Michelin New York City 2006

In vino veritas. There is truth in wine, and the truth is that Veritas spells paradise for oenophiles. Some 100,000 bottles of wine cool their heels in the restaurant's temperature-controlled cellar. It may take you a while to read through the voluminous wine list-or, rather, tome, of 3,000 labels from around the globe. No need to feel overwhelmed, though; the sommelier is always on hand in the stylish dining room to help you narrow down your choices.

January 5, 1999
Cue/Restaurants/Opening

GREAT SCOTT

When chef Scott Bryan and partner Gino Diaferia closed Luma earlier this year, they'd already planned to transfer its sophisticated spirit from west Chelsea to larger quarters in Gramercy, where it's reborn this week as Veritas. Bryan melds his signature Asian and French influences in dishes like tuna tartare with taro-root chips, pickled cucumbers and lemongrass, and braised veal cheeks with truffled celery-root puree. Of special interest is the 1,300-bottle wine list, available for perusing via e-mail and pre-ordering - to ensure adequate decanting time, one would imagine. return to top

RESTAURANTS
Truth to Tell . . .
It's the attention to detail -- in its curry nage, in its wine list, in its air- conditioning duct -- that makes Scott Bryan's Veritas such an instant success.

BY HAL RUBENSTEIN

I know this sounds as if it's damning with faint praise, but Veritas has the craftiest air-conditioning ductwork you've ever seen: a perforated cloth cylinder, spanning the room in silence, suspended just below the ceiling and off the long brick wall. And when it's not in use, the tube deflates to hang flat as a banner, a pale, elevated, mini-version of Christo's Running Fence.

Now, before chef Scott Bryan or any of his partners or staff begins reaching for the Fernet Branca, it's important to note that this is not Veritas's premier attraction. But transforming an unwieldy necessity like a ventilating system into a surprising and inventive design element spotlights the enthusiasm for sly, understated detail that permeates every aspect of this unexpectedly elegant and mature new restaurant.

It's doubtful you would break stride to notice Veritas, certainly not with the picture-windowful of activity going on across the street at Gramercy Tavern. Nor does its narrow bar or square dining room contain any dynamic feature to match the Tavern's vivid bar-corralling mural. And yet Veritas's individual components -- clear, conical bar lamps, muted celadon walls, sleek saddle-leather chairs, diorama niches displaying jewel-tone glass vases set in an oyster-white wall -- combine to create a room that, though spare and deliberately devoid of distractions, feels easy to take refuge in. There is just enough color, just enough comfort, a touch of formality (this place is obviously meant for grown-ups), even a hint of romance in its mellowness.

A full-blown, hot-but-not-heavy love affair is going on just out of view, however, right there in the kitchen -- it's between Bryan and chef de cuisine Christina Kelly and their menu. (Actually, there is another grand passion afoot as well. One look at the stunningly ecumenical, deliciously idiosyncratic, yet sky's-the-limit wine list, and you know you're surrounded by intense oenophilia. A word to the wise: Let the sommelier choose. He can entwine grape to meal better than any pairing Gene Rayburn ever commended on The Match Game).

Considering how other fast-blooming chefs are proclaiming their bistrophilic biases, pan-Asian passions, and South American ardor, brandishing favored spices as if they were aphrodisiacs, Bryan and Kelly's liaison is an atypically quiet thing. The menu's listings are shockingly modest, refusing to reveal each quarter-teaspoon of seasoning or detail every cooking procedure more deft than a toss. Such restraint is both rare and welcome. So is Bryan's enviable and equally uncommon (for the times) urge to turn toward a lighter method of preparing regional American cuisine.

At Bryan's first venture, the now-refashioned Luma, flavors were dense and lush. At his second, Indigo, dishes are constructed of short bursts of bright flavors (and the service, unfortunately, is too often composed of short bursts of grudging attention). At his third, Siena (on the former site of Luma), he harnesses the boisterous big flavors of Italy. But with Veritas, Bryan and Kelly are looking for their union to yield delicacy and refinement, even airiness. It's a risky blend that few attempt because it so often turns precious, leaving diners licking their lips in anticipation until they feel silly and, worse, starving.

Happily, Bryan's gamble has been fruitful, and joyous occasions often multiply with each mouthful. An ethereal bowl of warm truffled oysters exemplifies the level of achievement: a splash of Riesling in a whipped foam of cream and leeks, a sprinkling of fines herbes, fingerling potatoes, plus fat and happy oysters floating to the surface. No chili rub wailing for attention, no blast of cumin demanding its due. The dish flows like the third glass of champagne, more sensual than the rustle of velvet dropping to the floor. Sweetbreads are enriched by chestnut purée but resist their potential pasty aftertaste thanks to a lacing of lemon. Frothy lentil soup looks like a great bowl of cappuccino, delicious as it is weightless, except for rich flecks of thick-cut bacon that barely rest on the tongue for more than two beats.

Wild-mushroom ravioli is another dish worthy of full embrace. The pasta almost ripples in the emulsion, while the porcini and shiitake share, rather than fight for, your attention. A slightly briny tuna tartare is tackled by the sweetness of green onions and mint into happy submission. The foie gras is the only appetizer that could have benefited from some tough love. Tenderly seared and delicious on its own, it should have been accompanied by the pineapple compote or the ginger-pink-peppercorn vinaigrette (the latter is the better consort, though).

The pepper-crusted venison, however, surrounded by a spry cherry-Armagnac jus, is a wonderful ménage. In fact, if a house is going to have only seven entrées, why not make them all equally good? Bryan and Kelly have done just that: A densely sweet, farm-raised chicken in Madeira and a moat of garlic-rich potato purée. Shrimp-and-wild-mushroom risotto with a velvety carpet of black truffles (bound to cause resentment when others realize you're giving all your attention to your plate). A completely satisfying roast squab that's flanked by crunchy green lentils and baby beets but whose charms are unlocked by an innocuous-looking brown sauce that is actually an emulsified elixir of foie gras. And the real star -- shellfish broth bathing moist layers of codfish, studded by eggplant caviar and dusted with saffron. But the fish most altered is salmon in a sublimely buoyant foam of curry nage. I would be delighted to pour the latter on anything. Anything.

There is an inflexible bias in my family that when it comes to dessert, there is chocolate, and then there is everything else. (Daniel Boulud's new restaurant splits his dessert list precisely this way. I have to check: We must be related.) However, neither that nor the smooth brioche bread pudding with mascarpone nor the richly appealing apple tart can match a praline parfait so enticingly perfumed by a reduction of clementine oranges as to qualify as the Dom Pérignon of Creamsicles. I sincerely hope Mr. Bryan takes that as a compliment. I would hate to have him think that I come to Veritas only to enjoy the splendor of his climate-control apparatus. return to top

January 15, 1999
Diner's Journal

Scott Bryan is a very good cook. His partner, Gino Diaferia, is passionate about wines. And while their Luma in Chelsea was impressive in many ways, it always seemed too cramped for the size of their ambitions.

So it was no surprise when they remade their restaurant last year as the more affordable Siena and last week opened another restaurant, Veritas, just across the street from Gramercy Tavern. Like its predecessor, it is a small restaurant, but this one is spare and elegant, decorated with hand-blown glass that seems to have wafted in to perch above the tables.

The menu is signature Bryan, with dishes like warm oysters in a bowl of richly truffled cream, and hamachi tartare mixed with lemongrass and mint and topped with osetra caviar. Venison is served with dried cherries, spaghetti squash and a potato gratin, and braised veal cheeks of almost unimaginable softness rest on a bed of potato puree.

But it is the wine list, tended by four sommeliers, that will draw gasps. The regular wine list is small and extremely reasonable, with several bottles at $18.

The reserve list, however, is enormous, filled with impressive, impossible to find bottles. In most restaurants with lists like this, wine lovers bore their friends by burying themselves in the list for hours of happy reading. But Veritas has a better solution: You can study the list on the Internet. The address is www.veritas-nyc.com. return to top

March 3, 1999
Restaurants

Veritas: A Tiny Spot Where Wine Is the Star

By RUTH REICHL

VERITAS is an early clue to a new direction, a sign that restaurants may be changing. And frankly, I'm not sure that I like the implications.

Because at Veritas, the wine is more important than the food.

It is, in fact, so important that the place could be called a wine cellar with a restaurant attached. It is so important that wine snobs have been known to sit for hours poring over the amazing document that is the wine list. It is so important that the wine list, all 1,300 entries, is on line.

How did Veritas come to have a wine cellar that includes a Château Margaux 1900, as well as Mouton-Rothschild 1945 and Lafite-Rothschild 1953? The wines belonged to two of the restaurant's owners, major wine collectors, who realized they had more wine than time. "I could never possibly finish it," Park B. Smith said. And so he and Steve Verlin decided to share their bounty. When they opened the restaurant with Gino Diaferia and Scott Bryan, the owners of Indigo and Siena, the partners were so eager to share their passion for wine that they have been selling their extraordinary wines at extremely reasonable prices, like a 1984 Laville Haut Brion at $60, a 1989 Chambertin for $250 and a 1982 Château Pétrus for $1,850.

All this is very nice for wine drinkers, of course, but it presents the chef with a serious challenge. Creating food memorable enough to stand up to this wine list is anything but easy.

Fortunately, Bryan is equal to the task. He has worked with stars like Eric Ripert, David Bouley and Gray Kunz and has a knack for getting the best out of each of his ingredients. In forging his own deceptively simple style, he seems to have learned a little from each of them. His clean, unfussy food is quietly sly: you barely notice that you are tasting chili peppers, ginger and vanilla in a pineapple compote served with seared foie gras. You do notice, however, that it is so delicious that it quickly disappears.

But then, all of Bryan's food is like that. Consider a hamachi tartare that he and his chef de cuisine, Christina Kelly, are serving. Tuna tartare is on every upscale menu in town, and they are not the only chefs to top it with a substantial scoop of osetra. But they are alone in folding in hints of mint, scallion and soy, and the result is memorable.

Bryan's way with sweetbreads is also extraordinary, their texture underlined by chestnut purée, their sweet softness emphasized by lemon. And the latest version of his signature dish, a luxurious oyster stew with leeks, chives, potatoes and lemon juice, is even more seductive than the one I remember from Luma.

But appetizers are not the major challenge to a chef faced with a wine list like this. The difficulty is keeping pace with the wines as they grow more impressive. Bryan clearly considered this and created main courses for important wines. More straightforward than the appetizers, they are robust, powerful and surprisingly simple. His chicken, for instance, is truly flavorful, served with a rich, garlicky potato purée and a sprinkling of fava beans.

Although the list has amazing depth in big red wines, Bryan has very little red meat on the menu. He emphasizes venison instead of beef, spicing the meat with pepper and serving it with a dried cherry and Armagnac jus to make it more potent. He then adds the surprise of spaghetti squash and the richness of a potato gratin. But the gamiest dish on the menu is squab, which is powered by an emulsion of foie gras and set on a bed of bacon-infused lentils. Any red wine would be happy paired with this bird. Bryan turns veal into a vehicle for red meat as well, braising the cheeks with carrots until they are astonishingly soft and sweet, and setting them onto a celery root purée.

Bryan has also included a couple of unusual fish dishes. He serves salmon with sautéed Asian greens in a lightly curried sauce, complex enough to go well with red wine. And for those who want to hedge their bets, Bryan occasionally serves a special of scallops in an oxtail sauce; it is a fascinating dish that gives a wine lover room to stretch.

The intensity does not abate with desserts. In addition to an excellent rendition of the ubiquitous warm chocolate cake (called a soufflé here), there is a startlingly delicious praline parfait with a polished reduction of clementines so good that it eases you right into sweet wine.

With seating for only 65 people, Veritas has the usual problems of tiny restaurants. "Don't be late," I was warned one night when the only reservation I could get was for 7 P.M. "We will need your table by 9." But who wants to be rushed when drinking history? It can be uncomfortably crowded at the door, too, and there is often a line for the restroom.

The owners have taken a big chance with Veritas. Still, people in the restaurant business have their eyes on this place: if it succeeds, it is going to be a very hard act to follow.

***

ATMOSPHERE: Small, spare, elegant and filled with people looking pleased to have snagged a reservation.

SERVICE: Proud and professional, occasionally slowed by the kitchen.

SOUND LEVEL: Surprisingly civilized, given the size of the room.

RECOMMENDED DISHES: Hamachi tartare, sautéed sweetbreads with chestnut purée, frothy lentil soup, wild mushroom ravioli, warm oysters, seared foie gras with pineapple compote, spiced venison loin, chicken with potato purée, braised veal, roast squab, seared salmon, chocolate soufflé, praline parfait, crème fraîche panna cotta.

WINE LIST: Enormous (1,300 selections), memorable and well priced.

PRICE RANGE: Lunch appetizers, $8 to $18; main courses, $18 to $21. Dinner appetizers, $8 to $18; main courses, $23 to $29; desserts, $8; cheese, $12.

HOURS: Lunch, Monday to Friday, noon to 2:15 P.M.; dinner, Monday to Saturday, 6 to 10:45 P.M.

CREDIT CARDS: All major cards.

WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: One step at the door, with a removable ramp. return to top

February 22-28, 1999

Enjoying days of wine and rosés

Palate-pleasing American fare joins cornucopia of fine drinks at Veritas

BY BOB LAPE

Wine's the thing in Manhattan's emerging restaurants.

Bayard's, an impressive newcomer at India House, taps the Poulakakos family's 100,000-bottle cellar, the biggest in town. Le Bateau Ivre, an already jammed wine bar on East 51st Street, pours 150 wines by the glass. The new Daniel has more than 700 options. And Veritas - as in the age-old phrase in vino veritas - truthfully is just too tiny for its own good. It needs more room for seekers of New York's most riveting wine list and exceptional food.

The Veritas wine rosters, regular and reserve, are so large that the 65-seat restaurant (only 45 at non-smoking tables) has a wine director and three sommeliers. Three of the restaurant's owners, Gino Diaferia, Park B. Smith and Steve Verlin, plugged their own previously private collections into the list, with unprecedented and jaw-dropping results.

Some great wines are priced well below wine store levels. Others are marked up only a few percent. All, from $18 to $25,000, are fascinating enough to drive wine buffs into a legitimate frenzy. The biggie, for your next significant celebratio, is a magnum of Château Margaux from the 1900 vintage.

Chef Scott Bryan is the fourth partner in Veritas. He skillfully plumbs his experience at Bouley, Le Bernardin, Lespinasse, Gotham Bar & Grill and duets with Diaferia at Luma, Siena and Indigo. The Bryan menu is brief but brilliant and goes great with wine.

Veritas appetizers ($8 to $16) are as straightforward as a perfectly dressed toss of fresh greens with herbs and red wine vinaigrette. Earthy elegance perfumes frothy lentil soup with hints of bacon and thyme. Porcini and shiitake mushrooms star in wild mushroom ravioli, and a tuna tartare crowned with osetra caviar is flavored with mint, green onions and soy.

Lightly seared foie gras is paired with pineapple compote and ginger-pink peppercorn vinaigrette. A cheese selection ($12) is offered as a first or last course.

Chef Bryan's globally influenced entrées range from superb seared salmon with sautéed Asian greens and curry broth, to shrimp and wild mushroom risotto with black truffles, chives and lemon.

Delicious braised veal has the texture of brisket, and a tender roast chicken with garlic-potato puree is redolent of Madeira. Lovers of big flavors may opt for spiced venison loin with dried cherry-Armagnac jus, or Black Angus sirloin with classic red-wine-shallot sauce. Roasts of squab and codfish round out the choices.

Desserts ($7 to $10) maintain the excellence levels of the earlier courses. Delicate praline parfait in clementine essence is presented in a low, circular format; the chocolate soufflé with vanilla ice cream has an appealingly runny center, and an apple tart is perfectly caramelized.

You may want the selection of cheeses at this point in the meal. They are ripe and well-chosen - albeit served with raisin nut bread, among other platforms. Many restaurants do this even though raisins clutter the palate, detracting from the pure appreciation of the different cheese types.

Veritas serves a number of items in large bowls whose sides encourage your sppon, if left unattended for even a blink, to slide right on in, which can make for repeated messy retrievals.

On one visit, first-course items arrived with almost lightning speed, but less than hot. The same night, there was a lengthy wait for entrées, which were sensational.

The Veritas staff, sensitive and savvy, is as good as the wine list. I truly hope you can get in to try this very special restaurant. return to top

WINE & SPIRITS
February 1999
by Tara Q. Thomas

Veritas hopes to become NYC's biggest wine scene this winter, offering selections from more than 1,300 producers worldwide. Dan Perlman, formerly of Felidia, runs the list, and is backed by four wine-crazed proprieters: Gino Diaferia and Scott Bryan (of Siena and Indigo), and Park B. Smith and Steve Verlin, two collectors who are opening their private cellars (totalling 66,000 bottles) to diners. The result ranges the world at $18 to $20,000; a perfect playground for wine-heads in the burgeoning Flatiron district. return to top

February 28, 1999
by James Molesworth

A new restaurant in Manhattan has debuted with an impressive wine list that promises to make it a haven for wine lovers seeking rarities.

Veritas, which opened in January in the up-and-coming Gramercy district; already boasts some 1,300 selections on its wine list; which encompasses top Bordeaux, Rhone and California reds, including such hard-to-find wines as Araujo Eisele Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1994 from Napa Valley (offered on Veritas' list for $130 [Veritas note: actual price is $195...], Chateau Rayas Chateauneuf-du-Pape Réservé 1995 ($495), Clarendon Hills Shiraz Astralis 1995 ($250) from Australia and more. The Bordeaux selections include verticals of all the first-growth chateaus, including Margaux back to 1900, Mouton-Rothschild back to '45 and Lafite-Rothschild to '53.

Veritas is able to offer its bounty by tapping the private cellars of two of the restaurant's partners, Steve Verlin and Park Smith, both of whom are major wine collectors. Altogether, Veritas purchased nearly 70,000 bottles from the cellars of Verlin and Smith.

"This is really a unique situation," said wine director Dan Perlman. "We are in essence buying wines from our owners, which allows us to offer wines that are normally only available for exorbitant sums at more honest markups."

The list doesn't offer only high-end wines. Perlman has 100 selections priced from $18 to $80, including Qupe Syrah Central Coast 1997 for $25, Bonny Doon Dry Riesling 1996 for $20 and Yves Cuilleron La Petite Cote Condrieu 1997 for $35.

The menu will be under the direction of chef Scott Bryan. Bryan cut his teeth at New York's popular Luma, and his contemporary American style of cooking has won him favorable reviews. Veritas seats 65, offering lunch and dinner, with appetizers ranging between $7 and $14 and entrŽes between $16 and $28. return to top

February 1999
edited by Lois Tanner

What do you get when you put together a sleek, loftlike space; top-notch chef Scott Bryan; and an inventive menu that includes warm truffled oysters with leeks and Riesling? Veritas, the newest culinary project of restaurateur Gino Diaferia, which recentlyh opened in Manhattan's restaurant-happy Flatiron District. return to top

J. Walman's Restaurant Report Card
As Heard Daily On WEVD, News-Talk Radio
Veritas: Rating A+
Copyright 1999 by Punch In International Syndicate.
Friday, March 12, 1999

Clean, modern lines & a dramatic use of understatement define Veritas, an airy space clothed in tones of ivory, cream, slate and celadon. There is an entire wall of Italian marble mosaic tile, design accents in brushed stainless steel and natural beech wood, and geometrical-shaped niches along a wall in the dining room which house Italian hand-blown glass vases. Owned by Gino Diaferia (Luma-now-Sienna), Scott Bryan (also executive chef), Park B. Smith, Steve Verlin, this one month old restaurant already runs like a Swiss watch. Service is unbelievably polished & solicitous. Food, as executed by Chef de Cuisine, Christina Kelly, has style, class, invention & in short is as close to perfect as one could expect in a city where one could spend the same price (or more) for mediocre-cliches.

Indicative of Chef Bryan’s personal touch (I must admit a prejudice toward his style which to me exhibits the best of the new-American chefs),are such signature appetizers as Warm Truffled Oysters with Leeks, Fingerling Potatoes, Riesling & Fine Herbs; Tuna Tartar, Taro Root Chips, Pickled Cucumbers, Lemongrass, Mint & Soy (the only dish that didn’t move me, it’s what I call a "Ruth Reichl" pseudo-Asian plate.) The tuna was overpowered
by the soy sauce & in my opinion Chef Bryan is so brilliant, he needn’t bow to a trend that on its last legs. Seared Foie Gras with Caramelized Pineapple, Black Pepper & Ginger on the other hand looked marvelous (the two gentlemen at the next table seemed to enjoy it immensely.)

Entrees fared even better & were of 4 star quality. Pan Roasted Skate (a special) on an Oxtail Daube, was a glorious amalgamation of tastes & textures & for once in a NY restaurant, the skate was crispy, cooked on one side & perfect. Other dishes included Salmon Natural with Asian Greens, Curry Emulsion & Chive Oil, braised Veal, Aromatic Vegetables, Porcini and Braising Juices, Roasted Squab with French Green Lentils, Roasted Golden Beets, Garlic Confit & Foie Gras Emulsion; & a wonderful Pepper Crusted Venison with Potato Leek Gratin & Sour Cherry-Armagnac Sauce.

Price Ranges For Dinner appetizers:$8 - $18; entrees: $22 – $29.Desserts: $8 - $12, by Lynn Schnarr, are light as a feather & a perfect conclusion to Bryan’s food. I loved the praline parfait, a welcome respite from creme brulee & a brioche bread pudding with chestnut mascarpone mousse. With this feast, we enjoyed excellent cocktails, followed by a glass of surprisingly pleasant Albarino, a Bordeaux-like wine from Galicia & a wonderful Paul Druet Champagne—so alive with tiny bubbles and about 40% Pinot Noir which gave it enormous depth. If you like big, deep, velvety reds as I do, look no further than the town’s best buy in a $26 red, the remarkable Condado de Haza 1996 (second label of the illustrious Pesquera).

The wine list, by Dan Perlman, features a marvelous selection of Reserves from the owners' own cellars & a fascinating & eclectic collection from around the world. Mr. Perlman is that rare wine-director—one who knows what he’s doing & prices the wines intelligently, so that customers can afford to order a second bottle. The 90 page list deserves hours of perusing & is available on the excellent Veritas website: Click here if you're viewing this http://www.veritas-nyc.com/wine.htm. The two lists total over 1300 selections ranging in price from $18 to $25,000, with a good number of selections on the Reserve List in the $75 - $125 range. return to top

$$$$



Don't be fooled by the guy at the next table wearing jeans and a sweater. He's probably drinking a $500 bottle of wine -- and that is primarily what Veritas is all about. Conceived by Gino Diaferia, with executive chef Scott Bryan (they also own Indigo and Siena), the restaurant boasts one of the most extensive and reasonably priced wine lists in the city. The extraordinary 7,000-bottle cellar was built around partners Park Smith and Steve Verlin's vast private wine collections, which contained more treasures than they could possibly drink in a lifetime.

Veritas's appeal lies in the impeccable quality of its offerings (with pristine selections from all of the world's major wine producing regions), and a sensible approach to mark-ups. Many wines on the list actually sell for no more (and occasionally even less) than their replacement cost at wholesale or auction. So if you've ever wanted to take a flyer on a bottle of the celebrated Chateau Pétrus 1982 (at $1,850) or DRC Romanée-Conti 1990 at $3,000, this is the place to do it. Conversely, you will also be content with a Terra Rosa Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 from Chile for a mere $20.

The restaurant's look is sleek, soothing, and spare. A seductively lit, stainless steel-topped bar welcomes you on arrival. The gray brick-walled dining room, complemented by gray mosaic tiles, is discreetly illuminated, accented by a vivid display of contemporary art glass. Plush leather chairs and banquettes are more comfortable than a pair of Gucci loafers. At Veritas, Scott Bryan faces a daunting task: how to devise a menu that complements 1,300 fine wines without bringing it all down to the lowest common denominator of tastes. He manages deftly by producing flavorful and sophisticated fare that is not about to overpower the subtle nuances of a $250 Marcassin Winery Chardonnay 1994 or a $3,000 magnum of Chateau Margaux 1961. Dramatic crystal stemware sets the stage for the wine to come.

Warm truffled oysters with fingerling potatoes, leeks and chives are an elegant beginning. So is the delicate hamachi tartare with mint green onions, soy and ossetra caviar, worthy of a more full-bodied accompaniment. Sautéed sweetbreads with chestnut puree and lemon can stand up to a variety of bottlings.

Tender braised veal with porcinis and baby carrots invites thoughts of a forward-tasting red Burgundy such as a Joseph Roty Gevrey-Chambertin 1995 at $100. The rich hangar steak (in a red wine shallot reduction) garnished with crunchy haricots verts and potato purée evokes a powerful Qupé Central Coast Syrah, 1997 at $25, or if the sky's the limit, an opulent red Rhone, such as E. Guigal La Landonne 1978 for $990. Can't decide on a white or a red? Then the farm chicken with garlic potato purée, fava beans and Madeira will let you go either way. Only the spiced Venison loin with spaghetti squash seemed a tad potent for an easy match.

The dessert menu allows for ample experimentation in the sweet wine category. The apple tart is standard fare yet works well with a variety of Sauternes or late harvest Rieslings. The créme fraîche panna cotta fares better on its own than with the accompanying wedges of pineapple. (Unfortunately, the excellent chocolate soufflé served with vanilla ice cream is a tough match for sweet whites. Best bet is to continue sipping any leftover red from your main course).

The vest-clad waitstaff is efficient and unobtrusive. Wine service can be passionate in its enthusiasm, and at other times a bit condescending. But every member of the team is extremely knowledgeable. Veritas even has a solution for anyone who finds the list overwhelming to peruse in one sitting. It's downloadable on the web (along with the menu) at http://www.veritas-nyc.com. This unique approach to food and wine lets the diner prepare himself in cyberspace for the meal to come. return to top

A Toast to Wine-Rich, Truly Excellent Veritas

by Bob Lape

Opening Statement

Truly, Veritas is the place to go for wine and terrific food. The new restaurant from the team that cooked up Luma, Siena and later Indigo has New York's greatest wine list. There are more than 1,300 choices drawn largely from three of the partners' private collections. Many are priced below what retail stores would ask. If a courtroom triumph or new partnership is being celebrated, do it here - if you can get a table.

Testimony

The 65-seat setting evokes the clean modern lines of Luma, where owner Gino Diaferia and chef Scott Bryan first joined forces. The cool, attractive main dining room has one wall of Italian marble mosaic tiles and niches housing hand-blown glass vases. An exceptionally savvy service team patrols the restaurant discreetly, taking care not to barge into the middle of conversations - almost a lost art.

Veritas has three sommeliers and a wine director. Small wonder, given the bottled glory being offered. Wines are priced from $18 to $25,000 (a magnum of 1900 Chateau Margaux). Some great wines are priced more than $100 under wine stoe lows. In its first month, 60 percent of the restaurant's sales were in wine.

Chef Bryan draws on experience in New York's most accomplished kitchens such as those of Bouley, Le Bernardin and Lespinasse. He prepares a splendid short menu of handsome, contemporary American food that weds well with wine. It also stands on its own in any company.

For openers, there is foie gras, lightly seared and played off against pineapple compote and ginger-pink peppercorn vinaigrette. Tuna tartare is energized with mint, green onions and soy, and garnished with osetra caviar. Wild mushroom ravioli feature aromatic earthiness of porcinis and shiitakes. Bacon and thyme accents spark an irresistble frothy lentil soup, and a simple salad of fresh greens is pristine perfection in a toss of red wine vinaigrette and herbs.

A cheese selection may be ordered as either first or last course, or - more likely - any time you please. Good cheeses are ripe and ready.

Seven regular menu entrees occasionally get a "specials" lift from the likes of Black Angus sirloin with "smashed" potatoes and red wine-shallot sauce. Another meat well-paired with big wines is spiced venison loin with spaghetti squash, potato-leek gratin and dried cherry-armagnac jus.

Tapping tasteful global influences that exemplify modern American cooking at its best, chef Bryan's kitchen serves seared salmon in a bowl with curry broth and sauteed Asian greens; and stirs shrimp and wild mushrooms into risotto with black truffle, chives and lemon. There are roasts of Maine cod and of squab; and juicy chicken with garlic potato puree, fava beans and madeira. Veal is braised to a tender, brisket-like texture, with porcinis, baby carrots and other vegetables.

Portions are not large, so it's easy to slot that cheese course in after entrees and before desserts. Three standout sweets are a low-rise praline parfait with clementine suace a runny-centered chocolate souffle with vanilla ice cream and intense chocolate sauce; and a perfectly caramelized apple tart.

Cross Examination

Veritas is too small. With only 45 seats in the smoke-free dining room, frustration may follow your desire to visit for the first or subsequent times. Give yourself lots of lead time.

First course dishes were less than hot on one visit, but delicious nevertheless. There was a rather long wait for entrees, but they are worth it.

Veritas likes serving things in big bowls into which idle spoons will most certainly slide. Keep a grip.

Summation

Veritas is the new standard for wine-rich restaurans in New York. In no other place I know are so many wonderful wines available to so few. May their plans to start lunch be quickly realized. return to top