New York Magazine - USA (2019-11-11)

86 newyork| november11–24, 2019

PHOTOGRAPH: LIZ CLAYMAN FOR NEW YORK MAGAZINE

N

ewrestaurantshavecomein

allshapesandsizesoverthecourse

ofthegreat Chinese-foodrenais-

sancethat’s beenbloomingaround

townforthepastfewyears.Thereare

crawfish-boilrestaurantsandMongolian

hot-potrestaurantsandstringsofnew

fast-casualjointslike theexcellentXi’an

FamousFoods,whichbeganlife

as anouter-borough foodstall

andhasblossomedintoa mini

fast-casual empire. There are

smallneighborhoodrestaurants

openedbysophisticatedémigrés

hungryfora taste ofhome(Hunan

Slurp,MáLà Project),modernres-

taurantsopenedbyentrepreneursfrom

China(MadamZhu’s HaoNoodle),and

aircraft-carrier-sizefranchisesthat arrive

witharmiesofcooksandchefs(thestar-

crossedPeking-duckpalaceDaDong)and

takeupresidenceinprominent,extrava-

gantlydecorated,palatialrooms.

Hutong,whichopeneda fewmonths

agointheprominent,palatialformer

LeCirquespaceoff thecourtyardofthe

Bloombergheadquartersinmidtown,is

thelatest aircraftcarrierofa restaurant

toarriveonourshoresfromacrossthe

Pacific.Like DaDong,Hutonghasgran-

dioseoutletselsewhere(London,Hong

Kong,andonecomingsoontoMiami),

eachpresumablyfittedwithlavish“wine

tower”displays,asthisoneis,andraucous

barzoneswhereyoucansiphigh-concept

cocktailswithnameslikeOrientalBreeze

andthelitchi-and-vanilla-vodka-

basedComfortablyNumb.The

cathedral-height main dining

roomhasbeenre fittedwithacres

ofsilversconces,polishedchande-

liersthathangfromlongwires,and

rowsofhalf-moon-shapedblue

leatherboothsthat lookasthough

they’vebeenlifted,notsogingerly,from

anArtDecobanklobbyinoldShanghai.

“Thisfeelslike thethird-bestrestau-

rantat theBellagio,” someoneat thetable

said,notinaccurately,asI sippedmy high-

conceptfusioncocktail,whichwasa kind

ofOldFashionedtingedwithsesame

seeds.Oneortwoofthefirstappetizers

wesampledremindedmeofsomething

youmightencounterata randomlyover-

pricedVegasestablishment(dry denatured

“crabandtofu”;thecereal-sweet,Cap’n

Crunch–styleSichuan shreddedbeef ).

Butasdinnerprogressed(andI returned

forsubsequentvisits),myChinese-food-

snobfriendsandI foundplentytolike

aboutclassicSichuandisheslike kou

shuichicken(otherwiseknownas“saliva

chicken”thanksto itsmouthwatering

consistency andtemperature),steamy

bambooboxesfilledwithfestivelycolored

dimsum(trytherosé-Champagneshrimp

dumplings),andhousespecialtieslikexiao

longbaodumplingsinjectedwithtangy

depositsofhot-and-soursoup.

Foranoperationofthissize,thefive-

page menu isrefreshingly small and

eclecticandfilledwithmodish“signature”

dishes,eachmarkedwitha stamponthe

pageandrelentlesslypushedbythedili-

gentlyefficientwaitstaff.Theseinclude

cigarillo-sizeslicesofprawnrollmixed

withscallopforextra sweetnessandtex-

ture(verygood)anda strangeinterpre-

tationofporkdumplingsencasedina

faintlychewymochicrust coveredwitha

dustingofcharcoal(sort ofgood).I would

ordertheaforementionedxiaolongbao

again (although my soup-dumpling-

lovingdaughterpronouncedthem“alittle

weird”),andthesamegoesforthehouse

dandannoodles,whichareflavoredwith

plentyofsesameandlip-tinglingmala

spiceandservedlike soupinsmallblue-

and-white-patternedbowls.

Hutongdescribesitselfasa “north-

ernChinese” restaurant,althoughif the

menuveersinanyonedirectionit seems

tobetowardSichuan,which,forthepast

Hutong

food

Edited by

Rob Patronite and

Robin Raisfeld

(^83) VERYGOOD
Hutong
731 LexingtonAve.,
entranceoff 58th
St.;212-758-4800;
hutong-nyc.com
key: The rating scale of 0 to 100 reflects our editors’ appraisals of all the tangible and intangible factors that make a restaurant or bar great—or terrible—regardless of price.
Flash, Dazzle, Dim Sum
Hutong’s pan-regional
fare competes with the scenery.
by adam platt