The Orchard

Dear Foodies,
I ate here a while back with a friend. We got a groupon $ 50 for $ 100 worth of food and we still managed to spend $ 110.00!
The food was excellent, and with the discount worth every penny. I’m not sure if I would spend double for all of which we ate. I believe I had a roast duck and we got two glasses of champagne (as it was the cheapest on the menu). We had an appetizer and my friend ordered some other dish. We then shared a dessert, and were more than satiated. The food was so good, we probably could have eaten more, but our pockets aren’t that deep!
If it’s still open, I strongly recommend giving it a try. And, if you’re tight on $$$ wait for the next coupon opportunity!
Happy eats!

Something about all that Home Depot lattice must put people off, because our recent dinner here was tremendously satisfying, and worthy of at least 4 stars.
Let’s get it out of the way: The interior is idiosyncratic. Yes, the orange light is a bit weird, and the whole place is cavelike. I loved it, but if you’re some kind of interior design purist, you may rebel.
Four of us made quick work of the drunken goat cheese salad and 2 flatbreads (mushroom and short rib). While the salad was fine, it was completely overshadowed by the amazing flatbreads (thanks, Unilocalers). In retrospect, we should have ordered a third flatbread and forgotten about the salad – they were interesting, hearty, and perfect accompaniments to the appealing cocktail list.
What sent this menu over the top for me was the duck entrée. I order duck just about anywhere it’s on the menu, and this is by far the best I have ever eaten. Slices of duck breast are slightly charred on the outside and meltingly tender on the inside. It’s a big portion, which is a good thing, as you’ll want to share bites of this revelatory bird.
Doing so guarantees that you’ll get a taste of your friends’ entrees. The pasta with crab, tomato, and edamame was also huge, tasty, and not at all delicate; a vegetarian friend ordered another pasta without the pancetta, and the result was still flavorful. Maybe we were overly full, but desserts did not wow.
The service was attentive, if not personable. The front-​of-​the-​house staff, however, is lovely: How often does a Unilocal review remark on the call to confirm your res? I don’t know who you are, miss, but you make a great first impression and totally make up for that wacky wooden lattice.

Recently, I came here with a party of 10 and everyone was very pleased with their meal. It is definitely one of my favorite restaurants in the city and I enjoyed my experience here this time more than I ever had in the past. Wow, I forgot how great their flatbreads are, especially the braised short rib flatbread flavored with sweet horseradish cream and topped with marinated cherry tomatoes. So divine. None of the flatbreads are bad, but this one is my fav by far. Other diners loved the mushroom flatbread which includes sautéed royal trumpet mushrooms, polenta, and mushroom purée.
My fiancé ordered the BEST duck entrée I have ever had. In fact, all the other diners (and ones who usually don’t like duck) agreed. They serve you a grilled hudson valley duck breast with a port wine-​pomegranate glaze that is perfectly crisp on the outside and so tender on the inside. And we’re not talking about a few tiny pieces – the portions here are very big. So big, everybody got a taste of the duck and my fiancé was still full. I recommend this entrée whole-​heartedly if you decide to visit The Orchard. A bite of duck paired with a bite of the apple-​raisin risotto creates the perfect culinary experience.
I also liked my own entrée, which was the wild crab pasta with tomatoes, edamame, scallions, and farfalle pasta in a pink cream sauce. LOTS of crab. If I didn’t try the duck, I’m sure my review would be raving about this pasta instead.

To cut to the chase, the food at The Orchard was (relatively) simple and quite tasty. My girlfriend and I easily ate too much. :) The wines by the glass (I didn’t browse the full wine list), however left a bit to be desired. Perhaps it can be best exemplified by the fact that our waiter wasn’t sure if my malbec was actually a mispoured pinot noir. Seriously? Maybe it could have been a merlot or cabernet, but to confuse a malbec with a pinot, I just don’t know what to say.
We ordered the braised short rib flatbread by the waiter’s (and Unilocal’s) recommendation. It was extremely juicy and could easily have been shared amongst three or four instead of just two.
We got the duck and the branzino for entrees. Though I’m partial to sea bass and branzino, the duck was definitely the best of the two. The duck came medium-​rare with an excellent char; just enough to add a little extra character to each bite. Not to be completely outdone though, the branzino was served whole and well seasoned. The only thing we longed for was a smaller fork so that we could better devour the cheeks.
If they can get some better wines, I might just love the place.

I almost passed this by as I hurried down the street to meet my friends for dinner. The outside did not prepare me for the inside and what a good surprise it was!
My fraternization of pretty restaurants has been woefully lax as of late due to a number of reasons, so being able to have dinner in a pretty place is a treat indeed!
I was on time, but my friends weren’t. Not to worry! They seated me right away. (Note: it was 6:30, and the rush that appeared later was nonexistent) I was asked if I wanted a drink, but I opted to wait and we’d order a bottle of wine. And when the late ladies arrived, we did order a lovely bottle of red (Barbera D’Alba, 2007) and wondered fleetingly if there was enough cause for celebration to partake in the 1977 Brunello. No, alas, not yet.
Once we took care of alcohol (very important, I’ll have you know), food was next on the list. We shared a mushroom flat bread and a fig/​apple/​arugala/​crème fraîche flat bread. Both were fantastic in their specific tastes and complemented the wine wonderfully. Mains were salads all around, but only because the flat breads were surprisingly filling and we all wanted dessert.
After eating and drinking and chatting in the lovely, warm, glowing atmosphere, we all shared an enormous Tartuffe and were finally replete.
Great evening all around. I want someone to take me here next time.
(p.s. — yes, this would be a fantastic date place)

Came here for dinner on a Saturday night and when we arrived it was empty. By the time we left, it was packed.
Had the flatbread with roasted artichokes, leeks, and goat cheese. The cheese was very tangy and the artichokes and leeks were cooked perfectly. The bread was crunchy and tasty.
For dinner, ate the grilled ribeye with arugula and tomato salad and roasted shallots. The ribeye was cooked medium, as ordered, but there was not a whole lot of flavor. It was ok. I think the appetizers are better than the entrees here.
The service was good and it is a nice little place to have dinner in the LES.