Eating Fried Mayo...And loving it

When Wylie Dufresne moved up the block from 71 Clinton Fresh Food, I had a reservation hours later, but due to circumstance beyond my control (a detour to Daniel) I had to cancel the reservation vowing to return soon. Flash forward to nearly one year later from the canceled reservation and from the opening of WD-50. Since then I had read reviews, heard opinions and even had a sample of the corned duck and rye crisp at a tasting event. It was enough of a taste to convince me I had to form my own opinion. I was expecting far fetched concoctions, deconstructed dishes, mixed matched flavors; all presented in tiny portions by an overly eager staff whose enthusiasm made you cry uncle.

Despite my misgivings I armed myself with the perfect companions, a food writer, a wine seller and a politico, even if the food was a bust at least we would drink well, know what we were eating and have good conversation. My party arrived at 7:00pm on a Tuesday evening and we were promptly seated in a spacious booth that made me feel as if we were having a private meal in a public restaurant. Warms tones of copper and red sent me back to Sedona and the brightly colored deco light had a similar hand blown by a hippie in Arizona feel. I sat down comfortably and armed with a copy of the menu that my friend had printed the day before, I opened the leather bound menu. A black and white lip photo appeared on the first page. Was it reminding us that this was in fact the menu? Was it telling us that we needed to use our mouth the eat? I like to think that it was a symbol of my favorite of the senses, taste. We immediately began to strategically plan who would order what.

Everything on the menu reads like a grocery list, only listing the ingredients, which left the actual description of each dish up to our server who executed her explanations with ease, enthusiasm and a humor that we welcomed throughout the evening. I questioned her about the venison tartare and she quickly told me it was one of her favorites and that having asked about it, I must be a candidate to enjoy it. I liked the idea of being a candidate for an appetizer, but instead settled on the Goldbar squash soup served at room temperature with jonah crab, marcona almonds and cherries. In addition to the soup, I tasted the cockles, steamed in a broth with sake noodles and kimchee chips, the hamachi with roasted pear that was topped with a finely ground mushroom streudel, and one of Dufresne's more well known dishes the corned duck on a rye crisp served with purple mustard and horseradish cream. Each bite I had was more delicious than the next exploding with a subtle flavor that I let linger on my tongue, since these are dishes are meant to be savored and contemplated by both your eyes and your mouth. As we sat discussing the complexities of our first course, a plate sent from the kitchen appeared with paper-thin slices of calf's tongue, a tomato molasses, finely chopped romaine and fried mayonnaise. I do not eat tongue nor am I one to enjoy mayo except when it is sparsely mixed into dishes before I consume them, however this was an evening to experiment and I dove into this tribute to the LES with anticipation. All I have to say is that WD-50 is worth going to if only to try the fried mayo. There is no other word to describe this deconstructed tongue sandwich other than scrumptious. Even the non-tongue eaters agreed that they had never envisioned that mayo could take the form of something so utterly delicate in taste and texture. (New York Mag)

The entrees that followed consisted of the lamb loin, snapper, wild king salmon and pork belly. Each dish was partnered with two to three additional components creating some of the most interesting combinations I have ever tasted, and even better they worked. The aged goat cheese grated finely over the lamb loin, balanced the sweetness of the hibiscus date puree. The dried apricots and curried califower almond puree complimented the clean saltiness of the snapper it rested beneath. I kept eating and tasting, and yes there was food to eat. Despite being warned of leaving hungry, the portions were substantial and there was enough to go around, without feeling that each bite might be your last. There was so much lamb I could not even finish it, but I also restrained myself since by this point we had decided to try each of pastry chef Sam Masons desserts, which we had gotten a sneak peak of at the bottom of the menu.

As our plates were cleared we awaited the arrival of our dessert feast, chatting still about the range of foods and flavors we had just been witness too. The desserts arrived and forks flew to get a bite of the celery root cake, the chocolate panna cotta, the coconut tapioca and the delicious coffee soil. Everyone had their own favorite, mine being the chocolate cream with tonka bean ice cream and coffee soil, while others felt the celery root cake with coconut sorbet and peanut foam was the clear winner. The losers also managed to have a following, as the caramelized apple with miso ice cream and plum puree grew on me with a hint of saltiness when each of the three components were combined. Since it was also my friend's birthday that week, I had tipped off the waitress and we were treated to a WD-50 birthday cake, a dense chocolate mousse with a flakey wafer base topped with a single candle. Even the check did not come alone, but rather with four bite sized chocolate curried truffles. As I bit into this small morsel I felt as if I could taste all the spice and smells I had experienced on a brief trip to the spice island of Zanzibar a few years ago.

Perhaps it was the whole evening that had contributed to the feeling that I had been transported somewhere else or perhaps my taste buds had been elevated to another level. Whatever it was I could not get over how such a small morsel of food could have such a resounding effect on my mind, body and mouth. As I parted ways with my friends, I felt that I would definitely return. This is not a restaurant for the faint of culinary adventure or for those just looking to eat good food, so it should not be judged in this light. It is an all-consuming experience, so go prepared to experiment, to discuss, but most importantly to eat. Maybe the critics of WD-50 are right and we had only hit the kitchen on an incredibly good night. Either way, the company, the food, the flavors, the wine, the room and the chef had all played an essential role in cooking up such a delicious evening.

WD-50
50 Clinton Street
212-477-2900

Comments

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[philip]

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[Zepp]

Very interesting post. The one restaurant you mentioned would be very helpful for people who are on a diet.