#50 – MAC AND CHICHARRÓN at COPPELIA

For the third year in a row, I’m going to attempt to eat every single item on Time Out New York’s annual 100 Best Dishes list. In no particular order, here’s my take on their Top 100. Let the gluttony continue…

For the halfway mark on our list, we always try to do something special. Or, in this case, go to a restaurant or bar that has a real party vibe. And I have no doubt that Coppelia fits that bill, but we decided to go to dinner there at a very un-festive 6:00pm.

This upscale, hip Cuban diner is open 24/7 and appeals to a late night club crowd. In my much younger days, I used to go out to eat after a night of drinking (I was never a clubber) and I really didn’t care what I ate. I just wanted something filling and greasy. Now I’m a bit more critical about how things taste and what I put in my mouth.

We stuck with mostly appetizers on this visit to Coppelia, but nothing we tasted from chef Julian Medina (Yerba Buena) was worthwhile or even very tasty. The guacamole (this should be an easy one, right?) was bland and mealy. I found the ceviche overly sour without any sweet or spicy balance. The rich, earthy oxtail empanadas were the only thing that really showed a level of technique.

The promising play on macaroni and cheese was officially our 50th list item and it too, unfortunately, let us down. First off, the elbow pasta itself was as wooden as a box of Kraft. Then the extra ingredients seemed rather listlessly thrown together and uninspired. Sure, on paper the addition of chicharrón (fried, puffy pork rinds) and pork belly makes sense, but something was lost in execution.

I did enjoy the gooey cheese sauce that was enlivened by chives and some seriously spicy sambal chili paste. It’s just unfortunate that the textures and overly saltiness of the pork didn’t mesh well with the pasta. Strangely enough, I also don’t think there was enough of either to really make it pay off.

Too bad we didn’t order dessert because I heard Pichet Ong’s olive oil cake is spectacular (and perhaps the only reason to come here).

Now I’m sure if I wandered in here with my party hat on in the wee hours of the morning (this spot is open 24/7), I might not have been so overly critical. But in the daylight, I was able to see all the flaws.

Would Coppelia’s Mac and Chicarrón make my Top 100 of the year? Probably not with a 6 out of 10 for being a missed attempted at updating this American classic.