Onda, New York City

I know, I know... this blog is eNJoy, emphasis on the NJ, but come on. It would be wrong of me to ignore our neighbor to the North, especially when it's so close by and full of so much delicious food. That being said, welcome to our first ever 'On The Road' edition of eNJoy. The Sister and her boyfriend HF were in the city for the weekend so Matt and I decided to join them for some NY eats. We left The Sister in charge of picking the restaurant and after 'hours of research' she decided on Onda, a hip Spanish joint in the Seaport. It was a bit hard to find, but upon arrival the place was dimly lit and decorated with lots of funky, colorful glass. All of the light fixtures were made out of wacky old bottles or wine glasses and every table was covered in a different patterned fabric. Way modern... it would have been intimidating if the staff hadn't greeted us so happily upon our entering.

We decided to order a slew of starters to share, so that we could all try a little bit of everything. First out were the two ceviches we ordered. The first was the wild striped bass ceviche, which was ridiculously fresh and bright tasting. There was the cold, clean taste of the bass acompanied by a tangy passionfruit sorbet, some spicy red onion slices and a crazy citrus sauce. This was unlike any ceviche I have ever had. The fish was so mild and the sorbert was so cold and the sauce was so tangy... every bite was loaded with an array of flavors and textures. The other ceviche was called a mixto, and it was completely different. This one had shrimp, clams and crab and had a roasted tomato sauce, a heaping dollop of guacamole, and two large plantain chips (called tostones). The sauce was a little salty and a lot flavorful... it had a bright tomato taste that went really well with the seafood and guac. I hope that none of you are imagining a tomato sauce like on pasta... this was a super thin sauce... almost like a broth... no...even more like a consomme. The shellfish had a little bit of bite and was really delicious. The tostones were super crunchy and had the whole sweet and salty thing happening. These were perfect for scooping up the chunky guacamole (which wasn't exactly fabulous with the fish but was very fabulous on its own).

The next dish was a beet and apple salad, and this was meh. It was absolutely nothing special. There were both yellow and red beets, but they were completely undercooked... in fact I thought they may have been raw. They were too crunchy....I shouldn't feel like I'm working when eating a salad. The dressing was boring... the apples were fine. The only delicious thing on the plate were the candied nuts, and there weren't enough of them to save the dish. We all agreed that it was a throw away dish. Oh well... ya win some ya lose some.

Now, HF comes from Texas, so the guy knows his barbeque. That being said, we had to order the pork ribs, ya know, to see how they stood up. They were covered in a sweet and spicy sauce... it seemed to have a ton of honey and black pepper in it. The meat was incredibly tender and slid off of the bone with very little resistance. There was just the right amount of fat so that the ribs were crazy juicy and flavorful but not greasy or gristly. I liked these a lot. I wanted to scoop all of the excess sauce off of the plate and apply it to something (or everything) else. Or drink it... with a straw. Mmmm sauce. (Oh and for the record HF approved of the ribs. Score one for the North)

In addition to our pork ribs, we couldn't resist the call of the pork belly dish. Out came five cubes of tender pork belly surrounding a ball of fried idiazabal cheese. The pork was delicious, and I was a bit mad because there just simply wasn't enough of it. Whatever it was glazed with provided a sweet and savory taste that went really well with the other components. The cheese was crunchy and herbacious on the outside and creamy and mild on the inside. The tomato was cold and fresh and when you got a bite of everything together it was really spectacular. I wish it was bigger... it took a lot for me not to pull the plate up close and yell 'MINE' at everyone else at the table.

Our last appetizer was a chicken empenada. This was unlike any empanada I have ever had, both in lookand taste. A mushroom cap shaped pastry came out and it took us all a minute before we realized that this was indeed what we ordered. It was eerily shiny and looked like it would be sweet, but what greeted our taste buds was not at all what we expected. The chicken was ground and had an almost Indian food like flavor profile. The texture was strange but not unpleasant. The pineapple salsa on the side was fantastic... sweet and tropical tasting with a touch of heat and a bite of pepper. I doubt I would order this dish again, but I am not unhappy that we got it.

We were more than halfway full at the end of all the apps, so it seems that we had made the right decision when we only ordered two entrees for the table. The first was a roasted chicken (never my first choice but, hey, majority rules) with a pickled onion relish. The chicken was good, as far as roasted chicken goes. Nice crispy skin, tender on the inside.... I just find the taste of roasted chicken meat boring. The Sister, Matt and HF all really liked it though, and since I am no expert, I'll take their opinion at face value. What made this dish delicious to me, though, was the super tangy pickled onion relish. Loaded with jalapenos, cilantro and onion which were all well doused in a vinegary mixture, this was spicy and sour and tart all at once. It provided a crazy flavor contrast to the mild chicken, and when you got the briney relish, the crunhcy skin and the bird meat all in one mouthful it was awesome.

Our final dish made the whole night for me. It was Churrasco, a delicious grilled skirt steak served over pickled tomato and fresh asparagus. The best part of any Churrasco is, of course, the chimichurri sauce, and this was no exception. Chimchurri is an olive oil based sauce composed of parsley, oregano, chili, and lemon zest. It is crazy fresh tasting, all herbs and freshness. Ya take this sauce and put it on perfectly grilled, medium rare meat (confirmed by our resident Texan HF) and you get a savory and outdoorsy flavor that is unlike any other. The piece of meat was gorgeous, too, and really big. Each of us got several thick slices and there was still some left to pick at. Very good, very meaty, very perfect.

I am oh so glad that The Sister chose to spend the better part of an afternoon looking through restaurant reviews before finally settling on Onda. The atmosphere was terrific, the service was really friendly but not over bearing, and the food was delicious, unique and beautiful. Obviously I was surrounded by wonderful company (which canhelp any meal along) but the cuisine really was a pleasure. So next time you decide to head out of our gorgeous garden state for an evening, I suggest you take a ride to Onda and order up a fancy ceviche. You'll be sooooo glad you did.

Onda

http://www.ondanyc.com/

229 Front Street

New York, NY 10038

212 513 0770