Le Cirque

CircqueLe Cirque has reopened once again.  Sirio Maccioni and his family gets huge credit for continuing to reinvent their signature restaurant.  Located in the new Bloomberg building on East 58th Street. 

I am not sure what exactly the word is to describe the restaurant.  Total high end upper East side is absolutely where this restaurant belongs.  The lunch crowd is basically wealthy ladies that lunch and well polished business men.  Each detail was paid attention to.  There is a beautiful piece in the ceiling that almost looks like a ornate lamp shade.  A true piece.  The tables are tight but not close enough that you can over hear the conversations to your right or left.  There aren't many restaurants like this in NY or any major city in the world.  This is a total over the top high end experience catering to a particular customer. 

The service is impeccable.  Each plate has been thought out in detail on how it should be presented.  The desserts are outlandish looking.  We all opted just for a main course.  They brought us each out a small portion of simple risotto with sliced asparagus on top and a delicate cheese crisp.  Rich and creamy.  The portion was just enough to satisfy you.  We all ordered fish for lunch.  I had the Mediterranean Dorado stuff with pieces of red pepper, shrimp, octopus.  The fish was a tad over done and the large pieces really didn't have tons of flavor but the key was the fennel au jus.  Our waiter came over and poured that jus around the plate.  That changed the entire taste of the dish.  My friends both had the snapper.  7 spices crushed and covered over the fish and baked with a green curry relish.  It was good.  Keep in mind that each of these plates were $37. 

The desserts looked so beautiful that we indulged ourselves.  Deep fried round pieces of dough filled withDessert a vanilla cream and covered in sugar.  This was served with a rich coffee gelato, a piece of decorative chocolate and a small bowl of more of the vanilla cream.  They also gave us a small plate of cookies. 

Le Cirque is really an elegant exquisite place to go.  Not my cup of tea but worth the one trip.  They have a loyal following which is why the success.  For the price and location, I'd prefer to stay downtown.

Posted June 7, 2006  
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Joanne Wilson Joanne Wilson loves food, books, and music. She lives in New York City. Her husband Fred and children Jessica, Emily, and Josh are bloggers too. More »

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