On Saturday, Amy & I met her pal Claudia for dinner at Marea. We knew going in that it’d be a pricey meal; after all, the restaurant is in the shadow of Masa, the most expensive dinner in NYC (which has a $200 fee if you don’t cancel your reservation with more than 48 hours’ notice(!)).
The meal was phenomenal; I’ve learned to appreciate fine dining this past decade, and my Marea experience was easily a top 5. Both my dates were heavy-duty foodies, and they too were floored by the meal. You can go check out the dinner menu here. For the record, I ordered:
- Ricci (sea urchin, lardo, sea salt)
- Sgombro (pacific jack mackerel, eggplant caponata)
- Polipo (grilled octopus, insalata di riso, fava, yellow tomato)
- Cotechino (not on the online version of the menu, but it was a pork, cod belly, wine sauce and maybe some cinnamon, in a mind-blowingly perfect risotto)
- and a chocolate panna cotta for dessert.
But as I said, it was a pricey meal. I won’t be so gauche as to discuss the final tab, but I will share with you the exchange I had with the Thomas the bartender when I was looking to get a gin & tonic before the meal.
GIL: I’d like a G&T. I notice you have Old Raj back there.
[THOMAS reaches for bottle]
GIL: Hold on. I had a G&T with that at Tabla once, and it cost $17. So, would you mind just ringing one up first, so I can see what it runs?
THOMAS: Sure! I’ve never served on with that gin before. [touch-pads for a few moments, then turns to look at GIL with shocked expression on face] Uh . . .
GIL: Twenty-two dollars for a gin & tonic?!
THOMAS: That’s what it says . . .
GIL: I’ll have a Hendricks & tonic, thanks.
THOMAS: You want cucumber with that?
GIL: Slightly bruised, thanks.
I’ve never felt relieved to pay $12 for a G&T before. (But it was the first bar I’ve been where they have Q Tonic on hand.)
, by Junot Diaz, as suggested by