NYC Restaurant Week

In order to fulfill my "Dine 3x and get an Amex Credit" requirements, which really was just an excuse for me to go out to eat many times during restaurant week, in addition to dining at Le Cirque, I also ate at Brasserie Ruhlmann and Lure Fishbar.

Brasserie Ruhlmann was pretty good, though I must say nothing totally spectacular, especially after I had already had the braised beef at Le Cirque the night before.

Menu & Bread

Appetizer: I chose the Winter Squash Risotto because I'm a sucker for anything risotto and have become a huge fan of anything squash lately as well.

Entree: Braised short rib, wanted to see if I could actually tell the difference between the one here and the one at Le Cirque. Was pretty good, but a bit on the salty side.

Dessert: My gut told me to go with the Banana Tart & Maple Sauce, but I had a last minute panic moment, and I chose the Bittersweet  Chocolat Pudding (it was fahncy with the capital "C" and without the "e"). Luckily, my mom had ordered what I call the "dessert that got away" and she was nice enough to trade with me!

Winter Squash Risotto

Braised Short Rib

Bittersweet Chocolat Pudding

The "one that got away" - Banana Tart & Maple Sauce

A week later, I went on a "date" with my sister to Lure Fishbar, which she had been to before, but I have only peered into before and dreamed about their lobster roll and tuna tartare. As with risotto and squash, I am an even bigger fan of anything tartare. Unfortunately, they no longer offer lobster roll on the restaurant menu (my sister said it was because she ordered it the last time she was there), but what I got instead was ah-maaaaazing! I can't even describe the food-gasm that was going on in my mouth. And it seems that another "Yelp" user had a similar experience. I found her review when I was trying to find the name of the entree that I ended up ordering, as it was a special on the regular menu that could be substituted into the restaurant week menu. But before I jump to there, I actually for once, got there early, and didn't feel like wandering the nearby shops for too long, so I settled into the bar for Happy Hour and a most delicious Grapefruit Margarita and playing with Instagram. The bartender was also so kind as to provide me with a bowl of chips without me even asking! I was a fan.

tempted to eat the jar of lychee behind my drink...

Grapefruit Margarita w/ chips!

Finally, my sister arrived...well, to be fair, she arrived on time, and we went to our table for the following food that I am even excited to be writing about (I  know, I'm a dork):

Appetizer: Tuna Tartare. There was no sharing to be had, so we each ordered our own.

Entree: Some sort of char that was one of the most fantastic things I have ever tasted. It just melted in my mouth and had all these different flavors happening at the same time that I thoroughly enjoyed. Here's how the Yelp user described it: 

"They had a special fish of the day that was added to the restaurant week menu. It was called something Char. The waiter told me it's similar to a Salmon. OMG! It was so buttery soft...melted away in my mouth. It was mixed in with this creamy yogurt sauce...YUMS. The warm chocolate cake was an explosion of sin and delight. Loved it. "

Dessert: Warm Chocolate Cake with Candied Popcorn. I was a little on the fence about what to get for dessert, but she sold me on the popcorn. Also love popcorn...come to think of it, there doesn't seem to be many foods that I don't love...it was good, but I was already so full from dinner. Also, hard to compete with the chocolate & green tea cake that I have had from Spot Dessert Bar about a month ago.

Our drinks are friends.

Tuna Tartare!!!

Char View 1

Char View 2

Warm Chocolate Cake w/ Candied Popcorn

My sweet ride.