DISH OF THE WEEK: Heirloom Brassicas at THE CLOCKTOWER

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

NYC Restaurant Week is something very few people in the local food world get excited about. It’s never mentioned on any of the major food sites, restaurant workers usually roll their eyes at a more frugal customer base, and I have almost completely ignored it for the last ten years.

There was a time I was excited about the Restaurant Week deal. If you are unfamiliar with it, it’s a set prix fixe meal (usually $25-$30 at lunch and about $40 for dinner) offered at some higher end restaurants. The idea is to allow diners to try places they wouldn’t normally visit (or afford) during the rest of the year.

It’s a great idea in theory but at this point many restaurants create a special cheaper set of dishes for this special occasion. So you’re not really getting a taste of what the restaurant does best. In fact, you’re not really getting a taste of the restaurant’s menu at all.

The deal has come and gone over the years and I have paid absolutely no attention to it.

Until this year. It happened by accident. I was checking out a Korean lunch spot that had been on my list for a while. When I arrived, I noticed the prix fixe menu for $26. It included a few dishes from their regular menu, so I figured I’d give it a shot.

It also got me thinking to do the research to see which restaurants are now participating. And if their Restaurant Week menu includes regular menu items, it might be a low risk to give it a try.

The Clocktower is the third Restaurant Week spot I visited for lunch this year. Their menu included regular items but with a few tweaks or exclusions. For instance, they didn’t serve cockles with the “Cod and Parsley Sauce” dish. Might have saved the restaurant a few dollars, but it was still an impressive plate of roasted cod surrounded by a complex and rich sauce of parsley and celery root.

It was a unique dish at a beautiful restaurant. Looking around me, it was mostly business lunches or those who were here for the Restaurant Week deal. Or possibly some guests who were staying at the hotel below the restaurant.

British cuisine is the starting off point here and I have to say I was impressed by the presentation, flavors, and beautiful high-end dining room.

The other dish I tried is normally $20 on the menu. I assume it is a seasonal offering of Heirloom Brassicas. Brassicas are plants or vegetables in the mustard family. So think broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts. etc.

The presentation was refined featuring both caramelized and pickled florets of cauliflower in a range of purples, yellows, and greens. They sat on a unique creamy base of white and black sesame seeds and some salty earthy pine nuts (those might be as expensive as the cockles).

It’s something I probably would not have ordered normally if I had come here, but it’s a worthy starter and a very generous addition to the often overlooked Restaurant Week menu.

I might start to lose all my credibility thanks to my interest in looking for some good deals during what I would often describe as amateur week, but if done properly with the right picks, Restaurant Week might actually be worth it.  Price: $20 or part of prix fixe menu