Unfortunately, I forgot to take photos of every course, but I did get all the signatures/my favorite dishes.
Amuse-Bouche
Chef Ramírez seems to have added a new, “signature”, never-changing dish, a sturgeon rilette, and it’s amazing! Perfectly crispy, creamy, flavorful, and delicious all in one! While the chutoro over sushi rice wrapped in seaweed tasted great, I’m not a huge fan of non-sushi restaurants serving such dishes, and I thought they could have done more. Overall, a fantastic start! 19/20
Langoustine-Caviar
Another signature of Ramírez, and it’s as good as ever! The fresh and slightly chilled langoustine went perfectly with the creamy, flavorful base, and it was all perfectly complemented by the caviar, ikura, and buttery, flaky tartlet. 20/20
Uni Toast
21/20… enough said for the main signature dish. (This was before they added the truffle.)
Tuna with Caviar
I had this dish at the old CTBF and didn’t really like it. At César, it tasted terrific! The tuna had a slight sauce/glaze/seasoning of its own, unlike before, and the jelly on top is now perfect, beautifully bringing the dish together. 19/20
Quail
The one slight miss of the night. While the quail was cooked to perfection, and the sauce was good, there was a sweetness to this dish that did detract from it. 17/20
Wagyu
Perfectly cooked with an amazing stock and red wine sauce. I would’ve liked some sides to this dish. 19/20
Frozen Chocolate Soufflé
Another signature dish, though it can be a bit polarizing. Personally, I’ve always loved Ramírez frozen soufflés, and this chocolate one was similarly fantastic. The dessert is airy yet dense, and light yet flavorful. For me, this truly is one of the best desserts in the world! 20/20
The other courses, kisu with potato crisp 19/20, golden eye snapper 18/20, dover sole 18/20, duck with maitake mushroom 20/20, lemon with yogurt gelato palate cleanser 20/20, and petit fours were all also lovely. Everything was perfectly cooked with amazing saucework!
Service was never great at the old CTBF, and I know a few people who didn’t love it when César just opened, but I’d say it's improved significantly for the better. The servers and sommeliers were great, and Chef Ramírez seemed significantly more talkative and happier than I’ve ever seen him before. We had a great conversation throughout the meal, and he comped my truffle supplement at the end. Photos are now allowed, as long as you’re not disturbing others. It’s only a matter of time IMO until César Ramírez wins three stars again!
Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi
I’ll keep this short. I ordered the three signatures: curried goat patties (not pictured) 19/20, jerk lamb rib 19/20, and braised oxtails 20/20. Everything was AMAZING! Perfectly cooked, super flavorful without being overpowering, and phenomenal sauces/sides! The oxtails here were the best I’ve ever had! The NYT/Pete Wells named Tatiana the best restaurant in NYC, and I’d hardly say there’s no merit behind that claim. While the atmosphere and service weren’t the greatest, the food was spectacular!! I’m actually beyond shocked they didn’t win a star.
by Bonzo1640
4 Comments
Sorry about the formatting. For some reason Reddit puts the description on the same line as the dish name, even though I type them on different lines. I’ll use a colon in future posts.
I trust people who say Cesar is good, and I kind of want to try, but these dishes never look appetizing to me. 😬
Hmm so Cesar is worth it!? Noted! How did you get into Tatiana? I’ve given up on trying LOL
$120 for the short rib pastrami (especially when it was $86 a few months ago) is borderline unjustifiable. It looks amazing but it just doesn’t feel like good value at that point