Prune

This evening Alex and I tried the restaurant Prune down in the East Village for the first time.  And I am in love.  I cannot describe in words how much I truly enjoyed tonight's meal, but I can say that I enjoyed it more than recent meals at Volt, Ouest, Tangled Vine, Co., and maybe even Marea.  The only restaurant that Alex and I could come up with that we might have enjoyed as much as Prune was Umi Nom out in Brooklyn.  But I have to say that Prune won that battle for me.  I can best describe what we tried there as the very best versions of the very best ingredients, so simply prepared that all you taste are the purity of the ingredients themselves.  And it is WONDERFUL.  Now I know why Anthony Bourdain is always talking about Prune (and chef Gabrielle Hamilton) and how much he loves it/her.  I only wish I had brought my camera with me to take pictures, but to be honest, pictures wouldn't have done the meal justice.  For those who are curious about what we ate (even though there are no pictures), Alex and I had:

• Roasted Marrow Bones, parsley salad, sea salt
• Marinated White Anchovies, celery hearts, toasted Marcona almonds
• Fried Sweetbreads with bacon and capers
• Seared Duck Breast with dandelion greens, raisin-caper dressing
• Coco Blanc Beans with Chanterelles and Maine shrimp.

Every last dish was amazing.  But you have to try the marrow bones.  Alex and I came up with the same phrase to describe the marrow - it's like the most delicious butter ever.  And who doesn't love butter?