Annisa

Last Friday night my Mom took me and 2 of my room-mates to Annisa. This restaurant has been on the top of my places to try list for a while! I LOVED Anita Lo when she was on top chef masters and her performance on the show ensured me this would be a fantastic dining experience. 
Annisa is a small and unassuming space nestled on a quiet stretch of barrow street in the west village. It has a cosy and sleek bar in the front of the space and an intimate dining room of only 18 tables. From the moment we walked in the door we were greeted, served and catered too by one of the most skilled and pleasant staff I have ever encountered in a restaurant. Each person we spoke to was knowledgeable, personable and genuinely interesting. Besides some large vases of magnolia and a few other small decorative details the space is super simple. The feel is comfortable and made sophisticated by the food adorning each table, which is really what you want to see in this kind restaurant. We were not there to look at the art after all!

After getting settled with a great bottle of champagne recommended by the bar tender we decided to opt for the 5 course tasting menu. I have had tasting menu's at several of NYC's most wonderful restaurants and I have to say this might have been the best one yet. Each course was interesting, artistic and delectable. 
The first course was  duo of hot and cold tuna. While I preferred the cold to the hot, both bites were satisfying and played off each other really nicely. The next course was a soup dumpling with seared foie gras and jicama. This was such a cool dish, and the flavours were phenomenal. I am always partial to foie gras, but the consistency of the dumpling and the broth were so comforting.

The fish course was a Olive oil poached halibut with blistered shishito peppers, almonds with lobster and coral sauces. The fish was cooked to perfection. The sauces were divine, super smooth and had a little bit of heat which was a perfect accompaniment to the mild fish. 
The beef course was also out of this world. Grilled wagyu beef with escargots, garlic chives and alba mushrooms. This course was super rich and hearty. The beef was the prefect medium rare, and it sat on top of a garlic soaked crouton which was fantastic. 
The dessert course is always one of my favourites. The way they served the dessert course was a first for me. They brought each person at the table a different dessert so we could taste lots of things, which was fantastic. They also brought a basket of cinnamon sugar beignets that were filled with butterscotch sauce. They were out of this world good! Each of the desserts was fantastic, and its hard to choose but I think they thing that impressed me the most was the poppyseed bread and butter pudding with meyer lemon curd. I could have eaten an entire casserole dish full of it! I think I may have to try to recreate this at home, though I am sure it will not be quite as good!
Over all Annisa exceeded my already extremely elevated expectations! The food, atmosphere and service left nothing to be desired. It was a truly elegant and enjoyable experience. Anita Lo was even in the restaurant and came out into the dining room several time to greet diners and observbe the service which I thnk is amazing. Next time you are looking for a culinary splurge this is this place to go!

Annisa
13 Barrow St
212-741-6699