John Fraser’s Narcissa’s Lackluster Service Disappoints Despite Superb Food

For years, chef John Fraser has been arguably one of the most under the radar and underrated chef’s in New York, as the executive chef of Upper West Side gem, Dovetail. Despite earning a michelin star, Dovetail’s location on 103 West 77th Street is located in one of the most obscure neighborhoods, not known as an epicenter for transcending culinary spaces. Recently, the Upper West Side has seen a surge in exceptional food including Red Farm, Meatball Shop, and soon, Parm. Nevertheless, Fraser finally relocated downtown with Narcissa at Andre Balazs’ Standard East, which opened this past fall. Focusing on a vegetable centric menu, Narcissa serves locally sourced ingredients that features seasonal, local and organic produce from Andre Balazs’ farm in Hudson Valley. The menu, which features rotisserie, roasting and slow cooking, is best described as “California” style cooking.

Dovetail @ Mozzarella Salad

Prior to New York Restaurant Week, I inexplicably forwent experiencing Dovetail despite harboring strong sentiment towards eventually dining at the Upper West Side eatery. Having recently been awarded an illustrious Michelin Star, and amassed impressive feedback over the last few years, Dovetail certainly had appeal. In addition, I was drawn to Dovetail among other obvious reasons, for its unique location as it is nestled in the heart of the Upper West Side, near the Natural History Museum, an area seldom known for upscale “sceney” restaurants. Nevertheless, I finally experienced Dovetail during NY Restaurant Week not only because of the unique lunch special, but also because they were open for lunch during the three week promotion, which is unusual for the dinner centric restaurant.

The Mozzarella Salad perfectly set the tone for my meal at Dovetail. Exceptionally beautiful, the salad as both aesthetically pleasing and impeccably crafted. For a moment, I resisted the temptation of taking a bite because I was so enamored with the beauty of the dish. Nevertheless, the food was as exquisite as it was beautiful. The Mozzarella Salad was served with apples, celery and peppers. The quality of the mozzarella was just right as it was not too creamy but rather possessed the essential texture that made it more irresistible. Furthermore, the choice of vegetables were not only a delightful addition that sufficiently complemented the mozzarella, but more importantly, underscored the chef’s unique range and ability to perfect the culinary art of serving vegetables. In fact, the chef, John Fraser, is so serious about cooking vegetables, he has since dedicated every Monday to serve a vegetable oriented (and vegan centric) prix fixe dinner and plans to open a new restaurant in Williamsburg, this spring, that will only utilize vegetables.

Dovetail:

103 West 77th Street,

New York, NY, 10024

P: + 1 (212) 362-3800

Video: New York Taste Event 2013

On Monday November 11th, New York Magazines Hosted its 15th Annual New York Taste Event featuring 40 of the city’s most recognized Chefs and Mixologists. Chef’s including Jonathan Benno, Paul Liebrandt, Joe NG, Dominique Ansel, Francois Payard and Richard Kuo among others were featured in the event.

Dinner and Drinks with Pearl and Ash’s Richard Kuo