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Ai Fiori, Upscale Italian at 400 5th Avenue in Midtown South


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Our firm's dinner allowance turned out to be $60, which was just enough for us to eat at Fabio Piccolo Fiori. They actually let us bring a bottle of wine with no fee, but there was nothing else worthwhile. Today we had lunch with a client at Mr. K's, formerly of DC. Shockingly expensive and not particularly good but the restaurant was nearly full. The only good meal was with my cousin at Ai Fiori, a Michael White restaurant which apparently holds 1 Michelin star. I told them I had to catch a train so 4 courses were consumed in 1.25 hours - our waiter brought out the dessert menu prior to the main course being served so I can haul ass. The food is terrific, great execution, and somewhat gently priced at $89 prix fixe. I started with the Ricciola (amber jack tartare, orange, cucumber, uova di trota), had the Spaghetti (blue crab, lemon, bottarga, chilies), and the Branzino (mediterranean sea bass, in zimino, fregola, calamari ripieni). My only complaint would be the pasta portion - kinda small for something so good. I would say White's Marea is definitely as good as Fiola in terms of creativity and execution, and Ai Fiori is a slight notch below because it's not as innovative.

As it turned out, the Accela that I was supposed to be on broke down and I had to take a much later train, and I'm still on the train mad.gif

Thanks mainly to this post, managed to find and snag a last minute reservation at Al Fiori on a Saturday night a few weeks ago (most places were completely booked until 10, but they had openings at pretty much any time). The prix fixe menu is up to $97 for four courses, but still a decent price for the quality of meal. I had the Insalata di Alstice (nova scotia lobster, sunchokes, pine nuts, golden raisins, truffle vinaigrette), Corzetti pasta (fennel sausage, ricotta, pomodoro, basil), Capriolo (pan roasted venison chop, sweet potato, chestnut, parsnip, golden oak mushrooms), and Semifreddo (white chocolate, pomegranate, citrus, meringue). The lobster salad and dessert in particular were incredible. I think you might get a smaller pasta portion with the prix fixe menu to avoid getting full, because the people ordering just pasta next to us appeared to get a larger portion, but I didn't look closely enough to be sure. I thought the portion sizes ended up being just right for a filling meal, with some leftovers.

Some other dining companions had the butternut squash soup, octopus, pasta with crustacean ragu, ricotta & marscapone ravioli, veal chop, caramelized brioche, and chocolate mille fuille. From what I tried, everything was great, especially the fatty, perfectly cooked veal chop. For vegetarians doing the prix fixe, they'll let you do a second pasta (and presumably appetizer if you ask) in place of the protein course, or a vegetable plate comprised of all of their side dishes (finger potatoes, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, hen of the woods mushrooms, and a creamy polenta), which we went with and ended up being a ton of food.

Highlights in pictures below:

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