<a target="_blank" href="http://www.esca-nyc.com/">Esca</a> 

402 West 43rd Street,

New York, NY 10036

I can’t think of too many places in New York I would rather
eat than Esca. Three recent lunches were exceptional. One of the reasons the
food is so consistently outstanding is that proprietor and chef Dave Pasternack
is virtually always in the kitchen. In today’s world of globe-trotting
celebrity chefs, Pasternack is one of the few who actually spends some time
behind the burners…and it comes through in the pristine quality of his cooking.
The superb food, well-chosen wine list, attractive sunny, room and an outdoor
terrace perfect for enjoying Bellinis during the summer months make Esca a
great destination spot. Lastly, Esca is one of only a handful of New York’s
top-flight restaurants that is open for lunch on Saturday.

The selection of raw oysters and crudo changes daily, but I
have never been disappointed with the brilliance of the fish. The salad of raw
spring vegetables with lemon vinaigrette was crisp, refreshing and just as
beautiful to look at as it was to eat. Both preparations of octopus were
superb, but the grilled baby octopus with bitter greens and cipolline was a
dish I could have eaten all day. It was sublime.

Pasternack excels with whole grilled fish. Esca is one of
the few places in New York where readers can enjoy a whole roasted or grilled
fish, Mediterranean-style. Our pink snapper with salsa verde was flawless. On
another visit, I enjoyed a branzino (sea bass) cooked in a salt crust that was
moist, delicate and flat-out great. The grilled vegetables and sautéed spinach
were perfect; clean, simple and full of flavor. The pastas are equally
delicious, but I haven’t had them as often recently, perhaps owing to the warm
weather. The spaghetti with chilis, mint and lobster and the maccheroni with
sea urchin and crabmeat are two of the most satisfying pastas readers will find
in New York .

Colli di Lapio’s 2008
Fiano di Avellino paired nicely with a number of the courses. Like so many
wines, it was enjoyed too young, but that is the nature of restaurant wine
lists. I also loved the 2007 Vermentino
Albithia from Feudi della Medusa, an emerging property in Sardinia. It was
a fairly rich, weighty style of Vermentino, but it worked wonders with just
about everything, including the oysters and crudo.

I am not a huge dessert person, but readers with a sweet
tooth who don’t order the affogato (vanilla ice cream topped with espresso and
brittle) are missing out on one of the culinary treats our great city has to
offer.&nbsp;

Food:

Raw oysters 

Crudo 

Salad of raw spring vegetables with lemon vinaigrette 

Grilled octopus with giant corona beans and preserved
sorrento lemon 

Grilled baby octopus with bitter greens and cipolline 

Whole grilled Portuguese pink snapper with salsa verde 

Sea Bass baked in a salt crust, sautéed spinach

Grilled vegetables&nbsp;

Wine:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 

2008&nbsp;&nbsp; Colli di Lapio
Fiano di Avellino&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 90

2007&nbsp;&nbsp; Feudi della
Medusa Vermentino Albithia&nbsp;&nbsp; 91

[Photo and credit: Esca, New York]--Antonio Galloni

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