Twenty Manning, part I

Upon the recommendation of AB, I made it a priority to check out Twenty Manning, a seemingly casual-but-upscale neighborhood spot on Twentieth Street just north of Spruce. A couple of weeks ago, I stopped in for a quick weeknight meal with AP for my first go-round.

I really like the vibe of the restaurant. It's got an appealing aesthetic, with lots of wood and white paint, straight out of a Restoration Hardware catalogue. And the menu covers all the new-American comfort food bases, from a small list of "snacks" (olives, fries) to complement the well-edited list of wines, cocktails, and beers to a range of burger options.

The meal started with some slightly unusual bread, warm (just out of the oven?) mini-baguettes tinged with caraway seeds. The bread is truly high quality, and though I'm not a rabid lover of the flavor of caraway, these were good enough to convince me to keep nibbling.

Best with some of their sweet butter

With the help of AP, we dove into the burgers head-on. He ordered the tuna burger, which comes with ginger-soy marinade and avocado-wasabi mayo. He enjoyed the burger, although he noted it could have used a bit more flavor from the marinade. The fries, however, which came in a portion bordering on "metric ton," were a huge hit-- crisp and thin and insanely, ridiculously addictive. Bring a fry-loving friend if you tackle the burger, because it's hard to eat that many fries on your own. (Note: Not impossible, but challenging.)

Burger dwarfed by mound of fries

My choice was the farmer's market beets with goat cheese, lavender honey, and aged balsamic. I was really looking forward to this dish (also on the recommendation of AB), and I was actually a bit disappointed that I didn't like it more. The beets were huge chunks of the red and yellow varieties, tender and flavorful, but their sheer quantity overwhelmed the other elements. After a while, eating a whole lot of beets just gets a little old... and even with the funk of the goat cheese and the tang of the balsamic, the dish was a little tiresome by the end. I'm also not the hugest fan of lavender in my food, and though this was surely not overpowering, I'd prefer non-lavender honey.

So many beets...

Based on first impressions, Twenty Manning was a solid three Offset Spatula joint-- casual, with friendly, accommodating service and decent, well-priced food. Would my second visit corroborate those impressions? Stay tuned...

Twenty Manning
261 S. 20th Street, at Manning
215-731-0900

Fish and salad extravaganza at Blue Fin

The other day, my mom was in town for work. She was staying at a hotel on the outskirts of Times Square, and due to the monsoonal downpours, neither of us was really keen on walking too far for dinner. So we met in the middle at Blue Fin, a BR Guest fish restaurant I'd been to a couple of times for work at my former job. Mom's a seafood lover, so I figured it would be right up her alley.

I was right. We were led up the stairs through a warren of dining rooms (the place is deceptively huge) to a spacious four-person table in the back. As we contemplated the drinks (a glass of prosecco for me, thanks!) and the menus, some bread arrived. We both chose a multigrain roll, and while it wasn't the best I've ever had, it was suitably chewy and tasty with the bubbly. Extra points for having whipped butter, although extra demerits for not having it room temperature. Blue Fin, you come out even on this course.

Lots of bread for two people

For an appetizer, Mom went with the Caesar salad, dressing on the side. She shoveled away at the ample portion of greens, draped gracefully with a blanket of shaved parmesan. Despite not finishing it (a good move, based on the amount of food coming her way), she definitely approved.

Some creative croutons in there

The entrees emerged next. Mom had gone with the sesame-crusted big eye tuna, with shiitake mushrooms, jasmine rice, carrots, snow peas, and ginger soy vinaigrette. Perhaps needless to say, my mom was in seventh heaven. She oohed and aahed over the veggies, particularly the mushrooms, as she took bites of the ruby-colored fish. Though Blue Fin isn't cheap, this portion was once again impressively large.

Well-composed

My choice was the warm goat cheese salad. Two discs of lightly fried goat cheese nestled against a pile of baby arugula hiding a bed of baby beets. The beets were cut in bite-size pieces and were perfectly sweet and tender. While I prefer my cheese un-fried, this fried crust wasn't overwhelming and separated easily from the creamy interiors of the cheese dollops. The surprise macadamia nuts on the side of the plate provided some extra flavor and crunch. Overall, delightful.

Beets are hidden, but they're there

After all that food, was there room for dessert? Of course there was. Mom went straight for the chocolate souffle cake, sans berry swirl ice cream. This was a decadent molten chocolate cake paired with a pile of stewed berries and a smear of berry sauce. A pretty fabulous pick for a chocolate lover.

Pretty!

I went for the ice cream/sorbet sampler, selecting coconut sorbet and creme fraiche and malt crunch ice cream. The two ice creams were superlative-- the creme fraiche creamy and lightly tangy, the malt crunch tasting like a Whopper in ice cream form-- but the sorbet disappointed. Rather than being creamy and strongly flavored, this coconut sorbet was icy and weak, which was too bad, since coconut can make absolutely heavenly sorbet when done right. No matter-- the two ice cream scoops saved the day, and the dessert was a winner.

Extra crunchy topping

We left full and happy, if a little lighter in the pocketbook. Our server let us linger after the check was paid, and by the time we emerged, the rain had stopped. A good omen? Perhaps; in any event, certainly a fitting capstone to a four Offset Spatula meal.

Blue Fin
1567 Broadway (at 47th Street)
212-918-1400