Now that I am back in New York, I spent the evening out in Manhattan tonight.  I planned to meet my friend Lee Anne and some of her other friends for a “Girls Night Out” Valentines Day.  Now, I love going out to dinner with Lee Anne (You may remember her from Season one of Top Chef).  She knows everyone in the New York restaurant scene and is treated like royalty wherever she goes.  So it was no surprise to me to find Dave (also from Season one of Top Chef) as the executive chef of our restaurant this evening when I walked into the door.

Crave on 42nd street is located in a red brick apartment building on 42snd street between 11th Avenue and the West Side Highway.  There is no sign on the window, just lights around the large picture windows.

Dave put together a lovely Valentines Day tasting menu.  At his recommendation, nearly everyone at the table chose the same meal with minor differences.  Dave and Lee Anne are good friends, so he started us of with a fillet mignon that the four of us shared with our cocktails. 

We each began our tasting menu with a deliciously decadent lobster and crab bisque that had the slightest touch of heat and silken strands of lump crabmeat. He also placed an order of his unbelievably delicious black truffle macaroni and cheese.

Next, we moved into my favorite course, the Duck confit and white bean cassoulet. The duck meat melted into the white bean stew, giving the dish a creamy, hearty texture.

Lee Anne ordered a bottle of Barbara de Asti to accompany our food.  For our main course, two of us ordered the back cod, which came with mashed potatoes stuffed with shitake mushrooms and a hint of spice as well as brocolini.  The other two of us ordered the lamb chops, which had a smoky, sweet and mint flavor profile to complement the soft texture of the meat.

Dave made an extraordinary dessert (which I thoroughly enjoyed) called something like “the lady wears red”.  He baked a red velvet cake and crumbled into tiny pieces then sprinkled it into the lightest vanilla ice cream. Half the table ordered it while the orther half ordered the Panna Cotta.  

MMmmmm





I had a wonderful evening meeting Lee Anne’s friends and catching up with her again.  I truly enjoyed meeting Dave.  He is such a sweet, nice guy and his food is delicious.  At about 11:30 pm, Lee Anne and her friends decided to hit a local bar.  I, however, had to drive home, and flew home in about an hour. 

It is now time for me to go to sleep.  It is late and I have to return to work tomorrow.