Dominique Ansel Kitchen
Egg-Clipse – Squid Ink Brioche, Confit Egg Yolks, Mushroom Bechamel, Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Blueberry Laminated Brioche – Blueberry Balsamic Compote, Whipped Mascarpone, Bruleed Laminated Brioche
Brown Sugar DKA-Salted Caramel Ice Cream Sandwich
Marcona Almond Lavender Croissant – Gin-spiked Frangipane
Double Chocolate Pecan Cookie
Sage-smoked Brownie
A lot has changed in the life of Dominique Ansel since I first encountered his Desserts at Daniel, the restaurant then 3* from Michelin with its Pastry Chef soon to leave for Soho, my next experience coming shortly before the Cronut with his creative collection already including the DKA and a Paris Breast that tasted like a Reeses’ Peanut Butter Cup.
Visiting the small Bakery three times in its first year and a half, one of them involving a nearly two-hour wait for the hybrid Pastry that has now been replicated countless times, it was nearly four years and the 2017 Best Pastry Chef Beard Award later that a stop was made at Dominique Ansel Kitchen on 7th Avenue South, the upstairs “Unlimited Possibilities” space currently closed for a menu change while the downstairs was sparsely populated thanks to Memorial Day.
Focused on the concept of “Time as an Ingredient,” the focus on creating as many items as possible made-to-order in the same way that Jacques Genin carefully stacks his Mille-Feuilles in Paris a la minute, Ansel goes on to describe his Kitchen as “the next hybrid bakery,” and for those choosing to dine in the experience is a lot like many high end kitchens, the mise en place all set with most items assembled as guests wait at tables beneath an awning outdoors, or on tiered steps inside that are more than a little impractical.
Smartly opting not to continue the Cronut craze at Dominique Ansel Kitchen, lines at the Spring Street Bakery still stretching down the block prior to opening, it was after a bit of browsing and discussion with the clerk that decisions were made to dine in three rounds, everything coming out precisely as requested with a total cost for six items just over $43.
Not a cheap place, but also not as overpriced as High Street on Hudson or Union Fare despite the Chef’s accolades and a largely superior assortment of products, Breakfast began with Ansel’s newly famous “Egg-Clipse” featuring Brioche blackened with Squid Ink beneath mashed Potatoes, Mushroom Cream and two Confit Egg Yolks that burst with just a bit of pressure, the flavor pure umami and probably best shared by those with small appetites while the torched-to-order Blueberry Laminated Brioche took Croissant Dough and split it in half, filling it with Blueberry Balsamic Compote and Mascarpone that eats very light with a flavor not dissimilar to Cheesecake.
Scaling back the ‘hybrid’ items a bit to focus on presentation, though smart to capitalize on higher outdoor temperatures by hemisecting his famous Kouign Amann and filling it with housemade Salted Caramel Ice Cream for a more-or-less fool proof Ice Cream Sandwich, take away items for this visit included the straight-forward flourless Chocolate Cookie studded with Pecans and a fluffy Croissant filled with Marcona Almonds and floral Frangipane, the “Sage-smoked Brownie” probably something that would have been better off eaten on-site warm, though the layers of melted Chocolate were still soft and rich at room temperature with a subtle herbal linger.
http://dominiqueanselkitchen.com/
