expecting a more tender piece of meat. I should also mention that I ordered it medium-rare and it was more on the medium side. Look, at the end of the day, I was anyway not expecting a steakhouse grade steak, especially at that price.
The tri-tip was paired with a glass of Malbec ‘Birch Creek’, El Corazon, Walla Walla Valley, Washington 2012 that was my favorite (I guess I prefer more red wine).
Malbec ‘Birch Creek’, El Corazon, Walla Walla Valley, Washington 2012 at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Last was dessert. I admit that I was not sure which one to order as the three choices they had on the menu looked delicious. I finally went for the Mascarpone Cheesecake, accompanied with quince mousse (not my favorite), candied peanuts (nice crunch), lemon Verbena ice cream (refreshing).
Mascarpone cheesecake at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
The cheesecake was delicious, not too sweet or heavy, but I admit that I did nit like at all the quince mousse. The cheesecake was paired with a Cerdon, Renardat-Fâche, Bugey, France 2014, a very sweet sparkling dessert wine.
Cerdon, Renardat-Fâche, Bugey, France 2014 at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
Cerdon, Renardat-Fâche, Bugey, France 2014 at The Back Room at One57, The Park Hyatt Hotel
It was overall a decent meal for the price proposed. I really liked this place for the food, but also the reasons I mentioned at the start of this post. Would I go back? Probably, for dinner or even brunch.
Enjoy (I did)!
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