Dinner at The Vanderbilt

We took my Mom to The Vanderbilt (570 Vanderbilt Ave., at the corner of Bergen St., 718-623-0570) for Mother's Day. Having only been there for their opening party, I was interested to see how they had settled into themselves. I'm happy to report that everything was pretty much excellent, save for some slow-to-get-to-our-table food. Made up of mostly small plates, the menu veers from meats, to seafood to veggie-heavy dishes. I started out with one of the cocktails from their menu, the Tupelo Julep made with rye whiskey, cognac and apricot mint syrup. It came like a slushie with tons of shaved iced which melted over time into the drink. It was interesting, but my favorite is still the Glyda Rose (named after the proprietor's mom).



I started out with some Serano Ham Croquettes, five little fried balls of yumminess. Akin to a Rice Ball, these little guys were flavorful, full of small pieces of ham and topped with a dollop of remoulade.



I also ordered the Brandade du Morue, served with Piquillo peppers, olives & parsley. It's similar to Bacala, salted & cured cod, mashed up with the peppers & spices. It's a do-it-yourself dish where you make your own costini with the toasted pieces of bread. It's perfect for sharing, as it's actually a lot of the one taste to finish by yourself.



I also got an order of the Pork Belly from the Specials menu, served with Spring peas. Fatty, meaty, salty & wonderful. The peas lent a fresh, green flavor that brightened it up.



My boyfriend ordered the Hangar Steak which came with a spring vegetable fricasse. This sometimes comes out too tough and chewy, but this was tender, cooked perfectly to order and very flavorful.



We also got a couple of desserts that we shared. They're known for their freshly-made Warm Spiced Doughnuts that come with pistachio ice cream, brandied cherries & apricot orange blossom coulis. Served hot and covered with cinnamon & sugar. Yum!



We also got an order of the Chocolate Semifreddo that's served with dried cherries & crisp phyllo. This was OK. The chocolate semifreddo was good, but the crisp phyllo was almost like an afterthought, it didn't make much sense paired with the frozen chocolate.



I really like The Vanderbilt. It's a nice place with comfortable, aesthetically-pleasing decor and delicious foods.