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There are a number of reasons why, when you go to a restaurant, you wouldn’t want to fill up on bread and butter (even if the butter always tastes better at a restaurant): You want to actually enjoy your main dishes at the restaurant and not as leftovers (or conversely, you don’t want the bread to make you hungrier so you order more food than you intended), or you want to fill up on something more nutritious than just bread and butter. However, there is one NYC restaurant where filling up on the bread and butter might actually make sense.
At Quality Bistro in Midtown Manhattan, not only is the bread and butter not free, but it comes with an eyewatering price tag of $38. So what do you get for a price that’s higher than those of all of the salads and sides, most starters (including some seafood appetizers), and even some entrees on the menu? Quite a lot, actually, and enough that it practically eats like a meal.
Elevating the bread and butter experience
Billed as the Butter Service Garni, and served tableside by a waiter, Quality Bistro’s special starter comes with whipped butter that’s made in-house from a combination of cream from the award-winning Battenkill Valley Creamery and yogurt cultures (along the lines of what Michelin-starred Moss Restaurant does with its highly acclaimed butter). The butter arrives in a giant crock, and the waiter spreads it onto a marble slab. It’s then topped with fleur de sel, chopped shallots, piment d’Espelette (a chili powder from Basque), and freshly ground pepper. Also on the platter is grilled Filone bread from Sullivan Street Bakery, radishes, and cornichons. As if that is not enough, the service comes with hors d’oeuvres, which include slices of jambon cuit (cooked ham), mushroom duxelles, leeks vinaigrette, and hachée Basquaise (a stew made with almonds, chorizo, honey, raisins, paprika, Parmesan, and sherry vinegar).
Given the amount of food that comes with the butter service, it’s little wonder that some diners find it nearly enough for an entire meal or that they can’t finish the whole thing. Luckily, you can take any leftovers from the Butter Service Garni with you, perhaps to recreate your own version of a butter board at home. Despite its hefty price tag, the Butter Service Garni has garnered great reviews, proving that it can be worthwhile to fill up on bread and butter, at least with quality bread and butter.