The Grill, New York City, 5/18/18

entrance
entrance

The Grill is in the Seagram Building in the space previously occupied by the Four Seasons Restaurant.  It is a large second floor room surrounded by windows covered with sheer curtains and beautiful wood walls.  The brown of the wood is matched by the carpet and reddish tinted brown upholstery of the seating.  Some of the seating is on low sofa like benches matched with comfortable chairs on the other side of the table.  Waitstaff are formally dressed and nicely spaced tables are draped with heavy white clothes.  It all contributes to an elegant clubby feel.  A beautiful display of fruits, flowers, cakes and vegetables covered a table at the entry.  The menu is not huge but does offer a couple special items at lunch, but otherwise offers many things that are available for dinner.  Everything is very high quality with a price to match.  Service was excellent, friendly and helpful.  It is worth a trip just to see the room but the food is also wonderful.  They offer an extensive selection of cocktails and do a good job with them.  

building
building
entry stairs and lobby
entry stairs and lobby
Frankie and fresh flowers
Frankie and fresh flowers
stairs
stairs to dining room
table at entry
table at entry
bar
bar
interior
interior
Frankie and some cakes
Frankie and some cakes
dining room
dining room
interior
interior
interior
interior
Frankie struck a pose
Frankie struck a pose
interior
interior
Frankie and the artichoke tree
Frankie and the artichoke tree
menu
menu

 

As we enjoyed a perfectly made Alaska they brought warm Parkerhouse rolls and chive butter.  A total yum.  The rolls were perfectly soft with just a touch of salt on the top and were great alone but the chive butter was strongly flavored and a treat in itself.  They offered a second one and I couldn’t refuse.

Frankie and an Alaska
Frankie and an Alaska
roll
roll
another angle
another angle
chive butter
chive butter
Frankie found a flower
Frankie found a flower

 

The Seagram Crab Cake was also a work of art.  Rounds of thin crispy potatoes topped the lovely sweet shreds of crab underneath.  All sitting on top of a creamy perfectly seasoned sauce.  The interior was mostly crab meat mixed with a few seasonings.  It was top quality but fairly mild on the flavor scale.

Crabcake
The Seagram Crab Cake
closer
closer
inside
inside
further inside
further inside
Frankie admired the embroidered napkins
Frankie admired the embroidered napkins
wine
wine

 

The Wild Mushroom Omelette was called a lunch specialty and I can see why.  When it arrives the aroma of the mushrooms and butter is heavenly.  It is truly packed with flavor.  The moist eggs are well seasoned  and the nice variety of mushrooms very savory.   We split this dish and it was plenty for a good taste for two.

Wild mushroom omelette
Wild Mushroom Omelette
closer
closer
Frankie inspected the knife for the next course
Frankie inspected the knife for the next course

 

We both ordered the Honey Mustard Duckling for a main course.  The waiter suggested the Nutted Wild Rice to go with it and that was good suggestion.  The duck was nicely rare and the sauce was sticky, well reduced and a lovely honey mustard flavor.  The fat layer on the underside of the duck skin was rendered to a small portion – just enough to keep the meat nicely moist.  The rice was seasoned with hazelnuts and cranberries and went great with the duck.  This was a simple dish but done extremely well.

duck
Honey Mustard Duckling
other side
from the end
closer
closer
closer
closer
Frankie checked out the set up
Frankie checked out the set up
wild rice
Nutted Wild Rice
closer
closer

 

For dessert we tried the lemon chiffon layer cake.  It was topped with lots of cream in a lovely design.  Moist and sweet it was a really good cake but overshadowed by the other dessert.

lemon layer cake
lemon layer cake
from the top
from the top
other side
other side
Frankie pointed out the hand towels
Frankie pointed out the hand towels
Interesting bathroom art
Interesting bathroom art

 

A pecan sticky bun was a buttery swirl of pastry topped with a sticky, sweet caramel sauce and served with a cream cheese ice cream.  The ice cream choice was a perfect accompaniment.  The bun was nicely crisp on the edges and very tender on the interior.  The nuts weren’t plentiful but the sauce made up for it.

sticky bun
Sticky Bun and Cream Cheese ice cream
closer
closer
Great waiter Ben Shapiro and Frankie
Great waiter Ben Shapiro and Frankie

 

It was divine and with a cup of cappuccino it was a perfect finish for a great meal.

cappuccino and Frankie
cappuccino and Frankie
to the pool room
to the pool room
Frankie loved the bathroom
Frankie loved the bathroom

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