Amongst the sea of foreign-laden, fusion-ed, and gastronomic food offered in New York City, it has become difficult to find old-school American cuisine. Thankfully, the archetypal American neighborhood joint is not lost – in fact, it just opened up a couple of weeks ago! Woodrow’s, located on 43 Murray Street in Tribeca, is the self-acclaimed American tavern. Inspired by New York during the prohibition era under President Woodrow Wilson (hence, the name Woodrow’s), the interior design and menu are reminiscent of 1920’s Americana.

The exterior of Woodrow’s is bleak and inconspicuous, with only a small wooden sign hanging from the door. The restaurant itself opens up to a long, wooden bar embellished with liquor and a special selection of draft beer. The interior is adorned with a mixture of dark wooden floors and tables, and warm red exposed brick. Every table is garnished with a small bouquet of flowers, and every party is supplied with colorful crayons that invite children (or young adults such as myself) to freely draw on the table.  Woodrow’s successfully created a casual, laid-back, and family friendly atmosphere.

The dinner menu offers American comfort food with a hint of Italian influence which features bold, yet unassuming flavors. The menu provides soups and salads, but specializes in steaks and burgers.

For starters, I ordered the potato bites ($8.75) and prosciutto and ricotta with toasted baguette ($9) off their main menu, and the fried pickles ($6) off their select menu. The most notable starter was the potato bites – and the best part of the dish wasn’t even the potatoes! The potato bites are accompanied with the most heavenly truffle cream dipping sauce I have ever had the pleasure to consume. The potato bites (more like croquettes) were fried perfectly and deliciously seasoned with fresh parmesan cheese, but, the sauce completely enhances the dish altogether. The baguette dish was good – it was simply a platter of fresh ricotta cheese, prosciutto, and bread. Also, unlike most places, Woodrow’s fries their pickles whole, and serves them with none other than previously-stated-coma-inducing truffle cream sauce. To clarify, the sauce contains (what I assume): mayonnaise, garlic, and truffle oil, amongst other ingredients. Honestly, I was willing to bathe in that truffle cream sauce – its flavor lasted long after I finished my dish. I wish I took some home with me.

I then moved on to the entrees, and decided to try some of their more popular dishes. Woodrow’s offers four different steaks: filet mignon, NY strip, rib eye, and the porterhouse. My friend ordered the 10oz filet mignon ($26), which was perfectly cooked at a medium rare, juicy, well-seasoned, and tender. The waitress recommended the Chicken Woodrow’s ($16), which is sautéed chicken breast with Swiss cheese and prosciutto in a cream sauce, served with vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes. Although the flavors were excellent and everything was cooked well, the dish proved to be a bit over-seasoned. Lastly, I tried the blackened spiced burger ($12) which was topped with lettuce, tomato, and blue cheese crumbles on a sesame seed bun. When that dish came out, I took a minute to admire the cheese that was bubbling and overflowing out of the burger. However, because blue cheese has such a strong flavor, it can easily overpower rather than balance a dish. Don’t get me wrong – the burger was cooked well and I enjoyed the dish, but unfortunately, I had a difficult time tasting anything but blue cheese.  As I side dish, I had the pleasure of eating the parmesan truffle hand-cut fries, which were thick and delicious.

As previously stated, Woodrow’s is very family-friendly, and even offers a select menu which serves familiar dishes such as chicken tenders and mozzarella sticks. Although Woodrow’s has a great family-friendly ambiance, let’s not forget Woodrow’s personifies the rebellious American citizen of the prohibition era. On Wednesdays through Saturdays, Woodrow’s opens their downstairs speakeasy/whiskey lounge. They offer everything from the best whiskey, bourbon, and scotch, to special cocktails.

If you want to elicit memories of the French fries and crayons from your childhood, but are now old enough to appreciate parmesan cheese, truffle oil, good beer and whiskey, then come to Woodrow’s.

43 Murray Street (between Church st & West Broadway). Nearest Transit: Chambers St (A, C / 1, 2, 3), Park Pl (2, 3). Mon-Sat (10am-1am), Sun (12pm – 1am), (212) 676-0300

-Courtney Ho

 

No Comments | Posted on March 30, 2012 | Categories: Dining, From the Blog

tags: Burgers, Courtney Ho, Truffle, Woodrows

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