A night out at Smithereens
When the somm is down to clown that's amore
We are programmed to go to restaurants at the wrong time. When a new restaurant is opening, there is a huge PR push and suddenly that restaurant is everywhere. It’s on Eater, Grubstreet, Infatuation, and people begin posting their “I was here early” flexes on their Instagram stories. I see you Wild Cherry! It feels like you absolutely must go. And fast! But in reality, the best time to check out a restaurant is after 6 months or even a year, when they’ve gotten into a groove, found their rhythm, and perhaps no longer have to contend with being slammed by patrons looking for another notch on their culinary bedpost. Some of my favorite restaurants continue to improve, and are as good as they’ve ever been, many years after opening. Bar Bête and Thai Diner come to mind.
When Smithereens opened in November 2024, I admit that I was intrigued, but not compelled. The pedigree of Claude and Momofuku Ko was notable, and the elevated or even avant garde approach to New England-style seafood was certainly interesting.
Recently, when publications started putting their year-end lists together, Smithereens was gracing them all. I managed to jump on a reservation and we walked in the door roughly 1 year after open. I was joined by turbo-gourmand Charlie, Corey aka 50% of the Sedi Boys, and Frank, a wild card subbing in for Greg who was taken out by a bad cold. Frank arrived in a crisp dress shirt and blazer, pre-marinated with negronis from the Union Club uptown.
“If you are interested in ordering wine, the sommelier would be happy to speak with you.”
When a somm is “down to clown” it elevates a meal. Some of my recent favorite meals are aligned with experiences where the sommelier came in with a point of view, passionate about the producers they were recommending, and had a personal connection to share. They were also equally as joyful as they were knowledgable. Wine should be fun! It’s okay to laugh. Meals at Borgo, Claude, and Four Horsemen come to mind.
If you are ordering more than one bottle of wine, natural across a long meal and four people, it works really well to give the somm a set budget across two bottles. This gives them the opportunity to further put their stamp on the evening and connect you to a bottle that is typically be out of range. It also allows them to get more creative. I’ve done this a few times and the somm always seems excited to plan out the night.
Hannah the somm brought over 3 Rieslings to compare and we decided to kick off with a Riesling from Juilian Haart, a 2024 Piesporter. Julian Haart’s training under Klaus Peter Keller sealed the deal for Charlie and I followed his lead per usual. Ski with a faster skier. It was a wonderful dry Riesling. In the words of his importer Vom Boden: “The wine proves quite intense and superbly structured on the palate, where finesse only comes through in the superbly long and smoky finish. There is a hint of aromatic presence, yet the whole remains fresh and pure. This is a great dry Riesling in the making. Julian Haart apprenticed with Egon Müller, Klaus Peter Keller, and Werner Schönleber. That’s like learning to draw under da Vinci, Picasso, and Warhol.”
As the food began to hit the table, the pairing proved more than favorable. I had little exposure to Riesling as of a few years ago, but Corey introduced me to folks like Soil Pimp and I’ve since grown to really love it. With four people, we could order most of the menu. It quickly became clear that each dish was strongly representative of a singular point of view.
Restrained razor clams with raw matsutake mushroom were followed by hay smoked amberjack with persimmons & shiso . Each dish conspiratorially bathed in the light of a single candle as we sat in the back corner of the restaurant.
Bread service was anadama bread1, a New England staple loaf composed of cornmeal mush, flour and a good dose of molasses.
Scallops with fried chestnuts followed by a special of grilled fish collar generously crusted with szechuan peppercorns. If you see fish collar on the menu, order it. This was a special meal.
The rice with quahog clams & chowder and may have been the most thrilling. There was a light foam over the rice which gave the dish an ethereal quality while communicating deeply intense flavor.
We segued into our second bottle, a 2023 Saalwachter, Chardonnay. Germany again! Via Flatiron Wines: “Vibrant, smoky wet walnut skin aromas disperse immense saltiness on the nose. The palate is rounded and taut, with slightly more flesh on its bones and a lovely texture that adds a certain mellowness with that salty yeast and reduction running right through it.”
The winemaker Carsten Saalwächter’s experience in Burgundy shone through and as the night went on, the wine opened up, and became more elegant and precise.
A giant buckwheat pancake arrived, hiding a layer of smoked whitefish. Hannah asked if we wanted to decant this bottle. Sure why not?
“I was hoping you’d say that, our decanter is pretty fun.”
That’s when we met Suzy, an Italian glass blown fish, Finding Nemo meets Gaetano Pesce.
We rounded the bases towards the large format entree and found ourselves facing down a stunning whole bbq mackerel with flavors of allspice, tamarind, and lime, but only a few sips left of the German chardonnay. It was our own Perfect Storm.
So we we asked the sommelier for a value bottle to round out the night. Hannah returned in 90 seconds with a rosé from California from a winery that has since ceased operations, Inconnu. Via Beaune Imports: The winemaker Laura “elected to harvest the grapes early to avoid the devastating smoke that would envelope the area just days later. The resulting wine turned out to be anything but a “turn and burn” rosé destined to be drunk soon after bottling. She devoted 12 months of barrel aging to this wine which deserved so much more attention than your typical iced, early drinking rosé.”
It was an age worthy rosé and shockingly ours for $40. Unheard of in Mayor Adams New York (he’s still Mayor!).
Okay so that was a meal and a half. Each seafood dish was singular and would be a standout dish at any other restaurant. So why not dessert?
An apple cider donut fried to order. I’m not that into donuts. A donut fresh from the frier is another thing entirely. Those donuts form core memories. Those donuts grab you by the shoulders and shake you alive. Those donuts run into the nearest bodega and put their hand in the cash register for no reason. There was donut shop on Polk Street in San Francisco that would open at 2am right as the bars were closing. A fresh apple fritter was nourishing, life changing, seminal.
This arrived with a maple and pinenut tart, and a celery ice cream float, cel-ray soda that went to finishing school. Hannah came by with a cheeky pour of Les Enfants Sauvages “Bouche Bee” Côtes Catalanes Rouge, a 50/50 of Mourvèdre and Grenache. Frank started speaking in tongues. The Union Club wins again.
So what did we learn?
Smithereens rules. It’s a wonderful A+ restaurant. If you are a seafood lover, than it is probably the best restaurant in New York. If you can hold a restaurant in your heart and give it a beat, wait 4-6 months, you will often be further rewarded. Let them find their groove and you will find yours.
The very best restaurants have a strong point of view. I’m glad I got to share in Smithereens’ perspective for the evening. See you next time!
A popular folkloric account regarding the origin of the word “Anadama” tells the story of a fisherman becoming tired of meals of corn meal and molasses mush. Upset with his wife, Anna, for serving him nothing else, he one day adds flour and yeast to his porridge, baking the resultant bread, while cursing, “Anna, damn her!