Friday, September 4, 2009

Trying the food at Riposo 46

Saturday night, after spending the whole day moving AV's bed, we both needed a stiff drink. Convention dictated we might need some food as well, so we headed on over to our favorite neighborhood wine bar, Riposo 46.

We nabbed a table and eventually were visited by one of the flakiest, most uninterested waiters I've ever encountered. It could not have been clearer that he was a) new to this job, and b) completely unconcerned with his performance in it. We ultimately managed to place an order for drinks and food. And then eventually after that, our drinks appeared-- a frosty beer for AV, a glass of Sofia Coppolo Blanc de Blancs bubbly for me. Yumm.

But we were truly interested in the food this time around. I had ordered a salad, and AV had ventured into the flatbread pizza category. We saw our food appear on the pass, simultaneously noting that our waiter was knee deep in a flirty conversation with a gay couple vociferously holding court at a table by the window. And then we waited. After a few minutes, as the pizza congealed, we considered actually walking over and just plucking the food ourself. But ultimately the cook banged on the dinging bell a few more times, getting our waiter's attention and resulting in a food delivery to us.

AV's margherita flatbread pizza was a pretty oblong shape; it came on a wooden cutting board with a pizza cutter so he could slice it himself. I tried a tiny bite, and it was quite tasty, though I found the sauce to be a little sweet. AV noted there could have been more cheese, but he does love his mozzarella.

A beautiful tableau

My own salad was delicious. I went for the baby arugula salad but substituted sauteed mushrooms for the grapefruit (really don't like grapefruit), which cost an extra $2 but was totally, totally worth it. The salad was blanketed with a flurry of parmesan shreads and tossed in a delicious vinaigrette. Definitely worth returning for.

Sauteed mushrooms + parmesan = so much umami!

After we finished our food, we settled into our drinks. Flaky Waiter asked AV if he wanted another beer, which AV declined. And then he brought it anyway. When I pointed out he had actually not ordered it, FW graciously comped it on the bill. Did I mention his head wasn't really in the game? No worries; we're big fans of Riposo, and the tasty food only added to its appeal. Four Offset Spatulas and a guaranteed repeat visit from these parts.

Riposo 46
667 9th Avenue, between 46th and 47th Streets
212-247-8018

2 comments:

Gar said...

hi Janine,

Would you order an Italian bread salad (tomato, red onion, green beans, and olive oil toasted bread)? Haven't seen one on your blog.

Janine said...

Hi Gar,

I've had panzanella salads before, but they're not my favorite. I guess I prefer my bread and veggies separately!

Janine