Noting that “few restaurants make the case for indulgence quite so enticing, nor so rewarding,” Phil Vettel hands Tru four stars. The last time the restaurant received that rating Rick Tramanto was still in house and it was 1999. But as we mentioned a month ago, Anthony Martin is the new executive chef, and so this marks the first big review of his kitchen. While we kind of questioned his reasoning in granting four stars to Les Nomades and Courtwrights, here Vettel expertly explains why the restaurant gets the top score.
Vettel seems enraptured by the plating: “Martin’s kitchen produces plates so visually stunning they compete with the room’s Yves Klein, Andy Warhol and Peter Halley artworks for attention.” The lamb loin dish is so perfectly composed it resembles “an art nouveau still life, foodie style.”
He finds the service “beyond exemplary,” claiming it is “probably the finest service experience I’ve enjoyed in the last five years. Nattily attired waiters glide through the room with an apparent effortlessness, the sort of thing achieved only with years of experience and dedication to craft.”
And, of course, the food is always delicious: “As good as his visuals may be, Martin is first and foremost a technician of the highest order.”
Congrats to the young chef.
