When I knew I would be going to New York, I instantly started looking for a few fine dining options. I like good food, I like good service and I don’t mind paying for it. Initially though, I was a bit disappointed because many of the well-known or much spoken about restaurants came with either one or even all three of the following red flags:
- They didn’t take reservations for single diners.
- They seemed extremely focused on “classic, French cooking” (lots of red meat, beurre blanc and foie gras on the menu).
- They demanded a dress code.
I dislike all three of these things and so I had to dig a bit deeper. Via the “50 Best Restaurants” List, I found Atomix, a 2 Michelin star Korean restaurant, currently ranked #33 in the world. I love Korean food and I figured it would be something that I wouldn’t find that easily in Europe. The fact that they offered a slightly cheaper Bar Tasting Menu that even came with a complimentary cocktail pairing convinced me to book a spot.
Booking at Atomix
The booking process itself was a bit of an adventure. I had read in reviews that it was basically impossible to score a table but I decided to try. Reservations for Atomix become available on the 1st of a month for the following month. So on the 1st of September, I had to log into the reservation system and started refreshing frantically when the spots came available. However, this was harder than I thought. All Bar Tasting spots were instantly gone and I had nearly given up hope. I decided to wait a bit, hoping that someone wouldn’t have his or her credit card at hand (you have to pay straight away) or that someone would change their mind. And I was lucky: I did eventually manage to get a single spot at the bar.
The Bar
When I walked into Atomix, I instantly knew why it was so hard to get a spot. There were only 5 seats available at the bar, which was located on the upper floor and was not part of the actual restaurant. This created a very quiet, intimate atmosphere and I felt relaxed straight away. On my left and on my right I had two more single diners (one New Yorker and one visitor). On the far right of the bar, we were joined by a married couple (both on holiday in the city).
Staff & Service
5 diners, 3 members of staff: a hostess, the beverage director and the chef of research and development – all of them super nice, outgoing and interested. They seemed to hang out after work as well, bantering with one another and simply seemed to enjoy what they were doing. (“The dish was supposed to be served with snail caviar but the snails went on strike.” – “Ah, shut up. They can handle reality: They died!”)
I loved the whole set up as it allowed to ask many questions about the restaurant, the food, the drinks and many more topics. The chef of research and development explained that the Bar Tasting was basically a test kitchen. No dish from the bar would ever be served in the restaurant in exactly the same way. Instead they take individual elements of each dish and recombine them with other ingredients. This way they can create a more stable menu for downstairs, which is not so much dependent on certain products’ availability. And upstairs in the bar, they could get more creative. If there was no good trout available that day, they would just swap it out for something else.
The Food
I didn’t really know what to expect of Korean fine dining, since Korean food to me is more of a comfort food. I associate it with hearty bowls of Bibimbap or spicy fried chicken. Obviously, both of these dishes were not on the menu but I did recognize some ingredients (and especially spices) that I was familiar with such as Gochugaru and Sichuan Peppercorn. While none of the dishes was really spicy (at least for me), some of them definitely packed a punch: lots of fermentation, lots of dense Dashi, lots of seaweed (in different variations). Every now and then, a fruity component such as apple or pear was used, adding some sweetness (never too much!) and especially some freshness.
The R&D chef, a Noma alumn, was from Spain, which was noticeable in some of the dishes. For instance, the peach was sitting on something resembling a classic salsa and the dessert included torrija, a Spanish type of French Toast. Naturally, there were dishes that I liked more and dishes that I liked less, but there was none that I disliked. I loved getting to try new ingredients (especially sea urchin and the different variants of sea weed) and I really liked how they weren’t afraid to use lots of spices and salt. All in all, a great menu and the best rice I have ever had in my life (the secret ingredient: roasted green chilies and lots and lots of butter!).
The Drinks
I’ve had wine pairing and I’ve had juice pairing, but I’ve never had a cocktail pairing with my meal. So I was especially excited and I was not disappointed. The drinks would frequently include an ingredient, that was also used in the dish, and it was often an unexpected ingredient such as soy sauce, grilled apple, sichuan pepper or sesame oil (loved the last one in particular). The bar chef was explaining, why he used which ingredient, what he had tried before, why he is serving it this way and even why he picked this temperature for this dish. Every cocktail was basically a quite generous taster portion but there would always be a bit left and the bar chef would gladly refill our glasses if there was.
The Price
The Atomix Bar Tasting Menu was $270 (already including tax and gratuity/”Trinkgeld”). For this price, I got 9 courses and 9 drinks with it. The dishes were a bit smaller than what I experienced in other, “regular” tasting menus but that didn’t bother me too much. I came for the experience and I got an experience. I also did definitely not feel the need to go for $1 slice pizza afterwards.
For comparison: The 7 course menu at Essigbrätlein (one of Nuremberg’s 2 star restaurants) is currently priced at €195. Including wine pairing, you’d have to pay €344 (excluding tip). At Atomix, you definitely get less food than at Essigbrätlein, but all in all it is a really good deal (especially for a city as expensive as NYC) and I’d go again.
All in All Verdict
I loved everything about the Bar Tasting at Atomix and I wish Bar Tasting Menus were a thing in Germany. It was extremely relaxed, no loud music, intimate atmosphere and the best service I have ever experienced. I am pretty sure that the staff was not only schooled in cooking, mixology and hospitality but also got conversation training (if not so, then they are naturals). They managed to bring 5 individual diners together and to create a shared experience. They seemed to actively look for what we all had in common and (not that surprisingly) it was our love for food and fine dining. The guy on my left had basically been to every Michelin restaurant in New York and the Asian couple on the right were hardcore fine dining travellers. They said they were in New York for 7 days and they booked 7 Michelin star restaurants for their stay. They also talked about their experiences with Asian fine dining and their as of yet unsuccessful attempts to score a table at Noma. Luckily, the head chef had worked there and could give them some insider tips on how to make their dream become reality. He also told us to try their squirrell’s brain broth, but that’s for another trip 😉 Basically, it was a big fine dining geek fest and I left the restaurant with a hand written note full of restaurant suggestions for the rest of my stay.
Side Note: Atomix is not only ranked #33 in the world in the 50 Best List but also won the Gin Mare Art of Hospitality Award: “Up-close-and-personal service delivered with knowledge and warmth, with a side-serve of education.” Would 100% agree.
*2023 Update: This year Atomix climbed all the way up to rank #8. This also means it’s currently ranked as the best restaurant in the US.
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