Mas La Grillade

This place will change the way I think about food forever. If you’re hesitating to try this place, don’t. Yes, we all know, it’s pricey, but its WORTH it. Save up for a meal here if you have to, you will NOT regret it.
I came to eat with my boyfriend on a Friday night and first thing I noticed was how empty it was. Seriously, there was only one other person at the bar drinking alone and I think she was part of the staff. We had made a reservation and they brought us to an intimate booth in the back complete with candles. The atmosphere is super romantic but is not too dark (for those who are fans of taking pictures of food hahaha). However, it just struck me strange how the second party to come in (I assumed they had made a reservation as well) were placed to be seated right next to us in the booth in the back. There was only two parties present at the restaurant… couldn’t they have seated them somewhere else? Thus ensues the awkwardness of pretending that you are unable to hear every single word or whisper they say.
Also a second disclaimer, the menu is so confusing! Thank goodness our waitress was patient with us and explained it to us twice, but I still don’t fully understand it. Basically we have options to order a la carte, or we can select the tasting menu, which consists of one appetizer, two entrees, and one dessert for 86 dollars. The front page is the recommended selection for the tasting menu, but we have the liberty to choose any one of the entrees, appetizers, or desserts, and they will adjust the portions accordingly. However, when we received our bill at the end, they charged us individually for each entrée, so I’m not sure if that was a mistake or if we didn’t order the right things for the tasting menu.
Besides with all those setbacks, the food is amazing! From first to last, we were served:
1. Watermelon and Tomato Tartare– complimentary. A great palate refresher, love the pickled fennel and celery with the tomatoes. It’s like half fruit salad, half salsa!
2. Grilled «Island Creek» Oysters– good but didn’t really stand out from any other oysters I’ve had.
3. Grilled Quail with Mushrooms and Carrots– This dish made my night. The quail was so juicy and moist and perfectly cooked, and even though it tasted like a simple rub of salt and pepper on the quail, I can safely say it’s the best meat dish I’ve ever had.
4. Grilled Duck Breast– it was alright. Yummy but to be honest, nothing could beat the quail that night.
5. Peach Pavlova with Spiced Caramel Popcorn and Peach Sorbet-​such a differing set of flavors that come together so well! Couldn’t stop eating the spiced popcorn. Never had anything like that before!
EDIT: I realize this place has now been marked «closed» :(but that still doesn’t stop me from bringing this review out of the graveyard that is my review drafts folder, does it?!

Phenomenal!!!

Came here for a $ 25 Restaurant Week prix-​fixe lunch. Service was pretty attentive throughout. Now onto the the food:
1. Petite Aïoli with Lovage, Baby Vegetables and Sugar Snap Peas. Good selection of fresh veggies.
2. Oil Poached Salmon with Flageolet Beans, Dashi Marinated Eggplant and Arugula. I had the salmon medium-​rare and it was juicy and tender inside.
3. Westfield Farm Goat Cheese with Honey Roasted Strawberries and Pecan-​Rosemary Crackers. A few crackers with some cheese, nuts, and jam to spread.
Overall, I enjoyed the meal, though portions were a bit on the small side.
Another thing: They asked me if I had dietary restrictions at the beginning. I didn’t, but it seems like they’ll accommodate whatever restrictions you may have.

Disclaimer… My boyfriend and I came here for a romantic evening to celebrate my birthday. They had hosted a private event earlier in the day, and opened around 7, which is later than they usual open. So when we arrived for an 8 pm reservation, the place was dead. I would have liked to see the the ambiance of the restaurant on a better, busier evening. Because of this, it lost a star. Otherwise I would have gone for 5.
With that being said, both the food and service were EXCEPTIONAL. Water glasses were always filled, and someone was always nearby for a question or request.
We both ordered the tasting menu. The great thing about this is that they allow you to swap out tasting menu options for a la carte menu items. We also swapped out the dessert portion for a savory portion for an additional $ 8 a person. This means you can essentially create your own tasting menu. We each had a different 4 course meal.
The meal started with delicious warm bread rolls and what I believe is homemade butter. So good we quickly asked for more rolls.
I had chilled carrot soup, salmon, gnocchi, & quail. Boyfriend had grilled oysters, sea bass, chicken, & duck. Every single dish came out PERFECTLY cooked. The soup was creamy and cold with crunchy fried chick peas that were a really nice texture juxtaposition to the soup. The quail was perfectly moist, the salmon was cooked rare as requested, and the gnocchi with fresh mushrooms was decadent. The oysters were buttery, and the duck was was soft with perfectly crunchy skin.
Basically. An epic meal. I would recommend to anyone. Anytime.

My husband and I tried Mas la grillade after hearing great thing about farmhouse. The food was good but no mind blowing. The staff was attentive and would be a reason to
Come back here but the food is not. There are much better restaurants that serve farm to table that dwarf this place.

What a unique and fabulous dining experience! Situated in a small duplex space in the W Village, Mas la Grillade is the yang to the chef’s more formal French restaurant, Mas Farmhouse. This place has been on our list for a few years now and I cannot believe we haven’t been until now. Rating should really be about 4 ½ stars. (Service, while very good, doesn’t justify the full 5)
We enjoyed two beautifully crafted cocktails at the bar before being seated at a banquette table on the first floor. Tight cozy space but lovely nonetheless. The host had offered to move our table since we were appointed to the front 4-​top by the door… nice view of 7^th Ave S but not your best seat in the house by a long shot. Hubby and I enjoyed the drinks which were smoky and citrus-​infused without being sweet-​bartender rec spot on.
It took us some time to order because we had the option of the a la carte, the four or seven course tasting or we could create the a la carte from the dishes on the chef’s tastings… bingo…that was a winner. Who would have thought that you could select off the tasting and still order a la carte?! This allowed us to try some of the fun seasonal specials while savoring other more signature dishes like the oysters, grilled romaine salad– a beautiful riff on a Ceasar. I tried the grilled white asparagus as an appetizer and the grilled dorade over fennel and topped with dill, picholine olives-​yum! The smoke from the grill was perfect, not overpowering. Others had the duck, swordfish and signature pork belly. Everyone raved about their dishes.
I recommend saving room for dessert (which is not that hard to do as the portions are adequate but not too big). We split the dark and white chocolate tart with fresh lavender ice cream, the olive oil cake with rhubarb sorbet-​unbelievable if fruit is your kind of sweet, and grilled banana swirl ice cream-​delicious. We did linger at our table on a Sat night and the service was gracious and welcoming. The host was so friendly… our server a little quirky as he didn’t seem to appreciate our sense of humor throughout the meal. All in all, this place is spectacular and while it comes with a bit of hefty price tag, all worth it. For this kind of food, quality and pleasant dining experience in New York, I wouldn’t expect different. Certainly aiming to come back again soon.

Expensive but the highest quality
I had grilled oysters, the best in my life. My trout salad was an appetizer but it was a nice portion, with the appetizer it is perfect if you dont want to overeat. The salad is a little bit smokey, super yummy with crunchy almonds.
We ordered wine by glass, the bottle was brought to the table and served. Very classy. We had 3 appetizers, a meal, some wine and a martini, payed $ 180.
The ambiance is modern, not too loud music at the bar. It is a small 2 storie place,
We had a great night.

I can think of no name that better suits this establishment; after all, it is in Mas — the name typically given to a farmhouse in southern France — where you can find the epitome of farm-​to-​table cooking. Mas (la grillade) serves as the homier and more accessible counterpart to Mas (farmhouse), with an emphasis on preparing food using traditional grilling techniques over a wood fire. When the most recent Restaurant Week season rolled out this past winter, I took the opportunity to organize a Sunday brunch with a group of friends to see the kind of food that came out of these kitchens.
To note: Mas La Grillade typically has a three-​course lunch menu that is only several dollars more than the price set for Restaurant Week. The menu is seasonal and changes regularly, allowing them to feature ingredients and produce when they’re at their best. As each course had a few options, we managed to cover every dish offered that day between the five of us… which is certainly one of the benefits of dining with a larger group.
To start off with, I ordered the Grilled Butternut Squash Soup as I was craving something warm and filling. A gorgeous bowl of bright orange soup was placed before me, flecked with grilled Shimeji mushrooms and topped off with parmesan foam. The soup was a fair balance between savory and sweet, with a little additional texture from the mushrooms. There was a hint of smokiness present in each spoonful, which probably can be attributed to the restaurant’s predominant cooking technique. It was surprisingly light, and a good way to begin the meal. Both the salad with grilled shrimp and the beet salad with pears and goat cheese were also well-​recieved.
Our entrees followed shortly, and I had decided on the Short Rib Burger, served with fingerling sweet potatoes. The sweet potatoes were fairly simple; they’d been grilled briefly and required no additional seasoning to bring out the flavor. As for the short rib, it was somewhat incorrect to describe it as a «burger»; a compact patty, topped off with grilled onions and a chive mayonnaise, had been sandwiched between an english muffin. The meat had been perfectly seasoned, grilled until it had a light char, and was delightfully juicy and savory. However, it wasn’t until halfway through the meal that my friend and I realized our plates had been switched; I had requested mine to be cooked to a «medium», while he had asked for a «rare». In hindsight, I actually benefitted from this mix up as it made my meal that much tastier.
And, of course, dessert. The only option that day was a Cardamom Cake paired with Smoked Cinnamon Ice Cream. The cake itself was delicious; dense and sweet, and smartly topped with slices of grapefruit and a sprinkling of pomegranate seeds. The ice cream was much more of a surprise, though; as the fact that the cinnamon had been «smoked» and that cinnamon is not a common ice cream flavor made each bite a novelty. I was fairly impressed with the fact that Mas La Grillade had been able to incorporate grilling even in their dessert course, and it was smartly done.
We ended the meal in good spirits, and with our appetites pleasantly sated for the afternoon. Our servers throughout the meal were friendly and fairly coordinated when bringing and cleaning away our plates and utensils, and the unity of good food, good service, and perhaps even better company made for a wonderful meal.

You couldn’t get a reservation at the Farmhouse and decided to make one here instead?
You just got adversely selected but it’s OK, you didn’t miss that much.
This is how Mr. Zamarra makes the moolah.
Food isn’t bad. It’s just a bad relative value.

If you like someone and truly want to enjoy a night of dining with them, take them to Mas La Grillade and get the seven course tasting menu. If you don’t like them that much, maybe you should just break up now and save yourself the trouble. It’s not a regular night out at $ 115 each for the seven courser, but it is worth every penny if you do decide to go that direction. Oh yeah, you’re welcome.
I made reservations via Open Table, but someone from Mas called to confirm and when they did they asked if it was a special occasion. It happened that it was and at the end of the meal, a special dessert showed up with Happy Anniversary written in chocolate. This, by itself, explains the service you get at Mas La Grillade. In addition to this little treat, our server was friendly, informative and knowledgeable about all the courses coming our way.
A small two tiered restaurant in the West Village right on 7^th Ave, but you wouldn’t remember that once you are inside. Quiet and comfortable upstairs, you won’t be in a rush to leave. The seven course tasting menu was excellent and be prepared because it starts slow. I was thinking after two courses, how am I ever going to get full with these tiny portions. Don’t worry, you will and you will be happy.
The scallops course was perfectly cooked, tender and seaworthy. The trio of meat courses (pork, rabbit and beef) were all texturally interesting because of the ragout of some and the delicate seasoning which left you able to inhale the flavors and aroma of the meats. As it progresses you start to realize that you will have plenty of food and the structure of the menu leaves you perfectly full after a smattering of desserts to finish you off. However, if you keep saying yes to their fantastic bread you may tko yourself a little early. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Mas La Grillade is something special. According to them, the serve locally grown and sustainably raised foods cooked solely over wood fires of oak, apple, and other hardwoods. Do you require something else?

Went to Mas Farmhouse a few weeks ago and heard that Mas Grillade was the same owner and Chef. Food and experience at Mas Grillade was good, but I prefer Mas Farmhouse.
Ordered the 4 course meal
1) wood-​fired oysters with lemon thyme– shallot butter… fresh, good flavor, but very heavy on the butter, so much that it was a little overkill
2) Scallops: good size portion; nice grill marks, cooked perfecty
3) Duck: good flavor, fresh and tender
4) Cheesecake: portion was on the smaller side, light and creamy
Ambiance…nice
Service…was average

5 stars for food. 3 ½ for service — which wasn’t bad, but the service at Mas farmhouse was so great that we came w/​a high expectation which was not met by the polite but very busy wait staff. We had to wait for 20 min plus at the bar past our reservation time. However, their manhattan cocktail was the best one I’ve had! So it worked out. We had scallops, oysters, quail, and duck. Everything was really good, and the duck was to die for (i’m a sucker for duck.) They didn’t rush us, so it was nice. But wait staff and the bar keeper seemed too busy and frazzled to explain the food and drinks w/​excitement like the guys at mas farmhouse did. I guess you cannot have everything :-)

No muss, no fuss at Mas la Grillade. Planned a birthday lunch with my brother (and it also happened to be restaurant week), but my brother cancelled on me last minute. I don’t know about you, but at the end of the day, I will still eat no matter what.
I enjoyed my lunch so much. With clean, bold flavors, it was truly a farm to table experience. Even my elderflower lemonade was nice and tart, just the way I like it. The staff were really on their game, tending to every table, order and fixing everything that was out of place. I was truly impressed with the service.
I had the watermelon gazpacho, the fish entrée and melon soup for dessert. My only complaint is that I wished the portions were bigger. The food was freaking slamming!

came here with 6 other girls for our monthly brunch outing — no prix fixe on weekends!
We each got 1 oyster — it was tasty but sure went down quick.
friend got a grilled lettuce salad as appetizer — got a bite: bacon was tasty and lettuce really fresh.
I got the burger + cheddar. The home made english muffin was delicious! I loved it even tho i don’t normally like english muffins (not as substantial perhaps? this one wasn’t hole-​y and was more bread-​like with a super cripsy outside and awesome flavor — butter!). The patty was flavorful with the green chive mayo to complement the meat. side salad was generous and there was two halfs of a sweet potato. YUM!
everything on the plate was fresh and tasty.
The restaurant was quite empty when we got seated — aside from our table (1^st floor, center) and one other couple, there was only 1 other party in the restaurant. For some reason, there was a camera crew there. Not sure what it was for, but at some point it was shooting footage/​pictures of us. Never found out what that was about.
Burger was $ 18, one oyster was $ 3 + tax/​tip — my meal was $ 30. a bit on the pricey side.

Came here with 4 other elites for RW Sunday Lunch:
Appetizer:
— I ordered the shrimp salad. It’s just a salad but it was pretty good… The shrimp was fresh and it was tossed with some salad sauce that I really like (I don’t remember). It’s definitely worth it compare to the normal salad
Entrée:
— I went with the fish. It’s way too salty for me. I guess it’s because it’s olive gravy. I can’t help but kept drinking lots of water because it’s way too salty. Plus I am not a olive fan.
Dessert:
— you only have a choice. not my favorite dessert but still good to enjoy.
Overall, I am not too impressed with Mas La Grillade. but still ok to enjoy!

Mas La Grillade located in the trendy area of west village. Surprisingly this restaurant is pretty large given its location with an upstairs and downstairs eating area including a pretty sweet wine cellar. Coming here with my girlfriend we were looking over the menu and decided what the heck, let’s do the six course tasting menu.
Amuse Bouche: Coho salmon, dill, and marinated jicama.
First Course: Consome with mushrooms, carrots, and duck.
Second Course: Grilled Dorade
Third Course: Tuna on a bed of spinach? and mushrooms
Fourth Course: Sweet breads with a cranberry sauce.
Fifth Course: Grilled Lamb Chop with banana curry
Chef’s compliments: Sorbet with blood orange ice chips
Sixth Course: Chocolate torte with guiness ice cream.
Chocolates w/​check
Looking at the restaurant solely on food, it fell short of my expectations. I understand that everything is cooked on a wood fire and that certainly imparts flavor, but it shouldn’t be the only flavor I should expect from my food. The consome although it did smell amazing, the flavor itself was ho hum. I did particularly like however that you could actually taste the smokiness of the grilled vegetables in the consome itself. SInce I told the chef that I would like fish to be served whole, we received the Dorade. The description from the menu sounded fairly simple, grilled fish seasoned with salt. The dorade was a little drier than I would have liked but it was acceptable. I think the fish was probably cooked slightly longer than it should have but otherwise a tasty dish.
The tuna we received was a small cube of tuna and the true star of this dish was not the fish or the vegetables but surprisingly the mushroom. It was the only item on that plate that absolutely exploded with flavor. The next course was sweet breads, not being a fan of offal parts, I do eat them. The chef did a fantastic chop with cooking it perfectly, it maintained a silky, soft texture and much better than my last experience with sweet breads. The grilled lamb chop was executed perfectly as well, a nice medium rare consistency and the banana curry was outrageously good.
Whomever this restaurant has as their pastry chef, I must say they are very lucky to have them. The sorbet was fantastic and I absolutely love the blood orange ice chips that was served with it. The absolute best dish of the entire meal was the chocolate torte served with guiness ice cream. It wasn’t too sweet and it was absolute heaven.
Service: The front of the house was excellent. They were attentive, quickly removed finished dishes, drinks were refilled, and napkins were folded whenever we left the table. The back of the house probably needs some work. For us to have our six course menu, it took us approximately 3 hours to go through dinner. The first two courses arrived quickly but as more customers started filling the tables the time for our other dishes to come out became noticeably longer. Fortunately I the servers were attentive in asking if people wanted bread and I was able to nosh on it while we waited. The table next to us actually skipped out on their remaining courses because it took so long.
Ambiance: The restaurant is definitely a more romantic setting, the lights are dimmed extra low almost to the point where you can barely read the menu. If you’re looking for a date night restaurant this is definitely a good place if you’re not in a hurry to be anywhere else. The food however failed to blow me away, granted their tasting menu is cheaper than other restaurants but for something aspiring to be like those other guys, I wouldn’t be in a hurry to be coming back, not that the service was poor, the items just lacked flavor as a whole even though individual components on some of those dishes were amazing.

This place was a great option for Sunday brunch before the Superbowl… It was satisfying, but not roll-​me-​home full. And it was probably a little healthier than it would’ve normally been. It was restaurant week… yay! (So $ 25 for prix fixe menu, or $ 28 the rest of the year)
The food:
Grilled Shrimp with Bibb Lettuce and Pickled Vegetables — the shrimp was perfectly cooked and delciious
Grilled Butternut Squash Soup with Smoked Hon Shimeji Mushrooms and Parmesan Foam — so smokey and delicious. the mushrooms were good as were the other bits and pieces in the soup, addicting flavorings
Grilled Mahi Mahi with Alphonso Olive Tapenade, Baby Spinach and Bok Choi — tapenade made things a little salty. spinach was salty, spinach and bok choi cooked to perfecting. mahi mahi grilled to perfecting. delicious dish… on the salty side
Suckling Pig Crepinette with Kale, Brussel Sprouts, Dates and a House-​Made Beet Mustard — amazing, melts in your mouth like butter. all vegetables were delicious. beet mustard was AWESOME
Cardamom Cake with Fresh Ruby Grapefruit, Pomegranite Seeds and Smoked Cinnamon Ice Cream — yum yum yum. perfect end to a delicious meal

‘Twas Restaurant Week (read: NYC’s Tri-​Annual 18 Days Of Restaurant Deals), and Lori gathered the masses for a Sunday brunch of extremely classy proportions.
The interior was very polished yet modern, with creams, blacks, and greens about. The lower level showcased a gorgeous glass-​enclosed wine room, while the upstairs was illuminated via an ornate skylight. Though the view of the backs of a few West Village apartment buildings isn’t ideal, I’ll certainly take a dose of natural light and hints of crisp blue skies than nothing at all
The five of us hungry patrons squeezed into a cozy booth and contemplated the Restaurant Week Menu. Lucky for us, we all had different tastes, and between all of us, we ordered each item. The appetizer of choice was three orders of the butternut squash soup with mushrooms and a Parmesan foam. The only «complaint» from some was its sweetness, but it certainly did not stop anyone from spooning out every last drop from their bowl. One order of the shrimp was also heartily devoured. I ordered the baby beet salad with Asian pears, candid nuts, and goat cheese. Perfect complimentary tastes throughout.
For entrees, I was, again, the loner! (Ha!) I ordered the pork crépinettes with Brussels sprouts, mustard greens, and beet sauce. Think of the pork as a loosely-​bound meatball. The flavor, texture, moisture… all perfect! Two people were satiated with the Mahi Mahi, and two others devoured their short rib burgers and sweet potato fries with much jubilance. (I was able to steal a bite! WOW.)
For dessert, as there was a singular option, we all got the cardamom cake with grapefruit, pomegranate seeds, and smoky cinnamon ice cream. As delicious as my first two courses were, I could have devoured all five desserts on my table. The consistency of it was not dissimilar to a tres leches cake, and the fruit enchanted the flavor. The ice cream was the perfect finisher.
The Blood Orange Mimosa? Delightfully delightful. «Buzzworthy». Indeed.
*ahem*
The staff was friendly and on the ball completely. Our waiter, after reviewing our order us, even asked us if there were any food allergies the kitchen should be concerned with. (Props.)
Their Restaurant Week lunch menu was a great introduction to this West Village gem.

What a delightful experience!
Friendly and attentive staff. Finished plates were always promptly removed.
Fire roasted oysters were pretty good. Their mushroom dish was deliciously stuffed with pumpkin. Perfect for the holiday. I had the scallops which came with broccoli and cauliflower that were seasoned well and had a nice cream sauce. The grass-​fed filet was perfectly cooked to a medium rare and was simply delicious.
Had the quince and crème fraîche upside down cake. Besides picking off the ginger on top, the cake had a crispy gooey crust that I loved. The hub had his usual chocolate fix with the chocolate almond tart that was equally delicious.
I’d give this restaurant 4.5 overall!

I went to Mas with really high expectations since my friend had been talking it up and it actually surpassed expectations when I finally had a chance to go for a charity dinner. The food was great, but what really set it apart was the experience, attention to detail, and innovative cooking style.
What I found really interesting was the fact that all the dishes were grilled over an open fire – hence the name la grillade. There weren’t a lot of heavy sauces in the dishes, which allowed Chef Galen Zamarra to really showcase the simplistic yet beautiful organic, locally sourced produce.
I loved the:
Grilled lobster in a charred corn soup with shishito peppers, chives, and esperlette pepper: I LOVED the texture of the soup. It was slightly frothed and creamy and absolutely delicious. The peppers and the corn created a really great flavor of sweetness with a hint of spicy.
Grilled lamb rack with smoked potato purée, grilled baby turnips and carrots in pesto: the lamb was cooked perfectly. It was super juicy and tender and went perfectly with the potato purée.
Oysters on the half shell that were slightly warmed on the grill: I was a bit skeptical at first because I don’t typically like cooked oysters but I was happy to find that they were still raw, just slightly warmed. It didn’t come with the usual sauces, which I liked because it lets you really taste the sweet and buttery flavors of the oysters. And they weren’t fishy at all — not sure if that had something to do with the grilling or maybe it’s just the quality of the oyster.
Grilled peaches in lemongrass syrup. YUM!!!
The tour of the kitchen: They have these incredible grills with a wheel that raises and lowers the food over wood coals.
How passionate and welcoming Eric, the co-​owner of the restaurant is.