Tasting Notes: Coqueta

Snagged rezzies @ Chiarello's new digs in the former Lafite spot @ Pier 5 and the place was beyond buzzing. Granted, it was opening week, Chef was in the house schmoozing & there was a heavy industry presence but, still, it was more like an event than a normal weekday dinner.
It looks MUCH nicer than it did as Lafite's, especially that little plastic, overflow tent. It's replaced with a bona fide outdoor-y space not unlike the outdoor seating @ Botegga. In fact, unsuprizingly, the decor has a very Botegga-y feel right down to the wood tones, server unis, custom flatware & copper water glasses that will be available for purchase @ NapaStyle before I can finish typing this sentence.

 FRIEND: Bread Soup. Octopus. Cheese (Valdeon). Tortilla Andres. House Cured Olives + Sardines.

BLOCK: Lardo/Uni/Iberico Ham slider. Cured Cod Salad. Duck Meatballs.

- The dude carrying the plank of $2.50/pop hor d'ouevers is genius. Fun way to begin a meal & all 3 (of 5) we tried were tasty.

- Best. Octopus. Ever. Like the Most Interesting Man in the World, I don't always eat octopus. But, when I do, I want it smoky, charred & tender. W/e they do to it is amazing & I mean it when I say's it's the best I've ever consumed. Do. Not. Miss.

- Biggest suprise of the nite was also the cheapest: Bread Soup w/a sous vide egg. Deep, developed smoky flavors enhanced with a gooey egg. Just awesome. And, at $6 bowl, you can get a bowl for everybody so they don't try & steal yours. *glares @ The Hottie*

- It looks like Kitchen Towels as napkins are the new Edison Bulb.

- Chef if much shorter than The Hottie thought he'd be. I tend to side w/her on this as he does seem much taller on TV. He's not a tall man...

- Even with a rezzie, be prepared to wait. This is arguably the biggest restaurant opening in The City of 2013 & will remain a Hot Spot for a while.

- They have Valdeon (squee!) one of my fave Blue Cheeses of ALL TIME! Price is right but, oddly, they give you very little bread to go w/your cheese. Then again, you could say they give you way too much cheese for the volume of bread? Either way, the ratio is off but it shouldn't disuade you. You WANT the cheese. Always.

- As ZOMG as the Lardo/Sea Urchin/Iberico Ham dish sounds, skip it. I took the $$$ hit for you. It's fine, but for the same price you could have the Chef's Cheese tasting or 3 bowls of the afforementioned soup.