La Silhouette

I am pleased to present another birthday post to my readers. Oh yes, there are still more to come. Haha! Are you beginning to think I'm spoiled now? Hardly. I celebrate the birthdays of each and every person that celebrates with me.

My friend Mr. Portobello and I keep in touch over email but hardly see each other even though we live in the same city and work fairly close to each other. However, as tradition goes, we meet up twice a year: once for my birthday and once for his. It's funny how that works and we don't miss a beat. So this year, I decided to keep it local and picked the new neighborhood restaurant, La Silhouette. This French restaurant exuded the finesse of fine dining but with a more casual feel.

The decor of the restaurant was neat and clean but the colors seemed calming and homey. I felt very comfortable and didn't feel as if I needed to speak in hushed tone.

After we ordered, the amuse bouche came out. This was a fried potato ball with truffle cream. The potato was light, airy, and very smooth. It just melted in my mouth once I bit into the crunchy crust. The truffle cream underneath was rich and added another layer of flavor.

For his appetizer, he had the Long Island Fluke Crudo ($18) with American caviar, citrus vinaigrette and poppy seed flatbread. This looked amazing. The vibrant colors were very eye catching and I didn't doubt the flavor was anything less. My friend seemed to enjoy it very much.

I had the Foie Gras a La Botero ($28) with caramelized pears, toasted hazelnuts, and spaghetti squash confit. This dish was excellent. The fattened goose liver was ever so tender with a nice sear on the outside. The fruit garnish helped cut the richness of the dish while the spaghetti squash rounded out the dish.

For his entree, Mr. Portobello had the Almond Crusted Chatham Cod ($33) with cauliflower parmesan  puree with romesco sauce. Again, a light dish with lots of flavor. I didn't try it but he mentioned how perfectly cooked the piece of fish was.

I ordered the Lamb Chop and Lamb Shank Crepinette ($39) with broccoli rabe, sweet potatoes, fennel lamb sausage, and rosemary jus. This was a very rich dish. The lamb chop was nice and juicy and cooked to my desired doneness: medium rare. The crepinette was so tender and fell apart as I cut into it. Again, lots of rich, earthy flavors here. The broccoli rabe was soft and just slightly bitter with the potatoes adding a slick of sweetness to balance out the dish.

We both had some room for dessert and seeing that it was my birthday, we splurged. He ordered the Dark Chocolate Pot de Creme ($14) with hazelnut marshmallow and graham cracker ice cream. The chocolate cake was very interesting. It sat on the plate like an unassuming piece of cake. But as he cut into it, it just oozed chocolate. The inside was incredibly rich and decadent. A really lovely dessert.

I had the Popcorn Creme Brulee ($12) with candied apples, caramel popcorn and salty caramel ice cream. They brought out the dish with a lovely birthday wish. How nice! What was even better was the dessert.  I loved the pairing of sweet and savory. There was a lot of salty flavors going on here which is what I prefer. I also enjoyed the different textures from the crunchy popcorn and candied apples to the creamy ice cream to the airy creme brulee.

To finish off the meal, we were given some mignardises. They were pistachio and brandied cherry cakes and a spiced marshmallows. The cake light in texture but you could really taste the pistachio with just a hint of cherry. On the other spectrum the spiced marshmallow was really strong. In fact, the spices overpowered my palate. Let's just say I was glad that I finished off my meal with the cake.

La Silhouette was just really lovely. The food was sophisticated and composed while the atmosphere was jovial and almost cruise-like but in a good way. And to make matters better, both the manager and the owner came up to us and asked how we enjoyed our night. We only had glowing reviews for them. They even gave us a tour of the private room upstairs. Everyone was super friendly and the service very attentive. I would absolutely come back for more. I will happily sat that La Silhouette is a VERY welcome addition to the neighborhood.

La Silhouette
362 West 53rd Street
New York, NY 10019
(212) 581-2400
la-silhouettenyc.com