Lafayette (Part 2: The restaurant)

Lafayette just opened on April 15th, and I couldn't wait to come try it because it's owned by the same people who opened one of my favorite restaurants, Locanda Verde. Earlier this week, I posted about the bakery inside Lafayette--you can read the post here. This post will be about the actual meal.

For an appetizer, we got foie gras--fatty goose liver. Foie gras became illegal last year in California, because in order to get the geese to gain sufficient weight, farmers will force feed them by sticking a tube down their throats. It's a disgusting practice, but it's also delicious. The way you're supposed to eat this is you spread it over bread (or, if you're greedy like me, you'll eat it with a fork). For those of you who have never tried it, you're missing out. It tastes like salty butter, but better because it's creamier. The bread that comes with this dish, too, is really good. It's warm, buttered brioche that's chewy and light.

Our second appetizer was eggs Lafayette with smoked fish and caviar. It was just okay for me; the eggs were ice cold, which dulled a lot of the flavor. The smoked fish was also made into a mousse-type consistency, which I'm not really into. It's just seems a little dated for me.

My entree was duck au poivre ("with pepper"), with organic grains (mostly barley, among others), radish, and bacon. Although I requested my duck medium, it was a little less done than that, but it was nevertheless delicious. So tender and juicy, and slightly fatty. I thought that it was such a tease, cutting the radish to look like scallops (I'd forgotten that the dish came with radish, and got really excited when the dish came). I'm not sure if the dish really needed the radish, but it was still really good, especially with the bacon on top.

For dessert, I got beignets--basically donuts--which came with a chocolate mousse/cream and passion fruit syrup. These were quite nice, although it's large, large portion, but that just means you're getting your money's worth.

Overall, I was very pleased with Lafayette, both the restaurant and the bakery. I really want to come back for brunch or lunch, because they have a bunch of entrees that look really good. So far, I recommend the duck and the foie gras. Even though they're a little pricey ($29 for the duck, $20 for the foie gras) they are well worth the money--just share the foie gras with someone, and make sure to take a lot of it.

Lafayette

380 Lafayette St., at Great Jones St.

http://lafayetteny.com/