fbpx
Politics Foreign Affairs Culture Fellows Program

Restaurant at the end of our world

Hey Occupy Wall Street protesters, why don’t you trundle over and occupy the outrageous Manhattan restaurant mocked by Frank Bruni in his column today. You really can’t make this stuff up: Romera New York is the first restaurant where I was told to “make a memory” of my water. Romera is Manhattan’s newest culinary oddity, […]

Hey Occupy Wall Street protesters, why don’t you trundle over and occupy the outrageous Manhattan restaurant mocked by Frank Bruni in his column today. You really can’t make this stuff up:

Romera New York is the first restaurant where I was told to “make a memory” of my water.

Romera is Manhattan’s newest culinary oddity, an elegant hideaway whose conceits include the pairing of each dish in an 11-course meal with a lukewarm flavored water in a lidded grappa glass. One water might be infused with leek and radish, another with jasmine and dried seaweed. Most taste like indecisive teas, commitment-phobic broths or pond runoff.

“Feel free to smell them,” said a server, as if I might otherwise feel jailed. “And to taste them.” He paused. “Make a memory of them.”

While blazers are optional at Romera, straitjackets would be a fine idea.

When the history of our decadent fin-de-whatever era is written, Romera New York , “which serves a single tasting menu for $245 a person before drinks or tip,” will deserve special mention. They should call this joint Late Roman New York. Bruni, the former restaurant critic of the Times, points out that it’s not so much the expense of the place but “because it’s such a florid demonstration of just how much culinary vanity we’ve encouraged and pretension we’ve unleashed.”

Sounds like the whole Ferran Adria thing may have jumped the shark foam.

Advertisement

Comments

Want to join the conversation?

Subscribe for as little as $5/mo to start commenting on Rod’s blog.

Join Now