Union League Cafe

Long time no see, fellow eaters! For those of you who might have wondered if I had lost my passion for writing and for food, I can assure you that both passions are of good health. :) It happened that I had the most crazy month of my recent history: apartment hunting, moving and everything bureaucratically implied, with all my activities and job interviews in between! I did not stop cooking but I just did not have the time or the mind set to write about it. Now that I am settled again, in a beautiful apartment, I am ready to return to my writing. Uff! At last! I missed you!

Before all this craziness had began, my husband and I decided to go for a dinner at the only (or so considered) upscale French restaurant in New Haven, CT: Union League Cafe. Even though this restaurant offers a Contemporary French style, we had never been there before because one can feel from the outside the snobbish mood that prevails on the inside, and that is something we cannot stand. Being as it may, we had to try and see for ourselves in order to have an opinion based on empirical grounds. 

We had our reservation made one week in advance and we chose a Saturday night. We know that Saturdays are very busy nights but it is at those moments that one sees the efficiency of the service and the quality of the food. We arrived at the appointed time - 7:30pm - and were surprised with a very disorganized group of people close to a counter that served of reception desk and waiting room. We stood there for 5 minutes until the group in front of us had handle their jackets and were shown their table, while a moderately loud man decided to settle the mood with his half French half French-accented-English dialect. At that point, the "chic" dialect had not yet been effective to bring some organization to the front desk. Finally, we could call someone's attention who confirmed our reservation. We started to handle our jackets and suddenly everybody vanished. We did not know who were we supposed to follow to get to our table and there was no one around to ask. After some glimpses trying to figure out where we were supposed to go, we saw a lady, in the middle of the right wing of the room showing us an annoyed face. We figured that she should be the one to follow. We were right!

After this very warm welcoming, we could only wait the food and the service from that point on to make up for everything. We waited around 5 minutes until someone came to our table with the menus (which dishes' titles are in French). Few minutes passed. A basket of warm bread and a plate of gougères were placed on the table with no further words. 

The first bites were delicious but the experience was already on the down side. When everything eatable had almost disappeared from our table, the waiter came to ask for our order. I ordered Maine Baby Scallops with angel hair and citrus sauce; my husband asked for the Fois Gras' Terrine with Rabbit confit, mache salad and balsamic reduction. Both dishes were good. The pasta was perfectly cooked, as well as the scallops, and the lemony flavor of the sauce brought the last piece of balance necessary. The terrine was very smooth and the pieces of rabbit and the balsamic reduction also added some balance to the overwhelming flavor of fois gras. The Sauterne suggested to go with the Fois Gras was also pleasant, though not even comparable to a good sauternes.

Maine Baby Scallops with Angel Hair, Tomato and Citrus sauce

Fois Gras' Terrine and Rabbit confit with Mache Salad and Balsamic reduction

The main course was made of Pan Roasted Duck Breast over Turnip Pure and Young Turnips for me and  Monkfish Osso Bucco over a Mussels and celery Risotto for my husband. Again, in terms of technique both the duck and the monkfish were very well cooked. The duck was pink in the center with a crispy skin and the monkfish melted in the mouth. Contrarily to the duck, the accompaniment of the fish went perfectly with it. In the case of the duck, both the meat and the turnip flavor can be overwhelming if not well combined. As much as I like duck and turnip, and as the bitterness of the turnip can, in theory, balance the sweet finish of a gamy meat like duck, it felt quite difficult to finnish the dish. The texture was there but the dish was screaming for some really savory accompaniment.

Pan Roasted Duck Breast over Turnip pure and Young turnips

Monkfish Osso Bucco With Clams and Celery Risotto

Our meal ended with a Chocolate and Hazelnut "Feuillantine" and Caramel sauce for my husband and a Bitter Sweet Chocolate-Espresso Mousse and Vanilla Bean Ice cream covered with warm chocolate for me. Both desserts were, obviously, a caloric bomb but they were very good. The combinations are classics and that is why they work beautifully. I had a French Decaf to help me overcome my dessert and, without a surprise, the quality of the decaf was very good.

Chocolate and Hazelnut "Feuillantine" and Caramel sauce

Bitter-Sweet Chocolate-Espresso Mousse with Vanilla bean Ice-Cream and warm Chocolate

Even though the quality of the food was very good (there is talent in that kitchen, even though the food is not extraordinary), for the final math what stood from the experience was the poor quality of the service. Let me explain the adjective poor here: if you go there expecting a treatment that you will encounter on a regular restaurant during rush hour, you will be happy. But if you go there, like we did, expecting to have the treatment "upscale" restaurants stand for, you will be disappointed as we were. A couple of weeks before we had had dinner at Jean Georges where we encounter a perfect service. Of course we were not expecting such a good service here, but we were not expecting to be as bad as it was. Not to mention the situation at the front desk described above, during the meal the service was very slow - the couple seated next to us arrived at least 30 minutes after we did and they were finished first! We could see and feel who were the preferred costumers of the waiter: those who did not show as much signs of youth as we do. Well, too bad because young people can appreciate food too. Besides, I am not that young and basing the service (or whatever!) on the appearance is proven to be a huge mistake. They should know better. And by the way, their cuisine is Classic French with occasional contemporary attempts and, most importantly, the presumption shown on the outside is definitely an extension of the inside. When someone tells you that Union League Cafe is the best Restaurant in New Haven do not believe him right away. Try to go there, go to Ibiza (for me, the best restaurant in town. Much more original cuisine with a good service.), go to other restaurants and take your own conclusions.  

Union League Cafe

1032 Chapel Street New Haven, CT 06510
Reservations Phone: (203) 562-4299

http://www.unionleaguecafe.com/contact.html