Sauté

FOOD & DRINK

By Phyllis Stein-Novack

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Apr. 9, 2009

Sauté, a new establishment located in Queen Village, offers a four-course dinner for $35. staff photo by greg bezanis

In the delightful film "Ratatouille," restaurant critic Anton Ego tells Linguini, the waiter, "Surprise me." I feel a fine way to compliment a chef is asking them to prepare a meal with surprises packed with a "wow" factor.

Cousin Carl and I experienced one of the finest meals in recent memory at Sauté, a new BYOB on South Front Street on the former site of La Creole.

The interior was gutted, but the original wood trim above the bar remains. There is a large, lovely mirror, soft lighting, comfortable banquettes and a talented waiter named Zach, who surprised us indeed: "Would you like the chef's tasting menu? It is a four-course dinner for $35. He will surprise you. Do you like sweetbreads?"

Culinary bingo.

Carl and I sampled eight different dishes, each a triumph of taste and textures. The food was served on wood planks and Zach kept the sharing plates coming so we could indulge in chef Nick Cassidy's creations.

The sweetbreads were beautifully seared, creamy inside and served in their natural juices. The chef added bits of crisp, slightly spicy chorizo and white beans. Sweetbreads are a bit bland and are enhanced by ingredients that marry well, as they did here.

Three cool Cape May salts, which are among my favorite oysters, arrived topped with chopped crisp bacon and fronds of fragrant fresh dill. I could have eaten a dozen.

Next up were two meaty, top-quality rib lamb chops served rare. Zach advised that Cassidy prefers rare beef and lamb and we nodded in agreement. The meat was tender and juicy. The dish included a mound of Israeli couscous, which looked like pearls of tapioca but with a nice bite. Great contrast of tastes and textures here as well.

I love homemade, sweet-and-savory pastry. Cassidy surprised us with a goat cheese tarte that was so outrageous I wanted to ask if he could make a few more to tote home. This classic French dish, prepared with slightly tangy chevre, took me straight to France along with the cool, deconstructed ratatouille served with it. The ingredients were practically raw and bursting with flavor.

The next surprise was quail. Roasted to perfection, the selection was served with spinach and dried cherries. I liked the tart flavor of cherries and when enjoyed with spinach and quail -- to paraphrase author Ralph Waldo Emerson -- everything is right with the world.

Boneless, succulent beef short ribs were prepared sous vide. This cooking method is a way to make fish, fowl, lamb or beef. The food is tightly packed into a vacuum-sealed bag then simmered in water that hardly gets above 250. Carl and I could not believe how perfect the dish was. in Cassidy served the beef with a good-size serving of wild rice enhanced with raspberries.

For dessert, we were served a homemade apple tart, a tangy lemon tart and fresh berries.

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