Restaurant Aquavit

I finally made it to Marcus Samuelsson's Restaurant Aquavit!

Since Aquavit first opened in 1987 under the leadership of Håkan Swahn, it has been firmly established as one of the best dining destinations in Midtown Manhattan. What I appreciate about Aquavit, it the fact that it has always striven to be an international restaurant with Scandinavian flair and not simply an ethnic restaurant.

Before I get to the cuisine, I want to address my one complaint: the restaurant's interior. The modernist IKEA-esque decor creates a harsh and even claustrophobic atmosphere, especially inside the restaurant's tiny but upscale dining room. That being said, as soon as the flawless meal begins, you'll immediately forget about the decor as you find yourself entranced with the cuisine.

Three different plates made up our first course: first, we had tuna tartar which was topped with toasted pine nuts, and served on top of avocado slices and mixed greens. With tuna as fresh as Aquavit's, there was no possible way that this dish could go wrong. Our second dish was an heirloom tomato salad, which was served with sliced red onions and blue cheese, and topped with a onion-tarragon dressing. Simple, but delicious. I think I enjoyed it so much, because it reminded me of the salads that my mom used to make when I was growing up.

Our final plate for the first course was my favorite by far: a herring plate, which came with four slices of herring, and each was paired with a piece of cheese, a potato or a homemade jam. Before arriving at Aquavit, I jokingly said that the menu would be filled with herring made by the Swedish Chef from The Muppet Show, so when I finally saw that herring was on the menu, I chuckled, but at the same time was a little nauseated by the idea that I would eat raw chunks of herring. I was certainly wrong however! Each piece of fish was perfectly paired, and I must say, all of the combination's were quite delicious.

On to the second course. Two dishes this time. The first was a smoked venison loin paired with huckleberry, dumplings and morels. Enjoyable, but in general, it was your typical venison: quite tough, and gamey in flavor. The second dish was delicious, despite sounding quite generic: Swedish Meatballs, which were served on top of mashed potatoes, and topped with a cream sauce and lingonberries. What I really appreciated about this meal was the fact that Marcus Samuelsson clearly took a typical Swedish meal, but used spices from his native Ethiopia in order to bring a new and exciting flavor to both the meatballs and the cream sauce.

We ended up splitting two desserts. The first was called the Arctic Circle, which paired a goat cheese parfait with blueberry sorbet and passion fruit curd. Between the sweetness of the sorbet, and the tangy flavor of both the parfait and the curd, the Arctic Circle created a lovely balance of flavors. The second dessert was somewhat average, but quite delicious nonetheless: a chocolate mousse coated with a peanut powder and topped with a grape sorbet. (By the way, the grape sorbet was phenomenal.)

And don't forget to try some of the restaurant's signature aquavit -- a flavored Scandinavian spirit that typically contains 40% alcohol by volume. I would personally recommend the cucumber, but would certainly not recommend the lingonberry.


RESTAURANT AQUAVIT
65 E. 55th Street
(between Madison and Park)
(212) 307-7311