Restaurant Review: Florian Cafe

Burrata, Burrata, Burrata! Burrata is one of those foods I'll never get sick of talking about. Creamy fresh cheese surrounded by even creamier delicious cheese...whoever thought this up is a genius! Back in March, friends and I googled the best Burrata in Manhattan and found Florian Cafe . Nestled in among the busy offices of Park Ave, this Itaian staple had been around for years and known for amazing Italian dishes, including Burrata.

For our appetizer, we ordered Burrata two ways: one with prosciutto on side; the other covered in truffle and stuffed with a soft boiled egg. Cheese and egg together!?? 

I couldn't wait to cut into this amazing concoction!! No surprises here, it was amazing. The yolk of the egg oozed out causing a beautiful downpour of delicious egg yolk for all it soak up with our cheese. Naturally, this experience was not very gluten friendly so while everyone sopped up their egg and cheese with bread, I used a spoon. :) 

The Burrata with prosciutto was delicious as well but you can't compare an egg filled cheese to something generic and expect the genetic cheese to win. 

For my main entree, I orders polenta topped with bolognese sauce and a fried egg. (Apparently, once I have an egg, I can't stop.)

I dove into the polenta as fast as the waiter left our table and damn! It was good! Tender meat sauce and creamy polenta are a match made in heaven! I totally did not need the egg to make the dish any better but the yolk added a nice extra flavor punch.

While I scarfed down my polenta, my friends shared the ossobuco lasagna. It was one of those curious "must try" dishes that Florian Cafe is raved about. It looked beautiful when served but my friends didn't seem overly impressed. They said it had all the right flavor a but could use more sauce, as the noddles were a bit dry. I'd have to imagine they prepare so many of this dish a night that not all are the absolute best quality. The uniqueness of the dish seems worth a try to me...if you can eat gluten. ;)

Overall opinion of the Restarant: the staff try to make this restaurant feel like a historic Italian restaurant when in actuality, it's owned by a restaurant group that runs severs kitschy places in the city. They've become notorious for Burrata and they definitely have it right! If you're looking for great cheese and interesting menu options (say, a lobster flatbread with an actual lobster shell on it) then Florian Cafe is worth a visit.