Activity: Dinner and a show
Description: Enjoy a delicious southern meal and a live performance featuring the hottest acts in Modern Jazz.
Meal: Appetizers, entrees, and cocktails
Location: Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, is located on Broadway at 60th Street, New York. Frederick P. Rose Hall and Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola can be accessed using the JAZZ elevators located on the ground floor of The Shops at Columbus Circle across from Hugo Boss, located in the Time Warner Center.
Cuisine: Elevated American Southern
Cost: $$$
Imagine you and your significant other enjoying a romantic meal for two, in an intimate lounge. The lights are dim and the soundtrack is provided by a live band playing classic and modern jazz. Jazz at Lincoln Center has a long history of presenting the best and brightest in American Jazz. Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola is an extension of their vision and provides a more personal concert experience as well as cocktails and dinner. Executive Chef Corey Samuel brings his southern roots to the big apple, in a big way, with a delectable menu of familiar southern favorites. Each dish is a celebration of the south with a refined gourmet twist. The music for the evening is supplied by a roster of Jazz musicians from all over the world. On Monday’s at Dizzy’s, WBGO Radio of Newark drops by for a quick interview with the evening’s performer, just before the set begins. But first, let’s talk about Chef Corey Samuel’s menu.
The Meal
Taste of the South Hush Puppies
Hush Puppies are essentially bite-sized cornbread orbs deeply fried and often served as a side dish with fried seafood. At Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola the crispy starter is served plain with a sweet spicy honey and ranch dipping sauces. These puppies were tasty and sized for sharing.
Opelousas Oxtail Toast
Oxtail toast is exactly as it sounds. Tender braised shredded oxtail served with toasted pieces of sourdough baguette. The meat was exquisite, tender and well seasoned. This also comes with a light frisée and radish salad that added some freshness and color to the plate.
Creole Catfish Stew
A savory stew of okra tomato sausage and ham is topped with crispy pieces of fried catfish.We aren’t sure how but the catfish remains crunchy and delicious inside the savory broth.
Lousiana BBQ Shrimp
If you’ve never experienced Anson Mills Grits you have to try this dish. The grits are coarse and hearty with a less creamy texture than the instant grits many of us are used to. The texture is a unique cross between quinoa and farro. The thick grits are topped with juicy head-on shrimp and a thick black sauce. The sauce is inspired by creole BBQ made with hints of Worcestershire and molasses. The sauce reminded us of Oyster or Fish sauce used in Asian cuisines. The flavor is tangy and sour with a bittersweet finish.
Ora King Salmon
For this dish, fresh salmon is seasoned with cajun spices seared to a crisp and served with garlic roasted fingerling potatoes, spinach, and turmeric-scented parsnips. The salmon was savory and succulent with a crispy exterior and tender juicy flesh. The parsnips added a sweetness to the dish as well as a creamy texture. The turmeric imparted very little flavor to the parsnips but enhanced the aromatic qualities of the dish overall. This was one of the best bites of the evening and truly showcased chef Samuel’s ability to fuse southern flavors with gourmet techniques.
Dizzy’s Fried Chicken
You can’t get more southern than fried chicken and at Dizzy’s, the fried chicken was cooked to perfection; well seasoned, golden, and simply delicious. It got better with eat bite. At Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, the crispy chicken is served with a side of collard greens with black-eyed peas and cornbread. Having our peas mixed with our collards was an interesting experience. The greens were tasty and well seasoned but the random peas were confusing and out of place. The two should be enjoyed separately with the soft buttery cornbread. The only thing missing from this dish is mac and cheese or sweet potatoes. The mac is offered Á la carte, and though we skipped it we recommend adding it to this dish for the full “Sunday Dinner” experience. If you’re truly brave you’ll also add a splash of hot sauce. Dizzy’s has its own specially blended hot sauce made exclusively for Dizzy’s by Great Performances (GP), the city’s premier hospitality and events company that operates Dizzy’s kitchen. It was created by GP’s founder and CEO, Liz Neumark with four different varieties of peppers – sweet bell, jalapeno, Scotch Bonnet and chili (all of which, except the Scotch Bonnet, were grown at GP’s Katchkie Farm in update New York’s Kinderhook). The combination of peppers provides a deep and complex flavor profile with notes of sour, sweet and earthy.
The Show
The Scott Tixier Quartet
The Scott Tixier Quartet provided the soundtrack for our romantic dinner for two. Tixier is a French native who has several high profile gigs under his belt. His music can be heard on movie soundtracks and he has toured with the legendary singer/songwriter Stevie Wonder. The small lounge provides an excellent view of the stage from every seat. The quaint space allows complete immersion into the performance as if the performers are playing just for you. We recommend arriving when the venue opens so you’ll have enough time to enjoy your meal before the show starts. Though the wait staff is available during the performance trying to order and eat may prove problematic once the lights go down and the music starts.
While a concert may not be the ideal venue for whispering sweet nothings or deep conversations. It does offer the chance to just vibe with someone special. This is an ideal date for music-loving couples at all stages of a relationship. For those in the infancy stages, the concert will take away the occasional awkward silence and provide an intimately shared experience. More established couples will enjoy the chance to get dressed and just enjoy a fabulous meal alone. Best of all you can bypass the weekend rush and have a relaxed night out on a Monday, Tuesday, or Thursday. Who says weeknights can’t be sexy?
To experience Chef Samuel’s amazing menu and to check out a performance, please head over to www.jazz.org/dizzys.
More Date Ideas can be found here.