Who’s behind it: Chef and restaurateur Michael Mina continues to grow his Mina Group, the culinary force behind a dozen Wine Spectator Restaurant Award winners, including his namesake restaurant in Las Vegas and seven Bourbon Steak locations. For the eighth Bourbon Steak, Mina is partnering with JW Marriott Essex House on Central Park South, taking over the hotel’s former lobby eatery. Joining as executive chef is Bryan Ogden, who has previously owned a few restaurants with his father, chef Bradley Ogden, and worked under Mina at the now-closed Aqua in San Francisco.
When it opened: Bourbon Steak New York opened May 20, 2024.
Why you should know about it: This is Mina’s first foray into New York City. “I’ve looked at New York many times, but always promised my wife that while raising kids, I’d never do New York,” said the chef with a chuckle. After attending the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., Mina began his culinary career in Manhattan, with stints at Tribeca Grill and Charlie Palmer’s now-shuttered Aureole. However, his nearly 40-restaurant empire has largely grown on the West Coast until now. “[New York] was a big commitment, and it took me a long time because the goal was not to compete,” Mina explained. “It was to add something and have a sense of place. I realized I had an opportunity to do a new evolution of Bourbon Steak and it felt right.”
Mina recognizes that Bourbon Steak is the strongest concept in his portfolio and, with Bourbon Steak New York, he is reimagining it: He’s revamping the vibe, fine-tuning the menu and creating a lighter atmosphere than what’s typical for steak houses.
[article-img-container][src=2024-05/turning-tables-bourbon-steak-nyc-interior-053024_1600.jpg] [credit= (Michael Kleinberg)] [alt= The interior of Bourbon Steak in New York City][end: article-img-container]The culinary approach: Mina includes signature Bourbon Steak menu items like his tuna tartare with Asian pear and Maine lobster pot pie with market vegetables and a lobster-Cognac emulsion. He’s also introducing new dishes, aiming to amplify the classics with his culinary hallmarks: technique and precision.
“We made sure there were enough staples, but [did] not obsess over it,” the chef said. “If you want to come for a wedge salad and steak, they won’t disappoint. But we’ve had 20 years of constantly tweaking things, and we got to a great point where we could elevate with innovation, technique and a lot of wow factor.”
To that end, the restaurant brings in new service touchpoints, like rolling seafood carts serving items such as a shrimp cocktail with gin-spiked cocktail sauce or fresh sea urchins with Aleppo pepper, lemon and olive oil. And, instead of bread service, each table receives complimentary duck fat fries with pastrami spice. (Brioche with black truffle butter is also available, priced per person.)
But steak is, of course, the main draw. Mina and his team spent weeks sampling more than 50 cuts to find the best quality. There are prime options such as filet mignon, New York strip and a porterhouse dry-aged for 40 days, as well as Wagyu filet, rib eye and striploin cuts. Guests can add a variety of accompanying sauces, and à-la-carte sides complete the plate: Mina reimagines mac and cheese, serving it as a sliced and browned terrine with a black truffle béchamel, and he folds his creamed spinach into a soufflé with a bacon-parmesan cream.
[article-img-container][src=2024-05/turning-tables-bourbon-steak-nyc-seafood-cart-053024_1600.jpg] [credit= (Ray Lopez)] [alt= Diners being served from the seafood cart at Bourbon Steak, while drinking white wine][end: article-img-container]What’s on the wine list: “The wine list feels like a Michael Mina list, not a typical…
Source : https://www.winespectator.com/articles/michael-mina-debuts-bourbon-steak-in-new-york-city
