11Splendido

New owners took it down a notch, so instead of foie gras, we have foie gras parfait - like velvet, like silk, but less ambitious, less complex, less expensive. Chef/owner Victor Barry, who worked under chef David Lee (now of Nota Bene) when he owned Splendido, learned well. By enchanted alchemy he makes blood sausage resemble a souffle. His gnocchi are gossamer, and truffle-scented. His house-made pasta comes with soft-fleshed rabbit and tiny young artichokes. Other than when he uses the woodfire grill, which is sometimes too hot and causes meats to feel too charred, chef does great justice to meat. He braises local lamb shoulder and suckling pig with finesse, assuring moist tenderness. Sometimes his mind is a culinary surprise package, as when he partners barely cooked scallops with homespun oxtail ravioli and sauces that happy marriage with silky cauliflower puree and barely butter-braised Savoy cabbage. Desserts keep to the same high standards, and nobody told the waitstaff that Splendido has downscaled: They are superbly attentive, knowledgeable and charming.