South Gate, Revisited

South Gate Revisited…

I couldn’t resist the invitation to return to South Gate for a private dinner to enjoy the new seasonally inspired modern American menu created by  Chef Kerry Heffernan. Kerry works closely with farmers, fisherman and ranchers, using their seasonal foods to inspire his cooking.

Although the food was delicious on my first South Gate visit, there was a techno-hiccup with the wine sommelier and the Kindle-like wine menu. I was glad to learn that Sommelier Troy Weissman was off the night of that visit, and that he had hand-selected the wines for each course. No electronic device to deal with this time.

To whet our appetite,  Kerry first served  an amuse-bouche portion of flash seared calamari over cauliflower custard with pea shoots in a lobster-coriander sauce ($15).

Each item at our tasting is found on the new menu – the prices I’m sharing are for a regular —not tasting menu — portion. South Gate’s six-course tasting menu is $95, and well worth it to sample this seasonally inspired cooking.

Next — a dish not to be missed — a smooth as silk, melts as it touches your tongue, silky butternut squash flan served with roasted Brussels sprouts and prosciutto ($18), all in a brown butter sauce, served with a Chardonnay Wild Ferment” 2007, Onabay from the North Fork of Long Island.

The New Brunswick butter poached lobster with golden and red beets and savoy cabbage in a marjoram infused lobster broth worked wonderfully with the Riesling Spätlese “Saarburger Rausch” 1992 Zilliken from Mosel, Germany.

And yes the food kept coming!

Our beef course consisted of roasted dry-aged sirloin and braised short rib of beef with mustard greens and potatoes, served with Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru 2002, Domaine Drouhin-Laroze (Burgundy, France). The Braised Short Ribs are priced at $30, a 12-ounce portion of dry-aged sirloin of beef at $42.

With little room for dessert, I managed to nibble a bit of the intensely flavored concord grape parfait with crisp meringues and peanut butter ice cream. PLUS Apple tart tatin with bacon streusel, cider syrup, and maple pecan ice cream both served with Riesling “Sweet Agnes” Seifried (New Zealand).

With Kerry Heffernan cooking, South Gate’s a restaurant not to be missed.

– bonnie

South Gate at the Jumeirah Essex House
154 Central Park South, New York
212-484-5120