Commerce

Let me start with a little rant on Opentable… I think it’s a great new addition to the restaurant scene, especially since I just got my first $20 check in the mail! However, I also feel like it is some sort of a scam. When the restaurant called to confirm our reservation the day before for 8:30 on a Thursday night, there was an excess of tables available around that same time. Yet, when we walked into the restaurant it was unbelievably packed.

The restaurant, which looks like a glorified diner, is super loud with an overly crowded bar area. I was hit multiple times with people going back and forth in the walkway between the bar and the tables. Although, it looked like people were not going to be seated with their reservations (the dreaded overbooked or ghost reservation), we were sat within 20 minutes of us all getting there, which is decent in NYC.

On to the important stuff… I have been to Commerce three times now (which I guess says a lot for it). The first time was almost a year ago to the date. I think it was too early to tell then if the place was going to make it past the hubub and into small group of stable west village eateries. The best thing that came out of that meal was the Oysters in Champagne. I know, sounds uber weird, but really, it was amazing. I love to pick the most random looking thing on the menu and give it a go. It really tends to show off the chefs creative prowess. This time, I went for the Grilled White tuna as an appetizer and the Mushroom ravioli appetizer as my meal (ok, so I don’t pick the weird things every time…). One of the great things about Commerce is that they have twice as many appetizers than entrees. I love that. For some reason I just find appetizers much more…well…appetizing. Because I’m a little aloof, when the tuna came grilled I was taken aback. 100% my fault. I thought I was ordering sashimi. The menu was completely obvious (as in it said grilled and I just completely overlooked that fact). Even with the little surprise, I was happy. The Mushroom and Fontina Ravioli w/ sunchoke puree & parmesan emulsion was great. Two words, truffle oil. Considering that truffle oil is a delicacy (?) of sorts, Commerce uses it very liberally in this dish. It was so strong that the entire group smelled it when my plate came to the table. It smelled like a little piece of heaven. Oh yeah, and the Salad of 20 Herbs and Lettuces with manchego cheese, olive oil and lemon isn’t half-bad either.

It’s a good restaurant on a very secluded west village street. Not a special occasion place, but good for a random night outing.

Late Addition: If you care about this stuff, I was just reading the bio of chef Harold Moore. He has been an apprentice to some of the most noted chef's in the city.