Alder - Closed August 2015

When you canvass opinions about restaurants to visit in New York it’s inevitable that WD-50 will come up in the conversation. Wylie Dufresne worked for Jean Georges Vongerichten before setting out on his own and since its opening in 2003 WD-50 has been known for cutting edge food using advanced techniques in the kitchen to produce dishes with distinctive flavour combinations. That said, it has not been to everyone’s taste and I’ve heard distinctly mixed verdicts on WD-50 with people whose taste I trust particularly unimpressed with their experience. But obviously I’d want to judge Wylie Dufresne’s food for myself. More recently, though, WD-50 has moved to a model of only providing two tasting menus so having a different way to sample his “marmite” food would be a good thing.

Fortunately, there were plans afoot in Mr. Dufresne’s camp that coincided with my New York visit. Alder, his second restaurant opened in late April in east Greenwich Village. The pub-like restaurant with 56 settings is informal and the menu is focused on small plates that hark back to classic WD-50 dishes. The restaurant takes no bookings so having decided that this was somewhere I wanted to try I met with @mel_huang and we headed there early on a Sunday night to make sure we got a table. As it turned out that was unnecessary because it didn’t get full all night. Wylie Dufresne was in the kitchen so he is taking a hands-on approach here to ensure Alder’s success

The wait staff advised ordering about three plates for a good meal and being keen to try as much as possible we went for three dishes each with strict instructions to share. That was definitely easier with some dishes than others. The menu, although brief, makes a very interesting read so it was difficult to narrow down our choices. Drinks were easier. By focusing on the in-house developed cocktails, we got to sample another aspect of the Dufresne approach. One major thing I liked about Alder’s approach was that although the menu is based on small plates they were not delivered to the table willy-nilly but they waited for each course to be finished before the next pair of dishes were delivered.

First drink was the Hey Rube, possibly the most conventional of the cocktails combining Pimm’s No. 1, gin and rhubarb with ice and a massive slice of cucumber. Despite the slightly disconcerting enamel beaker, this was a lovely refreshing cocktail and one I’d happily order any time.

Moving to food, a dish of chopped pickled vegetables, chilli and extra virgin olive oil were provided as a condiment before anything we’d ordered. I totally loved the pickles and dipped into them frequently throughout the meal. The first dishes to arrive were the pigs in blankets and Caesar nigiri. The Brit in me couldn’t resist a take on a sausage roll and the pigs in blankets used Chinese sausage within a thin crispy wrap and were a solid start to the meal. Not startlingly innovative but a very pleasant snack particularly when dipped in the subtly burning Japanese mustard or the sweet chilli sauce. The Caesar nigiri was the most divisive dish of the night. I loved it, Mel not so much. A piece of romaine leaf underpinned a thin slice of hamachi with Caesar dressing with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and finely chopped chives on top. Best approach – grab one of those nicely sized portions and place it all in your mouth at once and my take was that you end up with a lovely savoury and refreshing mouthful. I’d happily eat either of these appetisers but really want to try the nigiri again.

Cocktail for the second round of dishes was the shamrock amigo with Irish whiskey, Mexican fernet and a Guinness head. This was another good drink with the smooth Guinness rounding off any rough edges making the whole drink a very comforting experience. 

Next up were the fried cauliflower and the salmon tartare. The fried cauliflower with lemon almond purée, lardo and cocoa nibs was lovely, a full head of cauliflower with good flavour from the lardo and a nice crunch. The purée combined very nicely and helped lighten the whole dish. The salmon tartare described as coming with avocado, horseradish cream and risotto was impressive on the plate, coming wrapped in avocado with a rough quenelle of horseradish cream and parmesan wafers. We weren’t sure that the balance between the amount of tartare and avocado was right but the tartare itself was a piquant delight. The thin parmesan wafer was a delicious accompaniment and would list this as another dish I’d happily eat again.

Final round of dishes, final round of drinks and my choice this time was the Applethy combining vodka, horseradish and green apple. This was a pleasant if not particularly memorable drink.

The main courses were the highlights of the night. The rye pasta with shaved pastrami was top notch playing on the classic Reuben combination. Caraway is not a flavour I’m keen on but it worked perfectly here being incorporated into the pasta where the starch toned down its flavour. Thinly sliced pastrami at the base of the bowl underpinned the pasta to round out the Reuben flavour.  Superb. Even better was the fried quail with banana curry, Chinese broccoli and pickled turmeric. This was my personal favourite of the night. Lightly breaded quail cooked rare was served on a bed of banana with curry leaves and the combination was excellent.  It’s disconcerting to visit a “cutting edge” restaurant and find it endorses your parents’ habit in the 70s of adding banana slices to the edge of a plate of curry to help balance the spice. That aside it was a lovely dish.

When it came to desserts, the options were limited and those options didn’t look very interesting so we passed on them.

I thoroughly enjoyed the evening at Alder and would happily go back again. It was a shame to see that the restaurant didn’t fill up over the course of the evening. I’d hope that this was an isolated case and it continues to thrive. The food ranged from good to excellent and as a curtain raiser for Wylie Dufresne’s food it certainly helps persuade you to give WD-50 a go.

Overall Rating - 4/5