"The tasting menu has long represented the pinnacle of chefly ambition. And for years now, restaurant critics have complained about it. In 2012, Pete Wells described the "trapped, helpless sensation" he felt facing "a marathon of dishes chosen by the restaurant." Three months later, Corby Kummer, in Vanity Fair, decried the "subjugation to the will of the creative genius" that is required to enjoy a degustation. Adam Platt, my predecessor, memorably wrote about his own "tasting mennui" in 2022. Chefs keep at it anyway."
"Flynn McGarry of Cove, in the developing Hudson Square, and Charlie Mitchell of Saga, rebooted last year at the top of an Art Deco skyscraper, are two young chefs who subscribe to this particular paradigm. At their previous restaurants, Gem (McGarry) and Clover Hill (Mitchell), these tastings made a striking claim: that small rooms run by non-name-brand chefs could play in the big leagues. Now, they've ascended - in Mitchell's case, literally, 63 stories - to bigger rooms, bigger kitchens, and larger staffs."
Tasting menus represent the pinnacle of chefly ambition and have long attracted critical complaint for their marathon, chef-chosen formats. Logistical efficiencies and interpretive signaling sustain the format: tasting menus convey seriousness and an implicit claim to brilliance. Flynn McGarry of Cove and Charlie Mitchell of Saga pursued this paradigm, translating previous small-room successes into larger venues with expanded staffs. International accolades and Michelin recognition often reward multicourse rigor, but the format's demands can blunt individual creativity in New York's dining scene. At Cove, pale-wood-paneled rooms foster calm while McGarry foregrounds technique through steeping, fermenting, freezing-then-shaving, dehydrating, and onstage preparation.
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