RESTAURANT REVIEW: Camaraderie
This new-ish neighborhood restaurant in the Heights came highly recommended by both my favorite food critic and some friends, so I was quite excited to check it out to kick off the holiday weekend. The interesting concept offers both a fairly reasonably-priced ($75) prix-fixe menu, or a la carte choices in the bar/patio area. We sat on the set menu side of the airy dining room which transitioned into an open kitchen, something I always enjoy.
On the drink menu were regular, mini, and sharable cocktails, which was a lot of fun. The standout for me was the Trial By Fire: a mezcal-based beverage, whose smokiness was nicely paired with sweetness from pineau des charentes, a French fortified wine/cognac aperitif.
First to come out was an amuse-bouche carrot gummy, the French name of which I embarrassingly can't figure out how to spell (pas de quois??).
Next came four small plates, all included in the prix-fixe menu and served family style. The highlight of the evening was the first one, a beautifully plated square of chopped celeriac, atop which sat a healthy layer of chili crisp and a lattice of thinly sliced apple. As delicious as it was gorgeous, the saltiness of the celery root blended harmoniously with the tartness of the apples and the heat from the chili oil. Quite the achievement!
Other small plates included an unremarkable, lightly-dressed salad with radishes and ricotta salata, gnocchi with morels and asparagus, and a "doppio" pasta which paired a green pea riviolo next to a far superior corn and fontina bite. The obsessive-compulsive in me cringed at the slight disruption to the almost-perfect pattern that the green and yellow ravioli were plated in. I did lament not getting to try the Dauphiné-style ravioli on a previous iteration of the menu.
There were four entrees to select from, and we opted to share the flounder en croûte for two, which I think was definitely the superior choice. The chef presented the whole filet in its pastry crust at the table before slicing it and plating it with a lovely sauce américaine. It's been awhile since I've had fish prepared in this style, and I must say I am a huge fan. Cooked perfectly, the flaky crispy crust made for a wonderful bite with the soft fish and buttery sauce.
Others at our table tried the salmon with crispy potato and beurre blanc, and the veal osso buco, which was presented in a truly unusual (in a good way!) manner: a mound of meat was painstakingly wrapped (mummified?) with bucatini all the way to the top. I was able to steal a bite of this, and it tasted delicious, though I still find myself wondering how long it must take to prepare each order.
For dessert there were two choices: a too-tart frozen yogurt with some stone fruit and EVOO, and the much better "milk & honey", which was a honey gelato with candied almond and a slab of meringue on top. They also offered mini after-dinner cocktails, the best of which included Jägermeister and clarified root beer float. This was quite the fun way to end a great meal.
I'm not sure how often I'll be back until the menu changes, since we got to try nearly everything, but I'll definitely recommend it to someone looking for an interesting fine-dining adjacent menu in a relatively casual atmosphere.
