Sunday, October 28, 2007

Packing in some meat in the Meat Packing district

Another J has also jetted in today to join the party and after a spot of shopping (well it seems almost rude not to) she is meeting DD and I in the Hudson bar for a pre-show cocktail before leaping into a yellow cab and heading for the meat packing district.

The Hudson is certainly a happening place (though DD will vouch that it stays happening and banging way later than a jetlagged person should have to endure!) and we enjoy a cocktail under the “toddlers let loose with a box of wax crayons and a gallon of Sunny Delight” ceiling.

Our trusty concierge has suggested Florent for us tonight; I mentioned something about the meat packing district and something authentic and a 24 hour French roadside caff often hailed as a New York institution is recommended. And he is so right, it’s just what we needed, some uncomplicated yet hearty French bistro food in a real, totally unpretentious New York establishment.

The signs are made out of those white letters you might have seen on a board outside the local Odeon proclaiming the latest Hollywood blockbuster and the tables are Formica. One wall is draped incongruously in silver foil strands possibly left over from a party or just to hide the less than perfect walls, and the lights are dim enough (hence the alarming 70's style sepia photos) not to alarm a wee small hours of the morning reveller who has stopped by for a restorative tureen of onion soup crowned with a Gruyère topped crouton.

I start with a little pork liver pâté with green peppercorns, I had hoped for the duck mousse pâté but they’d run out. I normally like my pâté less coarse and more of a parfait but the pork liver pâté had a feisty taste.

Then we all realised that being in the meat packing district we really should have steak frites – a grilled New York sirloin with all the trimmings even though the mac & cheese, chicken and salmon looked pretty good also.

And for a dessert a few spoons of a mousse au chocolat to complete our fine French bistro fare, we could be in a little starkly light and plastic flower adorned café that litter the French countryside but no we’re in New York. A meat-packing fork for Florent, I feel they may feel it would be deemed pompous to have any more.

Obviously a world away from Café Gray last night but that’s what I like about dining out in New York, the multitude of choices and one can't always fine dine - well not always!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

So glad you found Florent! It's been one of my favorites ever since I moved here... good lord, that's ten years now! I love going there in the wee hours of the morning after a long night of (we don't need to specify activities, do we?)...

We ALWAYS order the french onion soup and the steak frites.

Anonymous said...

The food at Florent was FAB!

We had a fun night here... Nothin' like a good bit of meat in the meatpackers district!

DDx