Compass

Note: Compass closed in August 2011 to make way for a Greek restaurant, Loi, the brainchild of cookbook author Maria Loi, which is expected to open in the fall.

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A friend and I visited Compass last night (previous reviews here). I believe this was the first time I’ve been seated in a booth. The upholstery is ultra-plush, and I practically disappeared into it.

The $35 prix fixe is one of the better deals in town. The amuse bouche was a small soup. A basket of several kinds of bread rolls arrived, and I could very well have spoiled dinner by eating too many of them. The appetizer was a Butternut Squash Velouté with brown butter. After it arrived, a server sprinkled a pixie dust of pumpernickel, apples and parsnips into the soup. Up next was the Pistachio-crusted duck, with roasted endive and carrot emulsion. Both first-rate. The dessert (yogurt panna cotta) was unmemorable. As always, there were petits-fours after dinner and a small coffee cake to take home.

They recommend wines by the glass to go with each course—perfectly respectable choices, varying from $9–14 per glass. We’d already had a good deal to drink before dinner, so we just had one glass with the main course. The menu on the website is up-to-date. It’s very much as I’ve described it in the past, although I see the porterhouse steak is no longer on offer.

Compass (208 W 70th St., West of Amsterdam Avenue, Upper West Side)

Food: **
Service: **
Ambiance: **
Overall: **