Not Quite a Home Run at the New Ainsworth Park NYC

By: Simone Press

Ainsworth Park is a flashy kinda new (opened in September '12) hotspot in the Gramercy/Flatiron neighborhood of New York and although it's interior is chic and the crowd is attractive, the food is a mixed bag.

Fried Green Tomatoes

We started our meal off with two appetizers - fried green tomatoes with pork belly and goat cheese along with butternut squash croquettes. The fried green tomatoes were not bad but lacked seasoning and the pork belly was a little heavy as a topping and not crispy enough to be good. The croquettes weren't too impressive either. They were basically arancini without any detectable hint of butternut squash along with a mini tub of bleu cheese dressing, which was there for no apparent reason.

Short Rib Slider

Despite the appetizer flops - our next course of sliders were pretty fantastic - especially the shortrib one with the horseradish mayo on a sweet brioche. The meat was tasty and tender while the portions were perfect for sharing. The entrees hit the spot a little better than the earlier courses. The herb rubbed tuna was flavorful and cooked to perfection while the steak was hearty and well seasoned. The homemade apple cobbler was a solid ending. The apples were cooked well and wasn't too sweet while the dough was satisfying and baked to a nice crisp.

With lots of glammed up yuppies, the atmosphere was loud, clubby and a great place to grab cocktails on a Saturday night. Although the cuisine could use some fine tuning,  you'd never want to meet the love of your life with a mouth full of food, right?

Ainsworth Park
111 East 18th Street
New York, New York 10003
(212) 673-2467
www.ainsworthparknyc.com