Dan's Papers - June 29, 2007 - The Seafood Barge

In the thirteen years that Dick Ehrlich has owned this restaurant he has continually, with his staff, striven to ensure that being a high volume business should never detract from his objectives of ensuring that every plate leaves the kitchen cooked to perfection and that the service and ambience should also match these ideals. Dick will never admit to having reached his goals because he is such a perfectionist but there is no doubt that every year the restaurant has continued to raise its already high quality and has been regarded by many as one of the very best restaurants on Long Island.

Some extremely talented chefs have graced the kitchen over the years and for the past three seasons it has been the domain of Americo Mintegui, a Long Island native, still a young man but with one of the most impressive resumes you could ask for. Amerigo's most influential mentor has been the esteemed chef and restaurateur, David Bouley, who urged him to travel to Europe to further develop his skills after cooking for him at Bouley Bakery and Restaurant Bouley. Americo was able to obtain a position in the kitchen of the world famed chef, Ferran Adria, whose El Bulli restaurant was recently voted as the best restaurant in the world and from there he went on to cook in the kitchens of excellent restaurants around Europe before returning to Long Island and taking over as the Executive Chef at Manhasset's La Coquille before coming to the Seafood Barge with Scott Bowman as his sous-chef.

At Seafood Barge, Americo has his sights firmly fixed on integrating local seafoods, produce and wineries with the techniques he has learned from his culinary travels and recently he was awarded three stars by the New York Times, becoming the first on the North Fork to have this honor.

We started with an 'amuse' of shrimp in phyllo that immediately set the scene. Full of fresh sea flavors, it is a dish worthy of a main spot on the menu. Steamers were also redolent of the sea and were incredibly plump and succulent. Tuna tartare is often featured on local menus. Americo's version featured the freshest possible tuna cut into pearls that exploded in your mouth almost like giant caviar. The dressing of lobster mayonnaise and soy sesame vinaigrette added further subtle tastes. This should be one of his signature dishes.

Grilled Montauk swordfish came perfectly cooked and the polenta was exquisite as was the blend of local white asparagus and thin frondy green asparagus that Americo told us was flown in from the South of France.

While Seafood Barge is predominantly a seafood restaurant, carnivores are well looked after. Chicken, and pork dishes were featured but we chose the strip steak that again arrived perfectly cooked with an intriguing tarragon mustard sauce that really added a different dimension to the dish. Potato puree had that perfectly soft texture that is so difficult to achieve. For a taste of dessert we tried the warm apple cobbler from the list of daily specials that our friendly and efficient waitress Peggy described to us. Americo also sent out some of his chocolate torte and both dishes, while very different, were both true to taste with tangy apples in one and smooth deep long tasting chocolate in the other, bringing a great meal to a perfect end.

The Seafood Barge is open every day for lunch and dinner and reservations are strongly recommended, especially at weekends. The wine list features many of the Long Island wineries and wines are from $8 a glass and by the bottle from $27. Appetizers, soups and salads range from $9 to $14; main courses from $26 to $34 and desserts are $9.

During our meal a heavy rain shower was swiftly followed by a stunning rainbow that made the always outstanding water view from the dining room even more spectacular than ever. It seemed a very appropriate tribute to this outstanding restaurant, its chef and its staff.