WD-50

I haven’t had the best luck with restaurant visits on holidays, such as New Year’s Eve. Restaurants tend to simplify and reduce the scope of their menus, while charging more—in some cases a ton more—than they normally would. Our dinner last year at Picholine was a particularly egregious example of this: $800 for two, for a menu that wasn’t worth half that.

Perhaps the common-sense solution this year would have been to stay home, and save the blow-out meal for another evening. But I reasoned there must be a New Year’s Eve dinner in New York that isn’t a rip-off, and I was determined to find it. At WD-50, we hit pay dirt. It was my first holiday meal at a fine dining restaurant that was worth every penny. I reasoned that the eccentric avant-garde chef Wylie Dufresne wouldn’t suddenly start serving airline food just because he has a captive holiday audience. Dufresne did not disappoint.

At WD-50, the nine-course tasting menu normally sells for $105 [since increased to $125]. I don’t mind a reasonable premium, and the cost on New Year’s Eve was $145. That included a champagne toast, and a free disposable camera and party favors on every table, so the price was fairly close to what you’d pay anyway. The optional wine pairings were $85, again a reasonable cost for 9 half-glasses apiece.

This was the menu, with wine pairings shown in italics:

Crispy carmelized cauliflower, bone marrow, wild American caviar
Cava, Avinyo Brut, NV (Penedes, Spain)

Oyster, salsify, fried lentils, kimchee puree
Cava, Avinyo Brut, NV (Penedes, Spain)

Foie gras in the round
Viognier “Sanford and Benedict” Cold Heaven 2005 (Santa Barbara, CA)

Smoked eel, blood orange “zest,” black radish, chicken skin
Pouilly-Fuisse “La Croix” VV Robert-Denogent 2004 (Burgundy, France)

Melted cheddar, black truffle, crispy potato, powdered toast
Pink Wine Pax 2005 (Sonoma, CA)

Mediterranean bass, edamame-rye bread, chive mashed
Valpolicella Classico Superiore TB Bussola 2003 (Veneto, Italy)

Lamb loin, cucumber, pickled tongue, spicy pear, sorrel
Shiraz “Lloyd Reserve” Coriale Vinyards 2001 (McLaren Vale, South Australia)

Banana puree, hazelnut, coffee, parsnip
Commanderia St. John NV (Lemesos, Cyprus)

“Creamsicle,” rooibos, squash, orange blossom
Commanderia St. John NV (Lemesos, Cyprus)

Mango jelly-mastic; Milk chocolate-menthol

Champagne toast
Guy Charlemagne Rose Brut NV (Champagne, France)

Many of the dishes are really indescribable. Dufresne and pastry chef Alex Stupak create combinations of ingredients that you’d never imagine together. How, for instance, does one think of smoked eel, blood orange, black radish, and chicken skin? Just to ask the question is to realize how bizarre it is. And how successful. My friend, who said she normally hates eel, loved this dish.

“Foie gras in the round” was another really odd concoction. Somehow, Dufresne managed to produce little pellets of foie gras, each about half the size of a small pea. Incredulous, we asked the server how it was done. He replied that it’s a trade secret, but it involves liquefying foie gras and combining it with another liquid, an explanation that only adds to the mystery.

Each dish is rather small, and sometimes an ingredient is just a dash of crumbs, such as the powdered toast that came with the melted cheddar, or the light dusting of ground coffee that came with the banana puree. Dufresne’s gimmickry does not stand in the way of good solid cooking. The Mediterranean bass was impeccably prepared, as was the lamb loin.

With so many wacky experiments on the menu, not all could be hits. The gooey oyster (our second course) was dull and not very appetizing. But that was really the only course that I could have done without.

The restaurant was full, and service was a bit variable. Several times we were served food before the associated wine pairing arrived. When I asked our server to slow down the parade of courses, he replied, “Sorry, I don’t control the kitchen.” Our reservation was at 9:00, and we didn’t leave till past midnight, so I wouldn’t say we were pushed out the door. Still, it wasn’t an acceptable answer at a restaurant of WD-50’s calibre.

WD-50 is one of the more casual fine-dining restaurants in town, although on the Lower East Side it’s hard to imagine anything more formal. There were guests in sport coats and fancy dresses, and there were guests in t-shirts and jeans. Most were on the young side, although one table was taken by two older ladies.

In 2003, William Grimes of the Times awarded two stars to WD-50, noting Dufresne’s undeniable talent, but also that “diners are more likely to respond with respect than love.” Three years into the experiment, Dufresne is as sure of his palate as an adoring public is sure of him. This was my second visit to WD-50, so I’m fairly confident that this New Year’s Eve performance was no fluke. WD-50 isn’t for everyone, but for those open-minded souls willing to to think broadly, it’s as good a restaurant as there is.

[Update: In March 2007, Frank Bruni of The Times upgraded WD-50 to three stars.]

WD-50 (50 Clinton Street between Stanton and Rivington Streets, Lower East Side)

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

Comments

[BB Le Ne]

WD-50? The "emporer's new clothes" of restaurants! I'm a size 2 and no glutton, but when a restaurant serves up anorectic-sized portions at prices like Dufresne's,its offensive. I ordered a portion of lasagne as a main course. It came to the table in a morsel that was so small that I told the waiter that it was unaccecptable and he'd have to take it back, since it reflected a profound disrespect on the part of the chef for his clientele. The waiter came back with another portion about one centimeter bigger and it was on the house. This was vegetarian lasagne so I was stunned at the greed factor. After reading the menu for the New Year's Eve dinner at this restaurant, I can see that nothing has changed since my visit about two years ago. Guess he's found a bunch of "stockbrokers in love" who don't mind paying big bucks, while Wily(sic) is the one having all the yuks.

[BB Le Ne]

WD-50? The "emporer's new clothes" of restaurants! I'm a size 2 and no glutton, but when a restaurant serves up anorectic-sized portions at prices like Dufresne's, you expect a bit of food on the plate. I ordered a portion of lasagne as a main course. It came to the table in a morsel that was so small that I told the waiter that it was unaccecptable and he'd have to take it back, since it reflected a profound disrespect on the part of the chef for his clientele. The waiter came back with another portion about one centimeter bigger and said it wouldn't be put on the check. This was vegetarian lasagne so I was stunned at the greed factor. After reading the menu for the New Year's Eve dinner at this restaurant, I can see that nothing has changed since my visi about two years ago. Guess he's found a bunch of "stockbrokers in love" who don't mind paying big bucks, while "Wily" gets all the big yuks.

[Marc Shepherd]

I have heard other comments about miniscule portions on the à la carte menu at WD-50. My report, however, was about a tasting menu. When you're having nine courses, you expect them to be small. The portion sizes were comparable to other long tasting menus I've had, and we left the restaurant plenty full. I think I've ordered enough tasting menus to be able to make fair comparisons, and I can say WD-50 gave us our money's worth.

[FrostFire213]

Even if the food occaisionally shows some cooking ability, it still doesnt change tha fact that WD-50 is about weird, not well executed. I don't care what items are paired, or how odd it is- asl long as it makes good sense to do so. Wily Dufrense is no talent... He is pairing the unthinkable for the sake of being different, at all costs. It is a pathetic plea for individuality, and if the diner realizes a dish is no good, then the response is demeaning: "your food knowledge is too limited for you to appreciate this. Our chef is ahead of your palate" e.g. "You don't enjoy the food because you are a tasteless moron." Let's face it, the only thing tasteless is the food at WD-50... and the only moron is Dufrense, or anyone who works for him. Does this mean that if I open a restaurant tomorrow, and I make a dish of Jelly bean crusted pig testicles with wet coffee grinds, eggshells and hot sauerkraut juice, that I will be hailed as a "revolutionary chef"? Probably, and thats a shame. Wily is a no-talent hack... Period. Thats why no chef will actually eat there twice. Keep up the good work Wily! Can't wait to see the testicle dish back on the menu!

[Marisa D'Vari]

Really liked your review, and enjoyed the comments. My experience tonight (4/15/07) echoed a lot of what was said. If you can afford it though, quite fun!
You can see my review at http://www.AWineStory.com