Lately, I’ve been filled with nothing but love for my friends. I seriously have had the hardest time for the past few months with personal issues, and without them,… well, let’s not think about that. Just know that out of all of this emotional storm swirling around me, I have discovered how truly blessed I am with some of the most amazing friends in the world… and one such friend has been Hungry of Tasty Eating. Knowing that I’ve been in a poor emotional state, poor financially, and not really eating at any high end restaurants for months, she invited me to join her for lunch at Ai Fiori, Michael White’s latest restaurant. She knows I’ve enjoyed his other restaurants, and just… I don’t know how to explain how touched I was that she took me out for lunch for a girl-date. And didn’t pressure me or try to get in my pants… too much 😉 Ha!
Ai Fiori is located inside the Setai Hotel in Midtown. Once you enter the hotel lobby, there is a winding staircase to the left that you ascend to reach the doors to Ai Fiori. Really swank and nice.
Our server was super nice and explained whatever we had questions about, attentive and … yes, service that is standard for this level of restaurant. I ordered a honeydew lemongrass soda, which I liked because honeydew is one of my favorite fruits (I have a lot of them, though). The sweetness of the honeydew tempered the lemongrass nicely, though Hungry said she thought it was a little too sweet. She had a glass of wine, though I didn’t take a photo or ask how it was.
Hungry opted to start with the agnolotti, which I know she enjoyed. I’m sure she’ll post about the meal on her own site…
I went with the torchon – foie gras – because it’d been quite a while since I had foie gras – and oh, my.
Complete with toasted brioche to spread the foie gras on. I happily nommed my way through the whole plate… so good, so fatty!
When Hungry’s next dish appeared, I almost thought to myself “Crap, I should have ordered that!” – it looks so pretty and quite yummy. A lobster ‘salad’ of sorts, with many pretty colors and components – I know the part on the far right was bruleed grapefruit, which we both thought was something else based on looks… deconstructed lobster ‘salad’ looks so good! Hungry seemed to enjoy it greatly as well.
I’d wisely ordered the spaghetti, because it contained lots of things I like: blue crab, lemon, bottarga (!!! I love bottarga, or dried carp roe that’s baked into flat sheets), and chilies. Okay, I also ordered it because my appetite has been really off, and when I can eat, I try to eat heavier, more filling dishes so that I can get as many calories in me as possible (I know this probably isn’t the right place to reveal this, but I’ve lost about 20 lbs. in the past month and change, and I am fully aware that this is not healthy; I’ve resorted to getting calories in me any way that I can keep them down, which includes drinking calories where I used to not do that, eating snacks and whatever else I feel like, because while I have been trying to lose about this much weight for a very long time – this just isn’t healthy, and I don’t know how to stop it otherwise – I literally can’t keep food down anymore). In ANY case, I’ve always been impressed with Michael White’s skill with pasta; this was no exception. The individual strands of spaghetti were coated so well with this incredible sauce, that each one felt almost creamy, while the giant lumps of crab meat scattered around were sweet to perfection. This dish was fantastic to the last bite. The creaminess of the sauce was savory, tasting slightly of the sea… so good. It wasn’t a saucy dish, either – just coated the strands of pasta.
Now, Chef White, what I really want to know is… when and where will you bring back the fusilli with pork shoulder ragout that you served at Convivio? I would travel the earth for that, or please give me the recipe so I can hoard it and never make it (I don’t think I’m yet up to making pasta from scratch… yet). Please?
All too soon, it was time for dessert. Hungry’s streusel cake with blueberries was eaten happily as well. Well, nothing was eaten UNhappily during this meal!
And me… well, my recent re-introduction to frangipane led me to make an easy choice when I saw ‘strawberry frangipane’ on the dessert menu. Frangipane (almond meal/paste of sorts) continues to be a favorite of mine – delicious, subtly almond-y, and just yum. The rest of the slice of tart was only so-so to me; I didn’t think the strawberries added (or detracted, honestly) to the tart, nor did the pastry cream. Of course, I’d happily eat just the frangipane part… smeared on a buttery piece of bread or croissant… or you know, just straight… mmm… yum.
I had a fabulous time at lunch, and for at least an hour or two, I was able to put aside my appetite issues and just enjoy a really great meal courtesy of one of the most incredible friends I’ve made in recent memory. I am so, so lucky to have her as a friend.
Yvo says: The meal was fantastic, with great service, great light for photographs (ha!), and just really good food. The lunch menu is pretty reasonably priced, and well worth an occasional splurge. I really have nothing negative to say about Ai Fiori – except maybe the location. After a fantastic meal, exiting into a busy touristy area is really disconcerting. But that wasn’t enough to detract from the meal at all.
highly recommended
TT says
glad their lunch service was as good as their dinner service. gotta take advantage of the least known of his restaurants before it becomes too popular leading to price increases.
Feisty Foodie says
Definitely – the current lunch menu prix fixe is $38 for two courses; I think that’s pretty reasonable though not quite as much of a deal as Jean Georges’ lunch. We’ll wait to see how many stars Ai Fiori gets 😉
kimberly says
Leave it to Chef White to ignite your waning appetite. 🙂
I hope your health has been improving and that you’re at a more peaceful and happier position by now. Cheers Yvo. 🙂
Hungry says
Another fantastic meal by Chef White. He’s one of the few chefs that I would actually follow. Thanks for enjoying it with me.
Also, I didn’t have to try hard to get into your pants. You were wearing a dress.
Feisty Foodie says
Shhh, I was pretending I had some sort of self control after someone takes me for a meal… wait, what?
Yeah, I think I would follow him/visit all of his restaurants. The quality has never varied, though my enjoyment has – it was never because the food was bad, it was more about wanting a dish that is no longer offered. Hahaha.
T.C. says
Truly a beautiful-looking lunch. SO colorful!
Hope you are building up that friendly appetite again.
Feisty Foodie says
Thanks TC! I’ll get there 🙂
CT says
I had the spaghetti there too and love it!! I’m with Hungry – I’d follow him anywhere! That man knows good food.