Thalassa

Thalassa
179 Franklin Street - Map
Between Greenwhich St and Hudson St
New York
(212) 941-7661
Fine Greek Cuisine

Thalassa....already the allure of its name is captivating. Residing in New York City's TriBeCa (Triangle Below Canal) district, which in recent years has become synonymous with the TriBeCa Film Festival instituted by Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro as a forum for international film makers and the general public to develop a new appreciation for film and its impact on society. Also, it brought tons of money back into Lower Manhattan. Demographically, the neighborhood is mainly comprised of young yuppy families, tired of the pace of SoHo and looking for quieter grounds to raise their children.

Now that the little history lesson is over, let's discuss the restaurant. Approching Thalassa, you pass large, warehouse galleries of all sorts of artistic things ranging from outdoor sculptures, furniture and the more traditional art pieces like paintings and the like. Given the neighborhood, it comes as no surprise that Thalassa used to be a warehouse for fine Greek olives and cheeses. In the distance, you see a large blue rectangular flag with a large, white italicized Theta as a beacon to the restaurant.

Mounting a few short steps, and passing the threshhold, you enter an environment that isn't Greek-in-your-face (like if you were to walk into an Irish pub and be completely inundated with Irish icons and symbols), but rather a chic, Greece-meets-New-York-City sleek sexiness. The proprietors took the feel of Greece, and married it to a distilled and refined New York elegance.

As soon as you walk in, there's a curved bar to your right, with deep blue lighted panels along the wall, and an array of alcoholic beverages in their bottles. Right past the bar is a large mounting of ice with various sea creatures on ice - fish, lobster, crab. I don't think they were real, but they added a nice cool contrast. Deeper in and to the right, was a dividing wall with large spaces cut out from it with large, conical olive-oil containers that were traditionally used in shipping oil, sitting in metal frames which were used to pot plants with leaves sprouting out from the opening. There was also downstairs seating, which I was told was a tad darker than the already dim lighting on the main floor.

On this particular occassion, I came to Thalassa to take advantage of their $35 prix fixe Restuarant Week menu, along with 4 friends. While a one of my party and I were waiting for the rest to arrive, we sat at the bar and decided to order a drink. I asked to see their wine list, and I was pleased to see a very extensive By-the-Glass list of Red, Rosé, and White - all of which were Greek wines. They had a further extensive By-the-Bottle list of various wines from all over the world - no continent or region was spared! When in Greece....do as the Greeks do....so I asked the knowledgable bartender what she would recommend for a glass of white wine on that particularly humid day (ok, I know it's NYC - and we rarely have NICE, unhumid days, but this day was particularly oppressive). She recommended I order their Lagorthi from Antanopoulos "Adoli Ghis" 2005. My accompanying friend ordered the same. The wine had an almost water-quality clarity, with a very faint cream tinge. It had a buttery, caramel milky aroma with a contrasting minerally sharp-dry finish but with a smooth body to soften the transition.

When our party finally arrived, we were seated at a large round table in the back of the restaurant along a wall that had various bottles of Greek wine and artifacts. We were immediately served freshly baked bread, cut into slices and baked with olives as well as a plate of sheep's milk butter and kalamata olives as an amuse bouche. Never having had sheep's milk butter, I enjoyed the light muskiness typical of sheep's milk cheeses (feta) in the seemingly light butter. In addition to the regular 3-course menu, we all decided that it would be nice to order two appetizers for the table: one was a cheese plate featuring 3 Greek cheeses - graviera, manouri and kaseri - two of which were cow's milk, the other sheep, the other appetizer was a piklia of grilled pita crisps served with a small mound each of htipi, tzatziki, taramosalata, and an eggplant dip. The cheeses were nice and interesting, and not too heavy on the palate or stomach. The piklia was particularly interesting and a bit nostalgic for me as I reminisced over my last vacation in Greece - particularly the tzatziki! It tasted authentic and freshly prepared, with a cool, sharp acidity from the yoghurt. The taramosalata was also creamy and light, and had a hint of "flavor of the sea" from the mixed-in caviar. I was also particularly impressed with the eggplant dip - it had a heady, smokey-roasted flavor that infused every aspect of the dip, and it too was also light and not heavy on the palate.

For the table, we ordered their Sauvignon Blanc Lazaridi "Magic Mountain" 2004 (Drama) bottle of wine. It too had a very clear quality, but a deeper cream color than the Lagorthi. It had a faintly sweet aroma, but distinct apricot- and peach-forward flavors with a custardy, crème brulée finish. Of course, everyone made fun of me for saying that it tasted of crème brulée - but what do they know about wine?

Following the appetizers, the attentive and helpful servers brought us our first course. I ordered their pan-seared soft shell crab (in season) over olive oil cured giant lima beans. A beautifully browned crab sat atop a small bed of bitter greens and frisée and surrounded by 4 giant white lima beans. The crab was crispy and cut easily, the shell reminding me a bit of an overly cooked egg-white sunny-side up in flavor as well as in texture. The body of the crab was thick and moist and full of the sweat crab meat and also had a distinct "sea" flavor which I have come to appreciate and adore in seafood. The lima beans were soft, trucculent and rich in flavor. My sister, a member of the party, ordered the Rock Shrimp Pizette which was prepared nicely. Thin, crispy and malleable dough, topped with a light tomato sauce, dotted with baby shrimp, and sprinkled with a light cheese and spiced with oregano and basil - it was a delicious mélànge of color, flavor and texture.

For the entrée, I ordered their t-bone veal chop with sautéed garlic broccoli rabe and fingerling potatoes. Now, I'm personally not a big veal fan, mostly because I don't like the way that it tastes, and I prefer the more matured beef, however, I was very pleased with this dish. I found it to be flavorful and complex, cooked to a medium-rare/rare doneness. The brown sauce it came coated in was not overpowering, but complimented and fused the flavors of the veal chop nicely. I also particularly enjoyed the tempered bitterness of the garlic sautéed broccoli rabe and it's texture was not mushy as it can so easily become if cooked improperly (ie: too long). I also enjoyed the small rabe florettes as they added a heaftier feel in the mouth. The fingerling potatoes were also nicely prepared. Long strips of idaho potato cut into eights, seasoned and baked to have a golden-brown exterior, and a silky smooth starchy interior.

For dessert, I ordered their citrus parfait with mango coulis. Now, I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I'm not much of a dessert person - and by no means was this dessert life altering, but it was very good. It was lightly sweet, with the exception of a small piece of candied orange peel as a garnish that had an intense, pungent, orangey sweet flavor. The parfait itself was actually very light and the mango coulis added a nice element. I did sample their warm chocolate cake, and in comparison to the one eaten at Pasta Nostra, it was much less intense, and had a softer chocolate flavor. Texturally it was silky in the middle, and moist and crumbly on the outside. I ended the evening with a decaffeinated coffee.

I thoroughly enjoyed my first Thalassa experience. The ambiance was welcoming, and comfortable - surrounded by an elegant and tasteful décor. The hosts were supremely warm and friendly - very much so in the Greek style and attitude. The servers and waitstaff were efficient and attentive when we needed them, and unobtrusive during the actual meal. We did receive the obligatory check-up to make sure we were all pleased thus-far. I was also impressed by the server's knowledge of wine, as he was able to help me narrow down my selection to the bottle that was chosen. I believe we all enjoyed our novel Greek-cuisine experience, and I would definitely recommend this place.