Marseille, New York, New York

I mentioned that Nancy and Liza had gone to New York to see Hamilton, leaving me to wander Virginia and North Carolina eating barbecue, pies, and biscuits. Liza had given the tickets to Nancy for Christmas, just one example of what a wonderful daughter Liza is. They had a great trip despite the blizzard — it actually helped get them an upgrade to the suite at the Algonquin in which Noel Coward had lived. Nice, indeed, full of his plays and playbills, and marked with his style. And, based on my geographic research (hotel, restaurant, theatre), and dining recommendations from the cognoscenti at The Hungry Onion, they had a great pre-theatre dinner at Marseille.

It serendipitously was Restaurant Week in New York, so Nancy and Liza treated themselves to a three-course dinner. They both started with an endive salad with Roquefort cheese, wine poached pears, and candied walnuts.

There was a surprise course, a small cup of a rich mushroom soup, and then the entree arrive. Both chose seafood, a branzino filet with cauliflower florets, served over a puree of parsnips and a black truffle sauce.

Nancy and Liza made separate choices for dessert — a panna cotta with ginger, basil, and some blueberry sorbet,

and sticky toffee pudding with brown butter and a scoop of pecan ice cream over spiced pecans.

I have not inquired as to who ordered which dessert. I don’t go there. Both Nancy and Liza really, really liked the dinner — the flavors, the freshness, and the atmosphere. And who wouldn’t?

The next morning they darted over to Gregory’s Coffee, and then enjoyed brunch at Alain Ducasse’s Benoit, then back to Washington just after I’d returned from my lunch on the front seat of my car at Paulie’s Pig Out in the mountains of Virginia.

If you go to the theatre in Manhattan, you really should stay at a suite in the Algonquin, and have dinner at Marseille and brunch at Benoit. And coffee at Gregory’s.

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