If you are a fan of ABC Kitchen, then you must be familiar with this chef’s superb cuisine. I couldn’t wait to get to Loring Place to see what kind of menu he came up with. It did not disappoint on any level.
Who To Take: the person who loves abc kitchen or someone who can appreciate a heavy veggie offering on the menu
I don’t know how Chef Dan Kluger does it, but vegetables in his hands become absolutely delectable, almost magical. My friend Allison favors vegetable dishes and found so much to please her on the menu—I knew it was the right place to book for our dinner.
We started with a stimulating cocktail, called Ladies Mile—so festive in red—which was a mix of Prohibition and Triple 888 vodka, amaro montenegro, cranberry-rosemary shrub. Here’s what we had to eat: The Hummus and Radishes dish came loaded with extra chickpeas and was served with red wheat and sunflower seed crackers. (both seen in the photo at the top of this post)
The dish we oohed and ahed over was the Baked Ricotta and Roasted Kabocha, which takes the same flavors of the chef’s famous Kabocha toasts at ABC, and adds them to a hot, creamy dip served inside a cast iron pan with grilled sourdough bread for dipping. This is a MUST order.
For my entree, I got one of the specials of the day, the Whole Wheat Campanelle Pasta with Duck, knowing that I would be carb-free in the following weeks. This was the best, most hearty, comfort choice of the night.
Bob was in a creamy sort of mood, so tried the beautiful Ricotta Agnolotti in a sauce of meyer lemon butter with black truffles.
Allison, our veggie lover, went for the Grains Salad which arrived as an artistic mix of grains in a smoked chili aioli, with roasted winter vegetables and lemon.
For more veggie action on the side, we got the Crispy, Spiced Cauliflower whose flavors were enhanced by meyer lemon jam and chilies, and an order of Brussels Sprouts with apple, avocado and honey-mustard vinaigrette, to share.
The space is on the minimal end of the spectrum, and has a quiet feel to it, though, the room seemed to be buzzing with excitement over the food. Plan ahead and go.
Loring Place, 21 w 8th St (btw 5th Ave/Macdougal St)
