Sunday, May 1, 2011

Lunch at Kin Shop

One of mine and Patrick's favorite TV shows is Top Chef, so whenever a "Cheftestant" has a restaurant in NYC we try to make it a point to go. Harold Dieterle, winner of Season 1 of Top Chef, opened Kin Shop in the West Village with Alicia Nosenzo (famous for her Front of House prowess) and we couldn't wait to try it.We went for lunch a few weeks ago and although I had heard mixed reviews, I was pleasantly surprised by our meal.

The decor of the restaurant is bright and refreshing, although quite minimalist. White walls are dotted with beautiful artwork in blues and greens that give just the right splash of color to the space.I was happy to note that there was a prix-fixe lunch offering for $20, so I decided to go with that. To start I ordered a salad, although I unfortunately can't recall precisely what was in it (nor can I find a description of it anywhere on the internet.) The lettuce was fresh, the nuts were crunchy, the fruit was sweet and overall it was as flavorful as it was beautiful to look at.Patrick ordered the Fried Pork & Crispy Oyster Salad and although I didn't try it, he all but licked his plate.For our main courses I chose the Stir Fried Wide Wonton Noodles with Chicken Sausage, Thai Broccoli Rabe & Oyster Sauce while Patrick chose the Massaman Braised Goat with Fried Shallots, Purple Yams, Mustard Greens & Toasted Coconut. It's no secret that I don't like spicy food, and Pad Se Ew is one of my favorite Thai dishes so the dish I ordered was right up my alley for its likeness to the classic dish. The noodles were rich and tender, unlike any noodles I'd ever had before and the chicken sausage was tender and perfectly seasoned. I inhaled my dish and enjoyed every second of it.Patrick often orders Massaman Curry and while I do enjoy the flavor of it, I could never imagine eating an entire dish covered in the sweet sauce. The goat in his dish was one of the most delicate and savory meats I had ever tasted. The sweetness of the Massaman was strong but not overpowering and everything blended perfectly. It was delicious!I let Patrick pick my dessert course figuring I'd just have a bite or two and he ordered the Thai Coffee-Chocolate Ice Cream. It arrived to the table as a perfect sphere in a white bowl. The dessert was a rich chestnut color and the texture was luscious and creamy. We all know I don't love ice cream, but this was some darn good ice cream. The strong coffee flavor overpowered the sugar and I definitely had more than one or two bites of the dessert.While I do feel that the menu is slightly overpriced for Thai food, I really enjoyed my meal at Kin Shop.

Next step on the Top Chef Restaurant Tour: Angelo Sosa's Social Eatz (with a Z!) Will be sure to report back. Have you been to any Top Cheftestant's restaurants? Which ones? What did you think?

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Photo credits: Photo of Harold Dieterle from the New York Times, photo of restaurant interior from Eater NY

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