Pump Room Celebrates 75th Birthday With Throwback Dishes
By Melissa Wiley in Food on Oct 11, 2013 6:20PM
The Pump Room may have gotten a facelift in recent years, but then so have most of the stars who made it a destination in the first place. What works for Joan Rivers, it turns out, serves this iconic establishment equally well, because you can’t argue with longevity and there’s no power like staying power, even if Frank Sinatra’s booth has since been sold.
To celebrate its diamond anniversary, the restaurant is resurrecting some of its most famous dishes through Oct. 31. Specifically, Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten has reintroduced the following viands from its Rat Pack glory days. Hey, if it was good enough for Sammy, it’s good enough for us, and sometimes you just need a steak as thick as a hamster for crying out loud.
Dishes include:
•Tempura fantail shrimp with sweet and sour sauce and lemon ($16)
•Chopped chicken liver crostini with sage and walnut vinegar ($11)
•Roasted whitefish with potato puree, julienne vegetables and maitre d'hôtel butter ($26)
•Prime rib au jus with Yorkshire pudding ($50)
•Baba au rum ($8)
•Caramel ice cream coup glacee ($8)
Earlier this week, we tried everything except the caramel ice cream—you’ve gotta exercise some control when zipped tight inside your fancy pants—and had the roast carrot and avocado salad ($14) to boot. If there's any justice in this world, the chicken liver crostini will remain among the appetizers. But just in case there isn’t, you may want to visit before the month is out. And if the prices look reasonable, it’s because they’ve gone a little vintage too.
The Pump Room is located at 1301 N. State Pkwy.