The Vanderbilt

Last week we have a mini restaurant week of our own when a friend came in to town, hungry to try some new cuisine. We will be welcoming him sometime this week as a guest blogger with his own spin on where we ate.

Issue: Which new restaurant in the area do we venture out to with a friend from out of town? Our friend has visited many times before and has kept himself advised of new movement in Brooklyn's restaurant scene from afar. Dinner on his first night had to be somewhere new and interesting.

Rule: It seems like new restaurant openings have slowed a bit in the last few months, but slow still means many new restaurants have opened during the winter. The Vanderbilt in Prospect Heights opened in the early winter of 2009 and boasted a nearly full bar area last Monday and about a half full back dining room.

Application: Whatever kinks may come with a new restaurant were not on display here. One of the most memorable highlights from this dinner (more on the delicious food later) was the amazing service. From the kind hostess who greeted us immediately, to the attentive waitress, to the quick food preparation and floating busboys and food runners, the service never missed a beat. Impeccable. At least three different people wished us well on the way out of dinner, always a good sign. Our waitress was attentive and available, but never cloying. All of meals came out in record time, and there was never a crumb on the table for more than three seconds. I really have to hand it to them.
The food was exceptional. The Michelin starred chef from Saul on Smith Street has created simple and delicious small plates. Our waiter recommended 2-3 plates a person, but that would be too much food. Instead, the three of us ordered one hors d'oeuvres, one charcuterie, two vegetable dishes, one duck dish and a delicious donut desserts.
The hors d'oeuvre and first item to arrive, in five minutes flat was roasted Brussels sprouts with sriracha, lime and honey. The sprouts were small and crispy with a sweet honey punch. In a word-yum. I tried to recreate it this weekend, but obviously couldn't reproduce, so I will have to go back. Again and again.
Next, we received the cauliflower soup which was mainly for me to enjoy on a rainy day. It was served with a caper-raisin puree that was unexpectedly wonderful. The soup had a thick consistency with actual crispy cauliflowers on the top. The caper-raisin puree added the salt and the sweet which is always a good combination.
While I was slurping up the soup we got the pork belly with lentils. I had high hopes, so I was little let down. Whenever I have pork belly now I think about the wonderful pork belly at Beer Table and nothing else has lived up to it. Vanderbilt's version had a crispy, sticky skin that got stuck in our teeth and not in a good way. (Is there a good way?)
We also got an artichoke dish which was wonderfully spiced and a hit with our artichoke-loving eater.
The duck confit special was the universal hit of the night. Served with a generous portion of spaetzle it was a lot of duck on a small plate. The duck was done perfectly moist and full of flavor. You can't really go wrong with duck confit, but we have all had it overcooked and bordering on dry. This was wonderful and every last bit of it was licked off the plate.
And finally, we got the delicious warm spiced donuts with pistachio ice cream for dessert. We were all stuffed from munching on the small plates, but I figured we could squeeze one more in. It was well worth it.

Conclusion: A wonderful entry into the new neighborhood places. During our mini-restaurant week we also went to Char 4, Buttermilk Channel, and Purple Yam and two of the best dishes of the entire week were the duck confit and the Brussels sprouts. That is saying an awful lot, as we ate like kings for a few days.