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Palermo’s newest Manhattan outpost serves up plenty of spectacle alongside its steaks, seafood, and solid cocktails.
My sister is not exactly what you would call an adventurous eater. If you ask me, I would call her a picky eater, though, I know she would disagree with such a moniker. It’s not that there are things she isn’t open to trying. It’s more that she already knows what she likes and tends to look for restaurants with excellent ambience and a healthy dose of style. For that reason alone, she doesn’t often feature on my list of guests I bring along to restaurant reviews, as it’s rare that a spot fits her somewhat demanding criteria.
Palermo Argentinian Bistro, however, immediately piqued her interest and, dare I say, won her approval. Recently opened in SoHo following successful locations in Hell’s Kitchen and Gramercy, Palermo is an Argentine steakhouse that makes little effort to hide its flair for the dramatic. There is enough substance here, but also plenty of style, from elaborate presentations and tableside theatrics.
We began our meal with an Espresso Martini and a Pineapple Moscow Mule, two familiar drinks that were executed to perfection. The latter brought a tropical sweetness to the familiar bite of a Moscow Mule and proved particularly easy to drink while the Espresso Martini was exceptionally creamy and satisfied my insatiable craving for coffee. Then we tried the New York Sour which was somehow both unique and vaguely familiar, especially as I love a good whiskey sour. It tasted as if someone made a cocktail with nothing but candied cough drops and it still worked.
One of the first things to arrive was Palermo’s bread service, an assortment of house-made breads accompanied by a bright tomato-based dipping sauce. It would be easy to dismiss bread as little more than a prelude to dinner, but the basket proved surprisingly memorable, particularly the wonderfully soft cheese bread. It also became an ideal companion for one of our first appetizers, the burrata.
Burrata is admittedly difficult to make particularly exciting at this point. It has become a mainstay of seemingly every other New York menu and Palermo does not attempt to reinvent it. Instead, the cheese arrives surrounded by a vibrant green sauce that provides enough brightness to cut through its richness. It is simple, familiar and solid, made even better when spread over pieces of the aforementioned bread.
Far more visually striking was the octopus. Rather than cutting it into discreet, easily consumed bites, Palermo presents the octopus in all its glory, with an entire meaty tentacle stretched across the plate. The presentation is unapologetically theatrical, but that’s exactly why you’d come to a place like Palermo and that’s why I’ll remember it.
The Tuna Tartare continued the meal’s seafood-heavy and theatrical opening. It was presented with a cloud of smoke as though it had descended from the heavens or Mount Olympus. This one is a must order simply for the little show you get in the process. Here, the tuna was paired with avocado, a combination that sometimes wrestled with one another but ultimately paired well.
Of course, reviewing an Argentine steakhouse without eventually getting to the meat would be something close to professional malpractice. Executive Chef Carlos Barroz, a native of Córdoba, Argentina, comes from a family with restaurant and butchery traditions, while the heart of Palermo’s menu is its wood-fired grill and collection of Argentine cuts. Before our mains arrived, our server poured us a fantastic Malbec, an appropriate choice given the restaurant’s considerable emphasis on Argentine wine. Approximately 80 percent of Palermo’s wine program is dedicated to Argentine selections. Unsurprisingly, the wine found its natural partner once the steak arrived.
The steak was finished on the table with a blowtorch, creating exactly the type of spectacle that draws in an audience that first eats with their eyes. It is objectively difficult not to pay attention when someone approaches your table with a blowtorch and proceeds to fill the air with the scent of toasted rosemary. Thankfully, the theatrics did not come at the expense of the meat. The steak was perfectly cooked, with an excellent exterior char, and paired well with the assortment of sauces served alongside it. The chimichurri was the obvious standout for me.
Then came the chicken, which arrived in an orange curry and caper sauce, confirming that the curry flavor I hurriedly scribbled into my notes halfway through dinner was not imagined. Chicken at a steakhouse can sometimes feel like the dish someone orders because they have been dragged there by their more carnivorous friends but Palermo’s version deserves respect as a solid, nuanced offering.
Dessert continued in much the same spirit, although in somewhat more familiar territory. The Chocolate Lava Cake arrived covered in cream and was exactly what the name suggests: rich, warm and straightforward chocolatey comfort. There is nothing revolutionary about it, but revolution is hardly necessary when molten chocolate is involved.
More distinctive were the Panqueques, one of the traditional Argentine desserts highlighted on Palermo’s menu. The thin, crepe-like pancakes arrived topped with finely minced strawberries and banana, providing a fruitier finish to the meal. Between the presentation and combination of flavors, they felt considerably more playful than the lava cake and perhaps more fitting for Palermo as a whole.
That, ultimately, is what makes Palermo interesting. Not every dish is going to make you reconsider what Argentine cooking can be and the restaurant’s considerable talent for presentation occasionally exceeds the ambition of the food itself. But I’m also not convinced that is a criticism Palermo needs to be particularly worried about. Restaurants are allowed to be fun.
Palermo clearly believes a night out should have a little pomp to it. A tentacle can arrive whole. Tartare can ride in on a cloud. A steak can be met with a blowtorch. The cocktails can be colorful, the Malbec can flow freely, and even the bread basket can receive more attention than strictly necessary. When the cooking underneath all of that is solid enough to support the show, it becomes fairly easy to surrender to the spectacle.
And perhaps the most convincing endorsement came from the person sitting across from me. My sister, whose somewhat demanding restaurant criteria began this entire discussion, left Palermo satisfied.
Photo by the Knockturnal
Photo by the Knockturnal
Photo by the Knockturnal
