Learning my ABC’s in the Big Apple

I get out of the taxi and it’s probably the only city which in reality looks better than on the postcards: New York.— Director Milos Forman

Finding a place to eat where everyone’s particular food preference can be accommodated is often a daunting task. If your location is the busiest city in the entire universe, you may be set for a quest of a lifetime. This was my exact situation when I was recently in New York, where my daughter Carmela had just finished her studies at the Fashion Institute of Technology. We were gearing up for a wonderful family celebration, taking the celebrants’ suggestions, knowing that we had a very diverse range of palates to please. My daughter recommended ABC Kitchen, a restaurant run by Jean Georges. It’s housed in ABC Carpet and Home — a peculiar location if you ask me, to dine in a home furnishing store — but this was just one of the surprises I was in for.

At my daughter’s suggestion, we tried to book for her graduation dinner, but as it turns out ABC Kitchen is highly in demand and we were told that all dinner reservations were full and we might have a better chance booking a late lunch reservation at around 2 p.m. instead. Since my daughter’s graduation was in the morning, it was the perfect solution. I decided to go ahead and visit ABC Kitchen a day before the big graduation lunch to familiarize myself with the cuisine as well as the place. I brought a friend along and I was not disappointed. At first it was quite curious to be presented with a menu with a piece of paper literally clipped to a piece of corrugated board, but reading the fine print about what the restaurant stands for, one can fully appreciate the rustic feel of brown craft paper placemats and assorted, non-matching flatware, highlighted by beautiful one-of-a-kind porcelain dishes handcrafted and glazed by artisan Jan Burtz.

It turns out that in New York, when an establishment stands by the words “local,” “organic” and “home” (which happens to be the slogan of ABC Kitchen), you will be welcomed with a rustic ambiance comprised of simple décor, where even the produce is part of the décor. One might think this means wax fruits or silk vegetables put on display, as is the norm in most dining places; but no, in ABC Kitchen you will see all kinds of actual produce wonderfully presented in tasteful setups that make you stare in wonder at how something so edible can be displayed in such a way. It’s like you’re eating out of a photograph in a magazine. And beyond the visual feast, you will be educated in the finer meaning of all things environmentally friendly. Here they take green living up to a notch — something I hope our own country will someday achieve.

ABC Kitchen’s food source is regionally grown, meaning a smaller carbon footprint is generated since no trucks or big ships are involved in the transport of food, therefore less gasoline is consumed as well as fewer emissions released. They also label their products as “cruelty-free,” where ideally the poultry and the dairy produce are free range as opposed to being raised and slaughtered in suffocating coops and stables. They also follow a farm-to-table rule, minimizing processing to cleansing and preparation of the food. They take the words “local” and “organic” so seriously that they make sure their sources are local farms, meaning they prefer not to go out of the state of New York to get their supplies, and these suppliers must maintain their farms with the best sustainable practices available to organic farmers, pledging to not use any chemical based pesticides, fertilizers or genetically modified organisms in their produce.

To say that ABC Kitchen is environmentally friendly would be an understatement; their commitment to being more environmentally conscious is only rivaled by their passion in preparing their delectable dishes. One particular dish that caught my attention and my palate was the gigantic ravioli cooked with egg inside and ragu sauce drenched around it; add to that a hefty serving of cheeseburger made with the finest meat topped with grated cheese; and to send us all into a foodie frenzy, our celebratory lunch was concluded with a taste of salted caramel ice cream topped with popcorn, candied peanuts, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce. Yum!

But so much more than this gastronomic delight, ABC Kitchen is, after all, housed in ABC Carpet and Home with a plethora of tempting kitchen gadgets and cooking utensils on display… but my trip to explore this gorgeous store will be for another day. For now, if you find yourself in New York, make sure to pass by ABC Kitchen; you just might be pleasantly surprised.