marea

central park south (bway/7th)

website

managed to finally knock another restaurant off of my list of five restaurants to try in 2010 thanks to cindy c and her excellent reservation-making skills. marea is known for amazing seafood and has gotten many rave reviews since it opened in may 2009. it's quite a splurge, but it's worth every penny. they suggest that you do the 4-course prix fixe for $89. but if you're like me, you're full after the pasta course (especially after eating both servings of olive-studded foccacia bread). so i suggest getting one antipasti and one pasta and then dessert only if you still have room.

the antipasti to get? the "astice" - nova scotia lobster, burrata, eggplant al funghetto, and basil. jenny wisely chose this appetizer and graciously let cindy c and i taste some. perfectly cooked lobster melts with the smooth burrata cheese - rich and decadent. although even more rich and decadent is the pasta that you have to order - the fusilli with red wine braised octopus and bone marrow (pictured). the most amazing pasta dish i have ever had - perfectly cooked everything with little nuggets of marrow to send you into foodie nirvana. everything else was good, but ended up being also-rans compared to the lobster and octopus dishes. my recommendation - get the lobster, get the octopus pasta, eat the olive foccacia, and have a glass of wine to cut the richness of the dishes. then skip dessert and enjoy the complimentary chocolates instead.