Restaurant Week - On Central Park South

I've dined on many a prix-fixe New York City Restaurant Week meal in my day. Many. But I think the lunch I had yesterday at South Gate on Central Park South may be my finest Restaurant Week experience yet.

As the hostess led me through the milky white dining room, I knew I was about to have a very special lunch. She sat me at a table near a flickering fireplace. In the distance there was a view of Central Park under a blanket of snow. Sinking into a creamy leather banquette I was already feeling quite cosseted -- and that's before the basket of warm bread arrived.

The menu and my dining companion arrived all at once. A lovely pair indeed. I dug into the bread. Mmmm...

Then the meal began. My appetizer of Roasted Beets Crostini with soft and buttery burrata cheese and bits of crisp guanciale was a revelation. Pictured above, it was sweet, creamy, crunchy and salty all at once. I was disappointed to finish the last bite.

Thankfully, my main course arrived before my disappointment led to an unattractive pout. Roasted Winter Vegetables were flawlessly prepared, caramelized with just enough toothsome give. Served with house-made farfalle, a perfectly poached egg and truffled parmesan cream, the dish was that blessed combination of breakfast and dinner that can illicit deep moans of elation.

Even the dessert was spectacular, in both its plating and its palate appeal. A warm square of Apple Almond Crumble was magnificently presented with its partner in crime, a scoop of mascarpone ice cream.

After the last morsel was eaten, I sank back into the banquette with a sigh. It was wonderful. The bill? $24.07. Wonderful and inexpensive.

A lovely pair indeed.