DISH OF THE WEEK: Chilled Maine Sea Scallops at GLORIA

Every week, I document another dish that impressed and satiated me during my food adventures around New York City

SADLY, GLORIA IS NOW CLOSED.

Hell’s Kitchen used to be the neighborhood I would eat in more than any other. This was well before this blog and my mastery of the city’s culinary landscape. I spent most of my days back then either auditioning for theater or viewing theater. And since much of that happens in and around Times Square, I’d wander over here for my meals.

It’s kind of funny because today it might be the neighborhood I visit the least. New Yorkers know unless you have a reason, it takes a lot to cross over Times Square.

But now I have a good reason – a restaurant that I wish existed in the neighborhood back in the day. And the type of place that was much needed here and is a classy escape from the frat bars and generic Thai restaurants. 

Gloria is the kind of place you’d expect to find in Brooklyn or downtown Manhattan. It’s chef-driven with a serious drink menu and refined takes on sustainable seafood.

The chef used to work at both Le Bernardin and Contra, which makes perfect sense because this spot has the precision of the former and the hip experimentation of the latter.

Seafood is the dish of the day here every day. And amazingly enough almost everything on the menu is pescatarian and gluten free. And in this case, those are not trendy words thrown around  (you don’t see any reference to gluten free on the menu) – it just happens to be the case.

We had a wonderful meal here and it was tough for me to choose just one dish of the week. I was taken by the tenderly charred octopus mosaic with cabbage and black rice. The rich play on a crab cake with sweet Jonah crab and a creamy sabayon was also a standout. Not to mention the non-fish dishes like a buttery jalapeño cornbread and smoky peewee potatoes with fish eggs and bonito.

But I’m going to go with the first bite of seafood we had for the evening. A plate of pristine sea scallops that were dressed with a bold citrusy yuzu emulsion, sprinkled with toasted buckwheat, and then garnished with crisp fresh radishes. It was light, flavorful, and worked on many levels.

It’s the kind of dish I’d expect at a three star seafood restaurant or at a hip downtown hotspot. The fact that it’s happening on a side street in Hell’s Kitchen is even more exciting. I just wish Gloria was here ten years ago. Price: $18