David Burke Kitchen

i've had the pleasure (i use this term loosely) of dining at David Burke Kitchen twice: once for Summer Restaurant Week and once for brunch. 

for those that are wondering whether to go to David Burke Kitchen for RW, i'll cut to the chase: it's not bad and you leave feeling full, BUT the experience is food is "meh." so if you were hoping for some mind-blowing experience, DBK will probably leave you disappointed.

ironically, i went to David Burke Kitchen with GI during the summer of 2012. however, our experience is still pretty relevant since the menu options haven't changed too much. when we arrived, we found the restaurant packed which meant we were seated dangerously close to our neighbors (so much so that our neighbor commented to us when our entrees arrived).  also, due to the high ceilings, get ready for a high noise level, although not as bad as Delmonico's Kitchen.

for appetizers, GI and i split the Tuna Tartare Tacos and Lobster Dumpling Soup with Coconut Fennel Creme and Red Watercress. i noticed the current RW offering doesn't have either of these on the menu although there are variations of both (Canal Street Lobster Dumpling Soup and Tuna Sashimi). the soup was the clear winner of our orders. it was beautifully presented, with the bowl placed on the table with the dumplings nestled inside it then the soup poured from a pitcher table side. the flavor was delicate and pleasant, which is what you really want an starter for a 3-course meal to be.  the tacos on the other hand were simply tartare inside a crispy taco shell. no surprises there.

for entrees, GI ordered the Pork Chop with Cumin Bacon, Mango Chutney, Parsley Onion Rings. if you decide to get this, be prepared because this thing is a monster. DBK definitely does not skimp out on portions just because it's Restaurant Week. the mango chutney was refreshingly sweet to counteract the savory pork chop.  however, the pork chop was a little dry, and to battle through such a large dry piece of meat isn't fun. 

i ordered the Short Rib and Cavatelli with Wild Mushrooms and Truffle Cream. again, this is a hunking piece of meat atop a generous serving of pasta. the truffle cream is a cool dollop served atop the dish, which is thoughtful, but i barely tasted any truffle flavor and unfortunately the temperature of my dish was not hot, and the addition of the cool cream didn't do the temperature any favors.  flavor-wise, while this dish was pleasant to eat, it wasn't memorable and there was no impact to it's generic flavor profile.

for dessert, i opted for the Red Velvet Cake in a Jar. this was exquisite. not too sweet, the cake was airy as was the whipped cream layers. a nice end to the meal. the Chocolate Cream Cheese Bar with Hazelnut Whipped Cream was what you would expect of a chocolate dessert, although not too sweet.  btw, if you do decide to go to DBK for RW dinner, definitely get the molten carrot cake. that is to die for delicious. 

so there were highs and lows to our RW dinner. and while the highs were good, i'm not sure it was come-back-again good. 

but then i found myself at DBK again due to a Groupon brunch purchase Sully made. 

walking into DBK during the day was a whole different experience.  although this restaurant is downstairs, there was plenty of natural light and the blue-checkered table clothes gave it a quaint feel. 

due to the Groupon we were confined to a prix-fixe menu. shortly after we arrived, the restaurant was packed with people waiting at the door. our waiter service suffered because of it with a long time before receiving the coffees we ordered or giving our brunch orders or receiving our first course. 

for the starter we both ordered the Yogurt Parfait (our other option being oatmeal). this took forever to come out. and when it did, while the fresh fruit was nice as was the tiny little jar they served it it, the yogurt wasn't particularly cold and it was mighty tart without any fruit to cut it.

for mains, i ordered the Kitchen Eggs Benedict. the twist is that this is served on Crispy Italian Sausage Polenta. this was a good rendition, but nothing special. basically it tasted good and filled me up.

although i was pretty well-fed at this point, since our Groupon included dessert, we ordered the Himalayan Rock Salt Sundae with Milk Chocolate Malt Ice Cream and the above-mentioned Molten Carrot Cake with warm vanilla bean-cream cheese center, cinnamon walnut ice cream. the sundae was way too sweet although when they serve you they do this cool thing where they take out the himalayan rock salt and drip warm caramel off of it onto the sundae table-side. the carrot cake on the other hand was perfect with the cake being not too sweet, then revealing the warm cream cheese center.  the accoutrements help to mellow the dessert out so it's not too sweet, simply comforting.