Bistango, 29th and 3rd, NYC. Great Italian food and optionally gluten-free

A week ago Friday, Linda and I had the wonderful occasion of getting together with some old friends from my bartending days in Albany. We met at Bistango in NYC located on the corner of 29th St and 3rd Ave. I hadn't seen this group of friends for around 20 years: Cool Chris and Caryn were in from London, Mad Mark and Amy drove down from Rockland County, Jumpin Joe lives uptown in the city and he was the one who suggested and arranged our reservation at Bistango.

When we arrived in this soft-lit, sparely decorated yet elegant restaurant, Joe was drinking a dark beer that I hadn't seen before and I asked what it was, he said it was Green's, a Belgian sorghum beer. When I hear sorghum beer, I immediately think of my good buddy Danno who requires a gluten-free diet that avoids all wheat and related grains containing gluten in his food and drink. And, sure enough, Joe, like Danno, practices a gluten-free diet. In fact, he chose Bistango not just for its first-class Italian food, but also for its optional gluten-free menu. Not only does Bistango serve gluten-free food if you request it, they actually have a separate cooking station in the kitchen devoted to gluten-free food preparation so there's no chance of contamination.

On to drinks and the Italian food: Linda had her current standard Tanqueray and tonic with half tonic/half club soda while I settled on a Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter which appeared to be on tap. As Joe is a regular at Bistango, we relied on his recommendations. For an appetizer, Linda and I shared the Melanzane Involtini (Baked eggplant rollatini with ricotta in a tomato sauce). It was excellent, cheesy but delicate and split two-ways, just the right amount before our main course. When I ordered it, I mentioned that we were going to split it and two half-portions arrived at the table. Classy service!

For main courses, Linda had the Filetto di Vitello con Funghi (Veal scallapini with mushrooms) and I had the Filetto di Salmone (grilled organic salmon in a lemon, capers, and white wine sauce). The veal and mushrooms arrived in a well-balanced brown sauce, just rich enough to complement the earthy flavor of the mushrooms. Linda enjoyed her dish with a nice, medium-bodied Montepulciano. My salmon was perfectly cooked and the sauce was yummy, just the right amount of acid to balance the creaminess of the salmon and its reduced sauce. Typically, I'm not a fan of capers but I ate every last one of them.

We passed on the dessert but others at the table indulged and they looked tasty. Of course, coffee, expresso, and capuccino were available as well as an assortment of after dinner drinks. The after dinner drinks were especially generous. Sambuca seemed to be the choice of the evening and each snifter arrived with a minimum two-finger pour. Folks were impressed. We were a big party of 16-18 and Bistango treated us to a complementary round of Italian port to round out the meal. Bravo! Prices are reasonable ($10 for our appetizer and $22 and $20 for our main courses, $60 total per person including tax and tip - how do they do it for that cheap in NYC?). What a night out! Great friends, great food and drink. I'd go again in a minute ;-)

Special gluten-free beer shout out to my good buddies, Danno and Joe:

I found this Green's beer selection review on BNET, originally from the
Oakland Tribune:

"Now there's even a selection of gluten-free Belgian ales. The brand name in the United States is Green's, made by De Proef in Lochristi, Ghent, Belgium. They're being imported by Merchant du Vin, the pioneering Seattle-area importers of beers such as Samuel Smith and Lindemans Framboise. Green's ales are made with a combination of rice, millet, sorghum and buckwheat, none of which contains gluten. The yeast is Belgian; the hops are European, Magnum, spicy Saaz and Hallertau; some of the beers have a dollop of sugar added to boost fermentation. All are bottle-conditioned; a bit of fresh yeast is added to each bottle so fermentation continues slowly in the bottle, an ancient method of preservation. Green's Quest Tripel (***) is a strong, 8.5 percent alcohol by volume blonde beer with a big white head and intriguing, yeasty nose. Taste is unusual; full mouth- feel, but surprisingly light on the tongue. There's this interesting sweetness. Treacle, the word Brits use for molasses, comes to mind. It's the sorghum, a taste that some of us like in beer and some do not. Sorghum beers are extremely popular in Africa. Green's Endeavor Dubbel Ale (***) is a very Belgium dark ale. At 7 percent ABV, it's got a kick. It has a nose much like an English ale: yeast, toffee and caramel notes. Quite tasty, again with the odd treacle note. Green's Discovery (**1/2) is quite drinkable: Medium body, with that distinctive sorghum note. These may not be beers for every palate. But if you're one of the millions of adult celiac suffers[sic] who like beer, they're definitely worth trying."