Restaurant review: Farmer & Sons

This new place popped on the food radar as an interesting launch; a place with a name that ties it intimately to the soil, petrichor-perfumed farm-fresh produce, images of fresh eggs being carried across the fence, from poultry to restaurant, meat from two streets away, and fish from the dock a shout away.

1.5 meals there and I can safely say one thing -- In a city where the food scene is exploding with me-toos, sons of me-toos, and me-toos of me-toos, Farmer & Sons is rock-solid substance.

There are food experiences there that would stay in the sweet memories vault long after the fat has settled around your hips and the protein has settled into your leg muscles to withstand the ever-increasing weight.

Confit duck sandwich with gruyere caramelized onions and poached orange segments

The confit duck sandwich we tried there was a hunk of caramelized onion-y gruyere-y bird-meaty heaven between two slices of fresh house-made sourdoughy heaven. Hunky slices and a thick big sandwich transported me to a sandwich place in old town Philadelphia or a grub-bar in Boston but with a salon so hispter-posh it could be in Village-Chelsea-NYC. 

It's not an excuse for a sandwich. It's actually a sandwich and I hope they keep it that way. 

Wood-fired oven cooked seafood pizza. Flavor bomb! 

Another absolute hallelujah moment was when I first set my eyes and then sunk my teeth into their seafood pizza.
By American portion standards, it's not spillin' toppins' any time soon, but it is one of the best goddamn pizzas in the city.
When people drone on and on about wood-fired oven pizzas, this pizza is what they are talking about. The real McCoy. Not some shallow pretender. Shrimp done right, squid rings, mussels, good cheese, serious quality tomato sauce. You fold the slice, land it into your mouth and waves of delicious wood-smoke-flavor overwhelm the senses into submission. It is deeply satisfying!

This is the bourbon salted caramel but also get the cocoa bean cointreau!

How do you whistle? It's simple. You simply put your lips together - and blow, said Lauren Bacall. 

A milkshake's about that simple. Milk, sugar, flavor element, whisk up. That straight. No nonsense. And, yet, F&S made a chocolate milkshake that made me fall in love, all over again, with the concept of chocolate milkshakes. 

This one's neither thick nor cloyin'

Tis' sophisticated and deeply satisfyin' 

A simple hit of cointreau and some espresso with just the right amount of dark chocolate does the trick. Who knew chocolat and cointreau paired like Bogart and Bergman?!

Panna cotta with coconut tapioca (sounds not nice, but it works!) and pineapple granita

Another example of substance is their panna cotta with coconut tapioca and pineapple granita. Shove a spoon down right, get the three layer flight, and this is a sigh-inducing dessert. High on concept and execution and thankfully low on hardsell, this is a winner.

Across the many other plates of food and drink, many do exceedingly well and please sufficiently without hitting the soaring high notes of the superstars. 

Fried sea bream patatas bravas

Like the sea bream patatas bravas... 

the mixed seafood salad... 

and the uncommon ice cream sandwich combos. But then, what is a crescendo without a decrescendo if not mumbai traffic honking at peak hour? Every high needs a mellow lull.

Some at the table hated how slowly the food came out, but I'm a slow three-hour Sunday lunch kinda guy. Unhurried, conversation-filled, laughter-accompanied small-plate food. That's how I like my weekend lunch and the pace worked wonderfully for me.

At around 6000 bucks for 4, with 3 alcoholic drinks, 4 beverages, and multiple plates of great food, the meal is well worth the money.

Order: Confit duck cheese sandwich, seafood pizza (any pizza really!), cocoa bean milkshake, panna cotta
Miss: Cocktails