César, NYC, July 2024

Preface: I’ve been to the old CTBF several times and the new one twice. I was also unfortunately unable to take photos of every course, as Chef Ramirez dislikes it, so I had to take these few discretely.

I’ll start off with these two things: (1) This is absolutely the old CTBF (which is definitely not a bad thing), but better than ever! (2) I’ve been to JAN and Atelier Moessmer, and I’ve never been so sure of a restaurant winning 3* in its first year (aka first few months)! You probably already know the drill with César Ramirez. A few sushi and wagyu tartare tartlets, his signature uni toast, a Japanese-French fusion soup, fish and meat mains, several desserts including his famous frozen corn soufflé, and petit fours. Well, that’s exactly how this meal went, and it was awesome! With that said, all I can say about this place is that if you were dying to try the old CTBF, COME HERE!

Unfortunately I don’t remember the types of fish (the names were given in Japanese), but the first few Japanese/tartlet bites were incredible. They were perfectly balanced with the perfect amount of fat, acid, and light seasoning! The A5 wagyu tartare with black truffle was also an 11/10 as always!

The uni toast with black truffle is the same as before and still fantastic, but you know what, I think I actually prefer the uni toast at the new CTBF. Max Natmessnig’s version with a traditional crunchy then soft Belgian waffle, sweet potato, and white truffle was far more unique, interesting, and tasty than César’s quite simple version with just uni over brioche and a little chopped black truffle.

Ramirez loves serving “jelly soups” (as I like to call them), which can sometimes be disappointing, but the one he served today was amazing, with langoustine and caviar. There was nice bright acidity and interesting textures throughout the “soup.”

This “review” is already quite long, so I’ll simply say the sea bass, scallop, quail, and wagyu main courses were also all 10/10! Everything was cooked perfectly and the sauces were delightful. I highly recommend adding black truffle to the wagyu!

The desserts were also excellent, with his frozen soufflé tasting as good as ever! They were followed by a very sharp serving of delicious petit fours!

Conclusion: Will this restaurant win 3 Michelin stars this November? Without a shadow of a doubt! Quite frankly, César seemed much more relaxed in his own environment, and you aren’t really going to get much better out of him than this! Am I slightly sad that he of all people is NYC’s best chef? Yeah, a city like NYC still deserves a fair amount better, but oh well. Would I recommend this place over the new CTBF? Not necessarily actually. I’d say they’re both incredible places that will both win 3 stars if Michelin is being fair. Overall, I’d highly recommend this restaurant and I’m glad César is back!