BEDFORD & CO.
With long wooden panels lining the floor to literally stretching across the vast ceiling, edgy nineties modern planar copper light fixtures extending the length of an antique mirrored bar, colorful pop modern art framed prints on the walls and a chalkboard painted wall that emphasizes the window to the open kitchen that houses a huge wood-burning open grill, Bedford & Co.’s ambiance that takes me back to the elevated dining experiences I've had out in Colorado.
From the wood-grilled Portuguese Octopus small plate, to the Squid Ink Spaccatelli, to the massive Prime Hanger Steak, every dish is charred, grilled, sauted and boiled to perfection. In exploring the inner workings of the kitchen, I found myself standing in front of the restaurant's wood-burning open grill extending my hands palms outward towards the heat. Like a kid basking beside a campfire, I noted that this rich warm smell is not one that you typically encounter within the confines of Manhattan--maybe upstate, at a hipster s’mores roasting session in Brooklyn, or somewhere a plane ride away with open space and farmland. Imagine the flavors that come from it--it’s like a temperature controlled campfire that evenly cooks of your meal!
When it comes to Executive Chef John Delucie and Chef De Cuisine Justin Neubeck’s regional menu curation and cooking methods, it is clear that there is an emphasis put on developing their menu around the freshest produce at the city's green markets and meats that the butcher cuts—just take one mouthful and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. Sitting at a table set for ten, every bite that was taken from our shareable dishes was followed with a “mmm, this is amazing, you so need to try it!”. Well, that or complete and utter silence in hopes that everyone else would forget about that one dish and, in true Darwinian style, you could hoard it all for yourself. Again, take one bite, you'll see what I'm talking about!
