Landmarc

Note: This is a review of Landmarc TriBeCa. Click here for a review of Landmarc at the Time-Warner Center.

Landmarc in TriBeCa was an instant hit when it opened almost three years ago. A second branch of the restaurant is expected to open in the Time-Warner Center early next year. I dined at Landmarc a few times within the restaurant’s first year or so (report here), but then it fell off of my radar screen. A dinner last Friday night reminded me that I ought to return to Landmarc a lot more often.

My mother and I had no trouble getting seated at around 6:30 p.m. I ordered the warm goat cheese profiteroles with herb and roasted red pepper salad ($11). Anything with goat cheese is well-nigh impossible to ruin. The doughy profiterole pillows yielded quickly to the fork, surrendering the juicy goat cheese prize inside.

My mom ordered the pan seared monkfish with tomatoes, red onions & black olives, and spaghetti squash ($22). This was a very large portion, perfectly prepared. I tried the pumpkin & gorgonzola risotto with sage and toasted walnuts ($22; also available as an appetizer for $15), which was competently prepared, but slightly too dry.

Landmarc has a strong bread service for a restaurant in its class, but like many casual places I’ve visited lately, there is no butter knife. In other respects the service is solid. When you are seated, the menu is already at the table, folded in sixths like a homework assignment. This is an affectation that should be dropped.

The wine program remains first-rate, with many excellent bottles in the $30–50 range. We had an excellent 2002 Crozes-Hermitage at $36, for which many restaurants would have charged over $50.

Landmarc (179 West Broadway between Leonard & Worth Streets, TriBeCa)

Food: **
Service: *½
Ambiance: *½
Overall: **