Asparagus Home Fries

by Celia Sin-Tien Cheng
July 11, 2006

LITTLE OWL
90 Bedford St
@ Grove St
New York, NY 10014
212-741-4695

Little Owl is the charming new restaurant in the West Village helmed by chef Joey Campanaro, who was formerly at The Harrison and Pace. The menu is American and, while rather conventional and simple, the food is good. The restaurant is so appropriately named, as it’s small and unassuming but is a force on its own.

The appetizers I shared with a friend were good but not memorable. We started with a bibb salad and crispy soft shell crab. But the roasted halibut with lemon crème fraîche for main was delicious. The fava-green mashed potatoes that accompanied were out of this world and paired well with the fish.

For sides, the butter beans and escarole with smoked ham hocks sounded good, but the proportion of beans to escarole was too lopsided. The asparagus home fries were the surprise of the evening. Both my companion and I thought we’d be getting a variation of home fries made from asparagus, but this side is actually asparagus with home fries. The potatoes and asparagus are cooked to a crisp, and pieces of mushroom enhance the flavor, creating the perfect hash. I love potatoes and I wouldn’t mind just having this home fries dish with some wine at the bar.

Little Owl’s space is crammed and it’s extremely loud. This is rather odd because, given the restaurant’s location and décor, it should have a very quaint and neighborhood feel. But perhaps because of the noise level and the proximity to which you have to sit next to your neighbor, it’s not the most comfortable restaurant. It’s relatively new so the service is still a little shaky, although it’s not from lack of trying. Everyone who works there is sincere, but the restaurant still needs to figure out its rhythm as well as how to move within that small and jam-packed space. Still, it’s definitely a nice little addition on the map, and I would go back for more.

Also in American, Potato, Vegetables, West Village