The Gates

by Celia Sin-Tien Cheng
July 23, 2009

LOBSTER THERMIDOR GRILLED CHEESE
290 8th Ave
(24th & 25th St)
New York, NY 10010
212-206-8646

The Gates, one of the City’s latest nighttime hotspots, is a stunning bar/restaurant hidden beyond a pair of grand brass gates on the ground floor of a four-story building in Chelsea. The magnificent interior, created with art nouveau décor salvaged from the lobby and bar of the New York Biltmore Hotel, takes you back to another era to have drinks in style in a grand hotel.

To match its fabulously stylish setting, The Gates recently launched its food and cocktail menus from Chef Jesi Solomon and Mixologist Paolo Votano. Like the lavish venue, the menus are classy and playful. The foods, modern twists on classic dishes served in the form of shared finger foods, include mac and cheese lollipops, lobster Thermidor grilled cheese, bacon and oyster hush puppies, veal burger and BBQ pork belly pizza. With this menu, Chef Solomon proves himself inventive and precise at capturing flavors and reinterpreting their forms.

The mac and cheese lollipops are deep-fried cubes of mac (with a little cheese), accompanied by a champagne Gruyere fondue sauce — a clever way to make eating mac and cheese sophisticated and easy. The lobster Thermidor grilled cheese is a burst of rich creamy flavors in a mini sandwich. The succulent lobster is complemented by smoked cheddar and tarragon mayo, and the acidity of green apple cuts the richness. It blew me away. Another favorite was the truffled wild mushroom and goat cheese pizza; the truffle oil and rustic flavors of the mushrooms awakened my senses as the goat cheese melted in my mouth. Though the plates are all finger foods intended for sharing, the rich dishes are certainly enough to constitute a full meal.

The cocktails are also a lot of fun, with a list including Hot Mango (vodka, orange liquor and kumquats), Smash the Gates (bourbon, mint, lemon and ginger), and Marble Room (Patrón Reposado, elderflower liquor, grapes and champagne). But Hot Mango had no competition. Though not listed on the menu, there is Thai finger chili in the drink, and the heat from the red pepper greets you at the finish of each sip. It’s not overtly spicy; in fact, the mango is the dominant flavor, but the drink is somewhat flirtatious in that it knows when to be sweet and when to kick up the heat.

It’s refreshing to note that The Gates has it all: gorgeous décor and food and drink menus to match, that not only suit the mood, but are just downright delicious.

Also in American, Cheese, Chelsea, Lobster, Sandwich