[title type="h5"]Thursday, June 12, 2014.
Mystery Meat At Doris Metropolitan.
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Mary Ann dropped the suggestion a week or two ago, which is all I need for an idea to fix itself in my brain. Doris Metropolitan--the newish steak house in the French Quarter, where the Alpine was for a long time--needs another visit from me before I can write a review with all the fixings.
So there we are, shortly after the dining room's opening time, but late enough that the bar was nearly full. Sitting there with two friends is Julie Wise Oreck, who I know from hundreds of wine tastings, dinners and other events over the decades. Some years ago she bought my services as a cook at a charity auction, and asked me to serve the dinner in the home of her friend and well-known attorney Morris Bart. (If I remember right, she was renovating her own kitchen at the time.) I haven't seen Julie in years. She looks like she did last time we ran into one another, but I have that thought every time I see her. She also keeps herself so busy with community activities that I sometimes think there are two of her.
I have two mysteries to clear up about Doris Metropolitan. First is pronunciation. I now know the story. The name of one of the three guys who opened the place (after opening two in Israel and one in Costa Rica) is Dori. But when the sign was made, the apostrophe in Dori's was left out. They liked the suggestion of there being someone named Doris (as in Day) on the premises, so they left the sign alone. It's pronounced "door-eez."
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The "Classified Cut" at Doris.[/caption]
The management is less forthcoming about the identity of a steak called by the menu "Classified Cut." The waitress--who is a lot of fun all night long--says that the information is indeed classified, but she'd ask the chef. Chef says his lips are sealed. I ask to see the steak before it's cooked. Chef goes along with that, and a square of heavily-marbled beef sealed in a vacuum pouch comes. It looks like flank or skirt, or perhaps a frill off the side of a porterhouse. I've disassembled a whole cow before, but I can't remember anything that looked like this. The chef neither confirms nor denies my guesses.
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Doris's beef aging room.
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So I have to order it. The pouch tells me something important: this steak is cooked sous-vide most of the way. That is to leave the beef inside the pouch and boil the whole package at a lower temperature than a steak on a grill or under a broiler would be subjected to. Afterwards, it takes a short walk across the grill to sear it a little. I still don't know what cut of cow this is, but I will say that the flavor is very good--more complex than a filet, less so than a hanger steak) and the texture is tender and juicy. I'm not sure I like the $44 price for a nine-ounce steak.
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Doris hamburger.
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Mary Ann placed the order I always fear: the hamburger. She said it was a bit too firm to the point of chewiness, but that the flavor was good. At $17, it better be.
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Tomato salad.[/caption]
Leading up to that point in the dinner are two salads. Mine is the collection of heirloom tomatoes, some fresh and some cooked, but presenting a visually arresting display of colors. We both think this is extraordinarily good, with a Mediterranean flavor holding the thing together. Mary Ann has a big plate of beets, again in many colors, and with a whole cooked beet in the center. A very rich cold white sauce lines the plate, and if one were to indulge in a lot of it, I don't know where room for the entree would come from.
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Panna cotta.[/caption]
On my first visit with a bigger party a few months ago, I remarked that the appetizers, sides and desserts all left me cold, while the steaks were excellent. That proved true again. The side that comes with my Undercover Cut is a cylinder of potatoes: sweet and white, the former piped inside the latter. I'd call it more interesting than good if it had been good. Only one dessert tonight, a very light panna cotta with a flavor of something like orange flower water.
The wine guy here was being visited by some customers who asked to bring in a bottle. He said he would allow it if he could have a taste. It was 1989 Chateau de Beaucastel. They gave me some, too. Nice juice.
I am thankful that Mary Ann didn't notice that Doris Metropolitan has a courtyard for dining outdoors. It's another scorcher today.
[title type="h5"]Doris Metropolitan. French Quarter: 620 Chartres St. 504-267-3500. [/title]
