Brasserie 8½

To celebrate two of my sisters' bdays, all of the sisters went out for dinner.

The restaurant is located on the lower level of some office building I think.

Someone took a bite before I took the pic...

Ordered a bottle of red...

...I liked it. Wasn't too strong at all.

Some sort of crepe...it was complimentary from the chef.  Everyone seemed to like it. For me, it was okay. I think there was some kind of raw seafood in there so that's not my favorite thing.

Seafood Plateau - The Ultimate Mix of Seafood Delicacies and Decadence including Lobster and Razor Clams

A lot of the stuff was raw I think so I ended up eating the shrimp cocktail and mussels. Both were good. Blah, now that I think about it, I forgot to eat the crab meat. Oh well.

Mediterranean Dorade, Heirloom Tomatoes, Watermelon Salad

My sis's appetizer - there was raw seafood in there so I didn't try this.

Pan Roasted Quail, Braised Baby Lettuce, Mushroom Duxelle

Other sis's appetizer. This was decent too. I liked the crispy part of the quail.

Diver Scallop Ceviche - Pineapple-Jalapeno Sorbet, Sea Urchin

My appetizer. I was told this was suppose to be good. It didn't look good and it had raw stuff in it so I let my sisters eat it.
 

10oz Filet Mignon au Poivre with Portobello Fries

Not sure if my sis liked this. I don't remember her giving it praises though.

Confit of Ocean Trout, Beets, Creme Fraiche, Caviar

My other sis's dish. This fish was pretty good. Good for fish I guess. The skin was crispy and it didn't taste that "fishy".

Butter Poached Lobster, Ramp Tagiatelle, Corn, Chanterelles

Other sis's dish. I took one bite but I don't remember what it was like. It wasn't bad though. I think my sis said it was decent tasting. Nothing special.

Heirloom Chicken, Parmesan and Dijon Crust, Asparagus

Ah - my dish. Before I went into this place, I decided that I wasn't going for my safety dish (chicken) and planned on trying something more "exciting". After looking at the menu again, this chicken dish just called my name.

This was pretty good. Everyone said the same thing. The chicken was extremely moist and not chewy. The crust was good although it was just a tad salty. That sauce you see was for the chicken. Good thing I didn't pour it all over my chicken because it was really salty. It would have ruined the meal. Oh, and the asparagus was nice and tender.

Warm Banana Pudding, Caramel Ice Cream, Butterscotch Sauce

This was not bad I think. By the time I took all the pics, the ice cream was all gone so I couldn't even try it. The cake thing was moist and not overly sweet.

Oreo Cheesecake, Roasted Blueberries, Nutella and Maple Blis

This was my dessert ;) It was good...the blueberries went great with the cheesecake.

Cappuccino

I got coffee and sis got this. My coffee went well with my dessert.

Complimentary birthday gift...not sure what was inside. I was too full to even look.

So overall, it wasn't as bad as I though it would be. The service was great and the environment was nice too. We sat down around 6ish and left around 8:15ish. The place wasn't packed at all. I wonder if that is normal.

Oh and I took the majority of these pics w/o the flash. The place was fancy so I didn't want to disturb others with my flash.


Brasserie 8½
9 West 57th. Street
New York, NY 10019
www.brasserie812.com