More Secret Baloney

As soon as one foodie fad dies, another spawns to take its place...This week's Time Out New York offers up a feature about off-the-menu specialities that can be ordered by folks "in-the-know." Frankly, none of the specialities at any of the cited restaurants sounded all that impressive to me. In fact, the special champagne cocktail for two with passion fruit juice, coconut milk and gold leaf at one of the noted hot spots sounded like a cloying mess.

On the other hand, I've gotta admit that the other night I was privy to an off-the-menu special at one of my absolute favorite Italian restaurants - Noodle Pudding. (The place has a ludicrous name, but it is a marvelously comfortable neighborhood trattoria in Brooklyn Heights with some of the best Italian food I've had outside of Italy.) At the bar, looking for something fairly light for supper, the bartender Alice let me know about the chef's Bass Cheek Salad - not on the menu or list of specials, but a Noodle Pudding insider's fave. Having had the regular fresh-off-the-boat special of Vinnie's Montauk Sea Bass over Escarole and Beans, I couldn't imagine that a salad composed of those fishies' tender cheeks, field greens, crisp celery, chick peas, sweet crunchy sliced red onion, ripe Jersey tomatoes and shaved parmesan could be bad. It most certainly wasn't.

Yet, I had to wonder how long it's been a "special special." I've been a regular at Noodle Pudding since it opened. Is it possible that they've been keeping this extraordinary dish from me for years? When does a regular become a regular in their book? Does being granted access to the dish mean that I've crossed over to Sally Field territory? They like me. They really like me!

And, so you see the inate danger of secret off-the-menu offerings. I'm counting the days until this trend bites the dust. But, I'm hoping that I'll still be able to bite into that Bass Cheek Salad.