New York City: Eleven Madison Park (October 2012)

My spouse and I dined at Eleven Madison Park (EMP) for dinner in mid-October 2012. We had tried several times previously to secure a reservation at EMP, calling at 9:00 am 28 days before we wished to dine, but we were never successful in doing anything more than adding our name to the waiting list. But in mid-September, in addition to telephoning at the appointed time, we also logged onto Open Table to attempt a reservation, and met with success! EMP serves lunch on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and dinner daily.

EMP serves only a multi-course tasting menu for $195 per person (previously, there were other less-elaborate and less-expensive menu choices and combinations). Most of the courses are blind (you have no choice); however, for four courses, you are presented with a menu with four columns, each with four rows of ingredients, and you are asked to make one selection from each row (for example, foie gras, lobster, potato, lettuce, beet, chestnut). EMP then incorporates that ingredient into your dish. We intentionally (although stupidly!) chose the least-expensive and least-interesting-sounding items, thinking that any great chef could make foie gras and lobster taste great, but that it would take a more adept and creative chef to elevate more simple ingredients such as lettuce and beets. (We followed a similar principle when we ordered one vegetable-based tasting at Per Se, and we were impressed beyond belief at how complex and interesting the mostly non-meat dishes were!) The dishes that we chose for ourselves at EMP were tasty, but we felt a little cheated (and mad at ourselves!) that we did not chose the more luxurious items. We will not go into detail about all the "standard" courses, because they may not be the same as when you dine there, and we also do not want to spoil the surprise on some of the more inventive and unforgettable courses (but our favorites involved sturgeon, carrot, cheese/beer, and dessert). Service was quite good, although not flawless.

The restaurant space at EMP is beautiful, housed in an old bank building, and features high ceilings and large windows. There is a bar area at EMP, so do not hesitate to arrive early for a drink and to soak up the atmosphere. It appeared that you could also order a limited menu at both the bar and at the bar tables, so if this restaurant is on your must-dine list and you have difficulty getting a reservation, at least you could eat and drink in the space and get a general idea of what EMP is all about.

We were celebrating both a birthday and an anniversary on the night that we dined, and there was a card on our table when we arrived, as well as personalized menus with a congratulatory message, and an extra treat to take home.

We would be happy to return to EMP again if the opportunity presented itself. However, we are also extremely excited to try chef Daniel Humm’s other restaurant, the NoMad.