NUELA
43 West 24th Street
New York, New York 10010
212-929-1200
Website: http://www.nuelany.com/
** Mike and I came here for Restaurant Week and as I looked over their normal a la carte menu online, it seems to me that they did not make any special dishes or didn't offer anything on the resto week menu that they don't offer on the regular menu, which I think is fantastic! I think the only difference between the regular and restaurant week menu is the serving size.
They serve this bread as a complimentary dish. I don't recall the name of it but I do remember that it was made of yucca flour (very unusual!), but it gave the rolls a completely different texture, fluffier, almost spongy, delicious! The sauce on the side is a marscarpone mix with what appears to be honey drizzled along the side of it. The rolls are delicious on their own or dipped in the mascarpone sauce, either way ... a perfect start!
WHAT WE ORDERED:
The Appetizers
Mike: Smoked Brisket Arepas
(sweet plaintains/black bean queso blanco)
What can I say, this dish was AMAZING!!! The plaintains sit at the bottom with the brisket in the middle (no skimpy portions here! There was a TON of meat on these bad boys!) and sprinkled with the queso blanco and scallions. The plaintains were just slightly sweet, the queso was mild and the brisket was perfectly cooked, not chewy, not too salty, slightly smokey and the slight kick from the scallions was like a combination of flavors in your mouth that left you salivating for more! I would order this for an entree if there were such a thing! After the yucca flour rolls and now the brisket arepas, we were off to a FANTASTIC start, I couldn't wait for the rest of our dinner! Did I mention presentation (not that I really need to, you all can see for yourselves) was phenomenal. Sometimes presentation can really either make you want to eat something or push it away (ha!). If you keep reading, there will be nothing you see that you will NOT want to eat. Trust me.
Sherry: Black Kale Salad
(fennel/lemon vinaigrette/soft egg/anchovy/crispy pork)
So the presentation of this looked amazing, I was told that I was to break the egg (it's cooked overeasy) and mix the whole thing together. Whoever made the salad was a little heavy-handed on the vinaigrette but I felt the mildness of the egg helped cut the vinaigrette. The kale wasn't mushy, it wasn't raw, it was just right. The anchovy was not the stinky type, I almost didn't notice them in there until Mike mentioned that it was supposed to have anchovy, ha! The crispy pork was chewy as you would expect it to be, but that added to the texture and fun aspect of this dish. I would say that this was my least favorite dish, however, it was very fun, the salad itself was very good, very fun but nothing phenomenal or to write home about. I would recommend trying other appetizers, I picked the salad because I was trying to keep the calorie count down, a mistake in retrospect, but no crying over spilled milk now right? The waitress did recommend the spicy tuna ... maybe i'll try that next time ...
The Main Entrees
Sherry: Peruvian Chicken
(Whole smokey chicken/french fries/huancaina sauce)
Clearly I didn't get a WHOLE chicken and thank goodness! LOL! I got a drumstick, wing and breast which was an excellent portion serving in my opinion. The yellow sauce on the bottom is the huancaina sauce which is a potato, cheese, garlic sauce. It was very mild and went very well with the chicken. The chicken was very good (very moist!), not overly salty but it didn't impress me as a rotisserie chicken very much. I guess after being a patron of Pio Pio peruvian chicken, I was expecting a very flavorful chicken, instead it was just mediocre, even Costco's rotisserie chicken has more flavor (in my opinion). The manager stopped by to tout the chicken and aji (the green sauce on the bottom left of the photo) sauce and how it was "the best!" I didn't want to insult him as we still had dessert coming and I didn't want to have any spit end up in anything we were eating. The Aji/green sauce was good, there was no kick to it at all, which is a SHAME. Pio Pio's and Sophie's Cuban Cuisine have hands down the best aji sauce I've ever had and unfortunately, this one at Nuela didn't hold a candle to either (sorry, just being honest). The french fries were probably the best part of the dish. I've never had fries made like that, but they were very fresh and very crispy! Yum! I think the dish as an overall was good, a solid pick, but in retrospect (it's always 20/20 you know?), I think I should have been more adventurous.
Mike: Arroz con Pato* (*extra $5 additional)(Crispy duck breast/confit thighs & gizzards/roasted foie gras/verde rice/soft duck egg)
Now, in regards to my last commentary to being more "adventurous" here is the definition as to why I felt that way. Mike ordered the arroz con pato and all i can say is, "wow". Everything in this dish jived together. Every piece of meat was moist and sooo very savory. The green rice, unusual, but so delicious and not overcooked, complimented the meat, the vegetables, the egg. There wasn't anything about this dish that was disappointing. It should be their signature dish. The portion was tremendous even though they dialed it down for restaurant week portions. I can't imagine what the regular portions of this dish is! I recommend that if you go to this restaurant that you do NOT leave the premises without ordering this dish! If you go, order it! Needless to say the additional $5 is well worth it.
The Dessert
Sherry (left): Chocolate (terrine/smoked banana/almond sorbet)Mike (right): Churros (sugar & cinnamon/chocolate sauce)
By this point, the 2 of us were pretty close to maximum stuffedness, ha! But when the dessert came out, the real question became "how can you say 'No'?". The smoked bananas were a little overpowering if you ate it alone, but if you cut it with the almond sorbet, it became a decadent treat. The terrine (dark chocolate bar) was smooth, not bitter at all. Many dark chocolates are bitter and as a result, I don't like them as much, but this was a creamy, mild dark chocolate that was just very, very nice to your taste buds, excellent! The churros (a very traditional latin dessert) did not disappoint either. The churros came out piping hot and it wasn't utterly doused in sugar & cinnamon as often many street churro vendors will do. It was lightly dusted with sugar & cinnamon which allowed for you to taste the natural mix of the sugar with the doughiness of the churro, wonderful. The icing on all of this was of course the chocolate sauce. Churro Fondue! The churro is great alone, but equally as delicious with the chocolate sauce. The desserts were a terrific ending to our delicious dinner. Thanks Nuela! =)
THE REVIEW:
I think I don't have to spend much time telling you how much I enjoyed the food, as I think I did that already, lol! I guess what I will say is that the ambiance and art in the space was well imagined and presented. It's also very romantic in the main dining room (there are 2 separate dining rooms), there is also a bar/lounge area which is more modern, it's a well designed space. The restrooms are awesome! They're all individual co-ed restrooms. The waitress was very attentive, sweet, knowledgeable, helpful and never ever let our water glasses go empty, ha! I know that seems so trite, but I think that's such an important part of "service". It's a basic! Anyways, I highly recommend this restaurant. If you are adventurous and want to have a great dining experience, I think this a great place to go. If you're on the fence, get off the fence and GO! You won't regret it! =)
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