Bell Book & Candle

Details:

Bell Book & Candle

141 W 10th Street (between Waverly and Greenwich Avenue)
New York, NY 10014
(212) 414-2355
http://bbandcnyc.com/

Headline: Average neighboorhood spot
Recommended: Bah
Rating: *

Fresh produce from the roof, so what?

Having read about the place on UrbanDaddy, I went to Bell Book & Candle on Friday evening for dinner. I thought the concept of growing fresh produce on a roof in the middle of the West Village was innovative, somewhat interesting and well worth a try.

The restaurant is located in the basement of 141 W 10th Street across from Highlands and right next to De Santos. While the interior is decorated nicely enough, with token exposed brick walls giving it a typical West Village feel, the unusually large space does a great job of squashing any hope of quaintness.

I did not partake in any pre-dinner libation so I cannot pass judgment on the cocktails on offer at Bell Book & Candle. For its part, the wine list, an odd collection of varietals, regions and producers, lacked depth but overall seemed priced fairly. In all fairness, the inclusion of the 2001 Chateau Musar, did make the wine list slightly more interesting.

Contrary to my reaction to the wine list, I got pretty excited about the menu and had to think long and hard before narrowing down my selections to a quantity of food I could realistically consume. I quite enjoyed the warm bread, which had an almost cake-like quality, that our waitress brought out and thought the meal was off to a good start. Unfortunately, in the middle of dinner, I found myself thinking "fresh produce on the roof, so what? The ingredients are supposedly fresh but the food is still average. There was nothing jumbo about the crab cakes and in all honesty they were pretty bland. As for my main dish, it is sad to say that the highlight was the mashed potatoes. The brussel sprouts were passable and the braised short ribs were overcooked and dry. The only redeeming dish was the brown apple pie which I thought was excellent. So good in fact that I would actually consider giving the restaurant another chance to prove me wrong. Hey, who knows maybe I just ordered the wrong things?

Until I decide to return however, Bell Book & Candle remains in my mind another restaurant that fails to execute on its full potential. I loved the concept but thought the food and the ambiance were average at best. I give the place one star for its apple pie. I would have given it another star for prompt seating had our table not been the worst in the house, stuck in between two walls almost as an afterthought. Based on my experience, my recommendation would be that you stay away unless you feel strongly about eating allegedly fresh roof grown vegetables. There are far nicer and better establishments to visit in the West Village.

POC

What I ate:
-Maryland jumbo lump crab cake
-Braised beef short ribs with yukon mashed potatoes and caramelized brussel sprouts
-Brown bag apple pie with creme fraiche ice cream