Fiorini

My parents are foodies too, surprise!  But they only enjoy quiet restaurants that aren't very crowded.  So my next few posts will be about the fabulous meals I had in quiet restaurants around NYC (not an easy feat).  The first night of their NYC stint kicked off with Fiorini.

As soon as we walked into Fiorini, I could tell (hear) that my parents first dining requirement had been satisfied.  At 6:30pm, the restaurant was less than half empty and very quiet.  Even by the end of the night, when the restaurant was 80% full, the volume was still at a low level.

The service, unfortunately, was also at a low level.  We had to ask our server for a wine menu, then our dinner menus, for water, and bread, and a dessert menu, etc...Considering my parents were in from out of town and I wanted to take them somewhere for a fantastic NYC dining experience, Fiorini's was a let down in the service department.  The server never checked in on us during our meal, despite the abundance of appetizers, entrees and wine placed on our table.  At the end of the night, I approached the hostess, informing her that while we enjoyed our meal, our service was abysmal.  Her response was that the servers at Fiorini take a stand offish approach with the patrons but to come back again.  She must be kidding.  Stand offish wasn't our server, our server was on his cell phone at times and entirely uninterested in performing any of his duties as a server.


Putting the disappointing service aside, the food at Fiorini was sensational.  After asking for bread and water, we received freshly cooked, doughy focaccia bread.  Fiorini has the BEST FOCACCIA BREAD in NYC.  Hands down.  I'm not a big fan of peppers but I did not mind the faint trace of peppers in Fiorini's focaccia. 



We enjoyed each dish we ordered at Fiorini's and if it weren't for the lackluster service, I would happily return to try a few items that sounded tasty but didn't make it to our table.


What to Eat:


We started with a chef's menu appetizer, the Lobster Salad.  Fiorini's lobster salad was filled with chunks of lobster and tossed with tomatoes, avocado, peas and something unidentifiable yet still tasty (I forgot to ask what it was, sorry readers).  The lobster salad was prepared with a very light dressing, allowing the fresh ingredients to stand out.  Fiorini's lobster salad was a perfect light appetizer to start off a meal of heavy dishes.





For an entree, you must order the Risotto Al Frutti Di Mare.  My apologies that this picture does not do this dish justice.  The risotto rice was perfectly cooked and the dish included a generous portion of calamari, shrimp, crab meat and scallops.  The sauce struck the ideal balance of savory and featured a hint of sweetness to it.  Because Fiorini's risotto is large, this is a great dish to share with fellow diners.

Another fantastic entree at Fiorini's is the Pan Seared Duck with Vermouth Sauce.  The duck was incredibly tender and cooked just right (medium rare).  The only criticism I have about this entree is that the veggies on the side, potatoes and escarole, were very average and paled in comparison to the flavor and preparation of the duck. 



Insider tip: the duck contains anise or some type of black licorice flavoring.  This was not noted on the menu and should be.



Because my parents were on European time, we had to skip dessert and put them to bed (luckily, I live next to Ralph's ices).

Need a place worthy of giving up your Atkins diet?  Just say yes every time the busboy returns with the focaccia,

Your foodie friend