Buddakan is big. It’s 16,000 square feet and seats 325 people for food and drinks. I tried to take pictures of the main dining room to capture its immensity, but this one from the the New York Times review does it much better justice. We sat in the “library” off to the side, which was more intimate but no less stylish, with glowing book spines lining the walls.

I don’t usually trust places like this — such size makes me think of noise and the mediocrity of mass food service… and such an emphasis on style makes me think of lounges and clubs with tepid food and watered down drinks. And then there’s that whiff of gimmickry about the whole thing…

But the modern Asian food at Buddakan was great, often fantastic. And sure, it was loud, but it felt more fun than obnoxious. And the service was friendly and thoughtful. I may sound shocked and I may open my eyes a little wider than normal if I were to tell you this out loud, but I highly recommend Buddakan.

Btw, the building used to be a Nabisco cookie factory, so a visit to Buddakan means a visit to the place where the Oreo was invented. Somehow I was charmed by learning the quaint heritage of such a brashly modern place.

Shaken Chili Beef Tartare with Tapioca and Shaved Shallots. A revelation. Tuna tartare has become so trite, and so returning to a classic tartare with beef and incorporating tapioca and shallots seems brilliant to me. It was so silky and full of flavor. The spicy sauce on the side of the plate wasn’t even necessary to bolster the flavor for me, but I liked the occasional crispy contrast of the chip and its black sesames.

Boneless Spare Ribs with Chinese Mustard. Again, the sauce wasn’t even necessary. The ribs were so tender and juicy, with a just sweet and spicy enough glaze.

Crab Fried Rice with Wok Scrambled Egg. I loved how the herbs on top added a dash of vitality into this already fresh dish — the crab was delicious and plentiful amongst perfect rice, and the eggs added just the right degree silkiness and background flavor.

Mao Poe Tofu with Minced Pork and Red Chili. The NYT review calls this “the most crazily addictive thing I’ve tasted in months.” I wanted to find it crazily addictive, too, but mine hit much sweeter notes than the spicy fieriness that Bruni experienced. The tofu was incredibly silky, and the dish was still fine, with the pork asserting itself most, but I was expecting more.

Cantonese Steamed Sole with Ginger Scallion Oil. I love it when steamed dishes are so full of flavor. And the sole was so tender.

Crying Chocolate with Malted White Chocolate Ganache, Coffee Ice Cream, Milk Caramel. Excellent. That little chocolate tart that oozed the warm dark chocolate and white chocolate ganaches seemed like a clever play on chocolate lava cake, and the coffee ice cream was a worthy ally — creamy and just sweet enough. Those dots of chocolate seemed a bit unnecessary, but I guess it’s for style and supports the name.

White Peach Sorbet and Blackberry-Lime Sorbet with Thai Basil Gelee, Spicy Ginger Seltzer, Basil Chip. I tasted the gelee first, and found it off-putting, but after a bites of sorbets, I went back to it, and found it utterly wonderful and refreshing. I really liked how the sorbets were full of ripe fruit on their own, but as time passed and they melted into the seltzer, the dish turned into a kind of flavored soda in a bowl; it reminded me of those drinks in France, where you pour syrups into water a little at a time. I also respect how this rather light dessert has so many wonderful flavors and textures. Interestingly, even though it was “the sorbet dish” it was listed first on the menu.

Drinkwise, it was hit or miss. The Charm with passion fruit liqueur, apple, fresh berries, and prosecco was downright astringent; I can understand the concern of serving overly sweet cocktails, but this was ridiculously unsweet and rather undrinkable. Meanwhile, the Heat with tequila, cointreau, and chilied cucumbers was very sour and quite sweet and barely spicy. I had better luck with a Harushika “Tokimeki” (Heart Aflutter) — a sparkling Junmai — that started out like a sweet wine, until you felt the bubbles, and then tasted the sake. It was different and good.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 12th, 2006 at 3:42 pm and is filed under Highly Recommended, New York, Restaurants. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.