Tropica

TROPICA
MetLife Building
200 Park Ave. at E. 45th St.
New York, NY 10166
Reservations: 212 867 6767

Cuisine: American/Seafood

Price: I wanted to cry.

I’m not sure how the prices are normally for the food since we indulged in the Restaurant Week specials (and for the rest of the summer, they have lobster specials, check their website for menu and pricing), but… I was a little earlier than my companion, and so I went to the bar not wanting to dull my tastebuds, and ordered a Sprite. It wasn’t super big or super small, there was no special splash of vodka or even a cherry garnish, but he charged me $5.30. For a f*cking soda. I almost said, “Well, just give me a dash of vodka and keep the change then” because geez! How much do they charge for alcohol then?!

My companion and I both chose to start with the Lobster Bisque. Big chunks of lobster piled in the center complemented the slightly spiced, smooth and thin soup nicely. The dish being quite shallow, both of us struggled to get the last drops. Not the best lobster bisque I’ve had, but I’m also a chowder (thick, rich, chunky with potatoes and other stuff) person more than a bisque (blended smooth) person.

For our main courses, we went our separate ways and in retrospect, why did I go to a seafood restaurant and yet order the one carnivore choice? I couldn’t tell you. I went with the Hanger Steak, with Boniato fries, avocado-mango salad, drizzled with an herb chimichurri. I was taken by my fries, they were quite good, a cross between potato and yuka (less of the stuff I don’t like in yuka); the mango-avocado (hidden in the picture by the watercress) tang mixed with the watercress was a great burst of flavor, sweet and yet avocado’s yummy goodness (I’ve recently become endeared towards avocado in sandwiches) just went well, especially with a crunch from the watercress (else slightly too similar in textures for me). The steak, however, was nothing special, nor horrible; hanger steak isn’t a particularly tender cut (think skirt steak; they may be the same cut, I haven’t looked into it, though I find them to be identical). The herb chimichurri was standard fare for South American steaks.

My companion ordered the Grilled Swordfish, on top of a corn chowder, with spinach and toasted corn salsita. Ironically, the reason I did not choose this dish was because I have not appreciated swordfish’s definitive steak-like qualities (I find it tighter, less flaky than other fishes, drier), but upon trying a bite of hers, was surprised to find it flaking off (good quality), juicy, and very tender. I guess I hadn’t had good swordfish before this.

I also did not order the BBQ Salmon stupidly because I don’t like cooked salmon (though I absolutely adore it raw), and then the waiter told us they did not have that dish tonight and instead were serving halibut the same way. I wasn’t keen on halibut and so chose the steak. Silly me. Also I wasn’t too interested in the sides that came with it, to be honest.

For dessert, there was a third choice that wasn’t on the website- a kiwi-lime tarte, I believe- but we both stuck with our original choices; her, the coconut flan, and myself, being allergic to coconut, going for the mixed sorbet, which was disappointingly raspberry (which I’m allergic to as well) and passion fruit, which I hadn’t enjoyed at PLATE NYC.

I believe my dining companion liked her flan immensely, as I heard nothing but “Mm.. mm!” while she was eating it. My sorbet was as expected, hard for me to eat, but I relished the palm tree cookie/wafer and the island wafer as well, which were both light and delicately delicious. The raspberry was a bit too sweet, and the passion fruit, a bit too tart, though both had the best possible texture for sorbet: airy and not heavy at all.

Yvo says: Really good at combinations of things, but judging from the price of that one soda, I say go here when your wallet is just too darn heavy.