Grace's Table, White Plains – An Exceptionally Unique Dining Experience

A WELCOME newcomer to northern Central Avenue in White Plains, Grace’s Table occupies a site with an inauspicious past. Only four years ago, Gregory’s was gutted and remodeled into an elegant, extravagant, but oddly named restaurant, BOE@324. It never caught on and in quick succession Ibiza, Gervasi’s and Crave came and went in the same spot.

Now Grace’s Table has arrived, with a winning combination of name, reputation and menu that seems set to change the fortunes of this location. The name suggests abundance, the promise of the sort of bounty found in Dutch still lifes of tables overflowing with dewy comestibles. The owners come with pedigree. One partner is Grace Balducci Doria, an experienced restaurateur who, a half-century ago, cut her teeth at her parents’ fruit and vegetable market in Greenwich Village. Even the breads came with two butters: one plain and one mango.

Grace’s Table is a joint venture with Joseph Trama, long the chef at her Grace’s Trattoria in Manhattan. Their stylish Westchester restaurant’s menu focuses on seasonal produce — as local and organic as possible — and meats from animals that are humanely raised and fed hormone-free grains. Pork here comes from Niman Ranch; ducks, from Long Island’s Crescent Duck Farm, and the chef’s insistence on good provenance is evident in the resulting flavors.

Most of the menu’s appetizers will sound familiar, but every one we tried had seductive little fillips that pulled it out of the ordinary.

Nicely charred, tiny whole baby octopuses with nutty farro and kale were treated, as were most dishes here, with a sprinkling of fresh herbs.

Crab cake was packed with crab (not breading), the plump patty set atop excellent coleslaw, like a dish one would eat at the shore, only better. And in a pretty presentation, spicy tuna tartare arrived as a perfect cylinder of chunky diced tuna under a layer of smooth avocado.

From a list of salads, a small portion of terrifically creamy burrata nonetheless starred in a winning interplay of textures and flavors: sweet cheese, red and yellow heirloom tomatoes that were somewhat firm and acidic, lubricious sweet peppers and a lacing of pesto. Sweet and tangy merged again in a salad of beets and goat cheese.

The duck breast was exemplary. Tender, juicy and medium-rare as ordered, it crowned a bed of “dirty wild rice,” festive with a bright confetti of diced root vegetables. A drizzle of sharp mustard brought up the sweetness of a huge, meaty shank of Colorado lamb impaling a mound of mashed parsnips, spinach on the side.

Grilled with a rich glaze of maple mustard, perfect organic salmon rested on a fluffy nest of orzo. Big seared scallops veered just a tad beyond their peak but were still delicious. But considering the luxurious components, a dish of tagliatelle with loads of lobster and mushrooms in a creamy but light beurre blanc was unaccountably tame.

A few steaks and chops fill out this short, tidy menu that aims for quality over quantity, the direction many modern restaurants seem to be taking.

The Space: A newly paved and landscaped patio entrance leads to several dining areas (including a bar, wine cellar and other private rooms) freshly painted in a soothing, contemporary color palette. Main dining areas are wheelchair accessible.

The Crowd: Mostly nicely dressed adults, with a sprinkle of young business oriented people. Willing, sincere servers still learning the ropes.

The Bar: Long and warm. Wines by the bottle, $30 to $175. Many half bottles, $12 to $15. Special cocktails, $10 to $14.

The Bill: Lunch entrees, $14 to $36. Dinner entrees, $23 to $38; $15 for a Kobe burger. Bar menu, $8 to $15.

What We Loved: Crab Cake, Grilled Baby Octopus with Farro, Tuna Tartare, Beet and Goat Cheese Salad, Burrata w. Heirloom Tomatoes, Grilled Organic Salmon, Duck Breast, Veal Shank, Vanilla Panna Cotta.

3/4 Stars = "Worth It"

---- New York Times, May 11, 2012

Grace’s Table offers an exceptionally unique farm to table dining experience. We are always working to help strengthen the local economy and livelihoods of local farmers by building strong relationships and serving only the freshest produce, meats and poultry at our restaurant. We try out hardest to promote locally grown and raised animals, vegetables, herbs, and fruits.

Your continued patronage is a vital part of our growth, as it enables use to provide you with only the highest quality organic produce, and free-range meat and poultry from local farms. For that, we are most grateful.

Executive Chef Joe Trama is going back to basics and staying local. The goal is to limit the human impact on the environment—less flying, driving, and fuel consumption, all of which leaves a smaller "eco-footprint". Farm-fresh fare is also packed with nutrients, doesn't have to be sprayed with chemicals to protect it for the long haul to the restaurant, and just plain tastes better. Everybody wins, from farmer to chef to diner.

"Food is an art, and the plate is my canvas..."

------Executive Chef Joseph Trama