Fava Bean Salad

by Celia Sin-Tien Cheng
June 16, 2006

CRAFTSTEAK
85 10th Ave
@ 15th St
New York, NY 10011
212-400-6699

After my meal at Craftsteak, I felt like I got clubbed over the head and robbed, only in this case, I saw it coming and literally asked for it. You may think that my words are harsh. True, the food was not bad, and you could even say above average, but the quality-price ratio here is grossly out of whack, to the point of being offensive to me. The food was lack-luster while the bill was impressive — am I missing something?

Craftsteak is the latest addition to the Manhattan-Vegas strip on 10th Avenue — an extension of the Meat Packing district, supersized and Vegasfied. A tour of the latest “hot-spots,” including Craftsteak, Del Posto, Morimoto and Buddakan (one block away on 9th Avenue), is sure to have you wondering, “Where the hell am I, and where can I place my bets?” Not that I have anything against Vegas, and undoubtedly there’s a lot of good food in that city, but I prefer the motto “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”

The irony, of course, is that the original Craftsteak is in Las Vegas, and Tom Colicchio is just bringing home an offshoot of his Vegas steakhouse. So it actually couldn’t be more appropriately situated in NoMP (North of Meat Packing), SoWC (South of West Chelsea) or Meat Vegas, whatever you want to call it.

This has got to be the epitome of the BBD — celebrity chefs cashing in on their names and creating theme park restaurants large enough to house elephants and giraffes. There is no sense of personal attention or personality, and these restaurants don’t attract a clientele that is looking for the personal touch. Let’s not even get into the types of personalities you’ll find dining at these places. Sadly, Craftsteak is like the anti-Gramercy Tavern for all the reasons stated above. This brings to mind Mark Bittman’s recent article in the New York Times Magazine, Dining by Satellite. Another one bites the dust! Sigh…

Let’s talk food for a sec. The salads were extremely nice and actually what I enjoyed the most. The baby artichoke was so soft and tender it almost melted in my mouth, and the fava bean salad with crushed hazelnuts was delightful. I’m beginning to think that there’s nothing better than super fresh beans or peas when they’re in season, and the hazelnuts were so finely crushed that the crunchy texture was refined yet offset well the smoothness of the beans. The two ingredients were definitely opposites but a nicely-matched pair.

The Wagyu beef tartar was terribly disappointing, especially when I compare it to the Carne Cruda at A Voce, which also uses Wagyu. At Craftsteak, after mixing in the quail egg with the tartar, I was so excited and couldn’t wait to dig in. A couple of bites later, I stopped because I found the tartar to be unmemorable, even while I was eating it.

For main, I ordered the 8 oz. flat iron, grade six Snake River Farm Wagyu beef. I wanted something small, but also, this cut of meat sounded interesting to me. The flat iron is a cut from the shoulder, so it’s relatively flat and the meat is tougher. But because it’s Wagyu, the beef is more tender than usual shoulder cuts (since the meat is evenly marbled with fat throughout). My medium rare flat iron arrived and tasted exactly as it was described to me. As I bit into the steak, I had doubts about my selection, as it was tough on the first bite. But the meat inside was extremely delicate and juicy. As I plunged deeper into my steak, I was really starting to like this contrast of tough and smooth textures. My friends shared with me pieces of their corn-fed Black Angus beef filet mignon and the Wagyu New York Strip, but upon the taste test, I surprisingly had become rather attached to my own choice.

The side dishes were traditional Craft-style, high quality but not eye opening. The Yukon gold purée is an excellent choice as accompaniment to the steaks, and the morel, baby zucchini and summer truffle risotto was pretty tasty. Strangely, the butter braised morels were a disaster. This dish tasted like a mistake — morels wasting away, soaking in watered-down butter. Yuck!

No dessert and a couple of glasses of wine, and it’s already at a little under $200 per person. As my friend Eugenia said, I could have had a nice lunch at Per Se.

The bottom line? Bigger is not better. At this price level, I expect the food to have soul. I expect to remember intricate and amazing details about the dishes and the experience. I am not expecting to feel like I was just robbed in Las Vegas.

Also in American, Meat Packing District, Salad, Steak