Cosme and Daniel: A Great Week of New York Dining

This week Joan and I celebrated my birthday and our anniversary at two great -- but totally different -- restaurants.

Cosme

For my birthday, we dined with our friends Mee-Seen and Jeffrey at Cosme, which serves gourmet Mexican food unlike an that I have ever experienced. This outpost of a famous Mexico City restaurant serves delicious, interesting dishes, exquisitely presented in a hip (i.e, LOUD) restaurant in the Flatiron district. All dishes are meant to be shared, which allows everyone to try many dishes.

Here are some of the ones we had (photos other than mole courtesy of our friend Mee-Seen):

First, razor clam tostada with peanuts and salsa "macha," barely seared and looking like a chrysanthemum flower;

Razor clams at Cosme

Next, baby bok choy with green mole and morita vinegar

Baby bok choy with green mole at Cosme

There followed a mole de case, looking like a Japanese ceramic dish,

eaten on a tortilla with an embedded shiso leaf and topped with burrata and quelites(whatever they are).

Tortilla with shiso leaf at Cosme

The piece de resistance was the daily special, sea bass with the scales roasted and place on top, served over a wonderful herb and citrus sauce.

Sea bass special at Cosme

 Daniel

We had not been to Daniel for some years, although we frequent Daniel Boulud's other establishments: Bar Boulud, Cafe Boulud, Boulud Sud and Epicerie Boulud, each of which is excellent in its own way. The flagship, though, is in another sphere, a beautiful, classy space with superb French food and great service. The food is uncompromisingly French but not stodgy, beautifully presented (I didn't want to take photos in this palace so you'll have to trust me) and really good. We had a thoroughly enjoyable meal to celebrate our 44th anniversary, as witnessed by the commemorative menu they prepared listing the dishes that we ordered.

Both Cosme and Daniel are heartily recommended.

Bobby Jay