For three weeks a year Jose Ignacio, Uruguay, has its high season. Probably the shortest in the world but, because of it, this littletown gets flooded with people wanting to enjoy the warm weather, greatparties, and fresh food. The spot to go to for people-watching and eatingon the beach is La Huella. Starting in the morning and going most ofthe night, La Huella has a business model that is perfect for thisseason. With over 2000 covers a day, people wait for 2 hours to get one of their many amazing tables over looking the ocean. Theowners trained under South America’s most famous chef, FrancisMallmann, and are serving relatively simple food but fresh as can be. To begin there is a sangria type drink called Clerico which you haveto try. This is followed during the next 45minutes by different tapas including grilled octopus, an amazingamount of quality sushi, and different, interesting pizzas from theirbrick oven. For the main course there are many options but the dishordered most often is the fish of the day simply grilled and delivered on acutting board. I know it sounds very simple for the top restaurant in the area, but who needs more when sitting at the beach, getting sun and watchingsome of the most beautiful people walk in and out? Dessert, which anyone rarely wants but is still ordered for the table, is a moltendulce de leche cake served with banana ice cream. It is still one ofthe best deserts I have ever tried. The next hour is spent relaxingand having some more Clerico or Espresso until you leave the table. Itis reset and resat as you wander down the beach to walk off a wonderful meal.
Check it out, Uruguay has many amazing places tovisit and, if you have the chance to get a table at La Huella, you will find it well worth it.
www.table4threeny.com
Metta, Norberto Piattoni's Fort Green neighborhood restaurant[/caption]
Francis Mallmann, the revered Argentinian chef made famous by his many restaurants around the world, a couple of books on his cooking style and a hit television series, Chef's Table, has ensured his legacy with a diaspora of chef proteges, two of whom have rolled up in New York. Norberto, better known to his friends as Negro, recently opened Metta, a neighborhood restaurant located on a quiet corner two blocks from the Fort Greene farmers market in Brooklyn. It offers sustainably sourced, vegetable-forward dishes all cooked in a custom designed, open-fire kitchen, using South American asado techniques, utilizing all aspects of the fire (smoke, flame, ash and embers) to create layers of flavor in dishes. Packed with happy diners the night I went, it is relaxed, delicious, interesting and fun.
[caption id="attachment_8248" align="alignnone" width="500"]
Flora Bar, Ignacio Mattos' third opening in New York[/caption]
Ignacio Mattos was born in Uruguay and learned to cook in the kitchens of Mallman and Slow Food legend, Alice Waters. His two other restaurants in New York, Estela, with its bold, Mediterranean-inspired cooking, and Altro Paradiso, with its Italian cuisine, are favorites of mine. Now, Ignacio has come with his team to the Met Brauer on 76th and Madison, offering small bites as well as main dishes in a comfortable setting either indoors or on the open terrace. Service is superb, wines delicious and the food captivating. The space, in my opinion, could do with some tlc - easily accomplished. If you can serve food like that, a bit of flower planting and decorating should come easy.
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