If you’re a fan of Food Network’s shows Chopped and Iron Chef you know the name of celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian. The National is one of Chef Zakarian’s two New York restaurants, the other being the Lamb’s Club.
The National offers up excellently prepared American fare with a French leaning. We tried the National for both brunch and dinner. At brunch, I ordered the pan seared bronzino. A generous portion of fish came perfectly cooked on a silky bed of pureed butternut squash flecked with pomegranate seeds and a side salad of frisee. I darn near licked my plate. My husband had the house cured gravlax with the usual accompaniments of tomato, onion and capers and it didn’t disappoint either.
Dinner was a slightly different story. Although our salads were sensational, his an iceberg wedge with crispy bacon and blue cheese and mine, a roasted root vegetable salad with goat cheese, we both ordered the steak and frites. Although the steak, a New York cut, was perfectly cooked and actually very tasty meat, it was tough. And curiously, the frites (of the menu name steak & frites) came out nearly five minutes after our entrees, although they were delicious and perfectly crispy and salty. A plate of housemade cookies and a coffee semifreddo with espresso ice cream were also excellent.
