The Franklin: thumbs up

I visited The Franklin with a small group Monday night and had a great time. I was very impressed by the dark, handsome, clubby, but not overwrought decor, and even more so by the astute lighting. This is also one of the few restaurants I've seen that is highly attentive to noise, with sound-absorbing material on the ceiling, and an intelligent layout subdividing the small overall space into several cozy, distinctive areas (rather than one cavernous, deafening room).

Service was laid-back but pleasant. Interesting wine list. Best of all was the food. We shared several small plates and two main courses. One of the few places where the latter were even more interesting and delicious than the former.

Could have wished for more vegetable options on the menu. We'd had some cocktails beforehand and ended up with more fried food than is preferable. But The Franklin's menu played a role in that, too.

Nevertheless, we'll be back. In the very near future.

HITS

GRILLED SWEETBREADS WITH BRAISED OXTAIL, PICKLED ROOT VEGETABLES AND GRILLED BREAD - Perfect, large, plump, very generous serving of sweetbreads, grilled perfectly, crisped on the outside, meltingly tender on the inside, great flavor, perfectly seasoned, and an astounding bargain ($19 for the most generous serving of sweetbreads I've ever seen). Other elements good, but superfluous, and I wished they hadn't been dumped onto the sweetbreads - this should be an appetizer starring the sweetbreads. The pickled veg could have been a small plate on their own; and the oxtail could be part of a wonderful ragu over pasta, or perhaps in a risotto. Clearly an example of the kitchen hedging their bets with three slightly unusual dishes shoe-horned together into a single plate.

GRILLED RIBEYE WITH BEARNAISE AND POMMES FRITES - A great cut of meat cooked and seasoned perfectly, best steak I've had in years. This ribeye was far more tender than the allegedly prime tenderloin my wife got at Antoine's a few days earlier. No tarragon in the soupy bearnaise (was it dill in there instead? sorrel?), but thankfully ribeye doesn't need sauce. Good fries, perfect to soak up the juices of the steak.

FRIED OYSTER MUSHROOMS WITH SHERRY MUSTARD - Fried mushrooms that aren't hot soggy gut-bombs of wet? Mushrooms that aren't mush? Bravo for outstanding technique, probably dehydrating the mushrooms in some fashion before frying. Just a tiny bit too salty, though.

ARUGULA SALAD WITH STRAWBERRIES, WALNUTS, GOAT CHEESE - A lovely composed salad, not too many ingredients, and each ingredient prepped, dressed and seasoned just right. A pleasure to see strawberries given careful prep (they were nicely macerated), not just sliced and tossed in like any old raw salad ingredient.


NOT BAD

CRAWFISH PIE - I barely remember this among the other dishes we had. But how bad can a fried pie filled with fresh crawfish be?

TUNA-AVOCADO CRUDO - Nothing special, and a long way from the imaginative, amazing crudos at Peche. But very nice.


MISSES

GRILLED OYSTERS WITH GARLIC BUTTER AND PARMIGIANO - The first dish we had from The Franklin was the worst. Oysters small, overcooked and dry, almost burned in places. The Franklin's elegant cookery does not comprehend how vast is the quantity of butter needed to keep this dish moist in smoking-high heat.

AVOCADO TEMPURA WITH CRAB - Fried avocado. The impressive part is accomplishing it at all - overlooking the question of whether it should be attempted in the first place. A bar-food stunt out of place in The Franklin.

ASIAGO PLATE - A meager, sad conclusion to the meal. This is where The Franklin recoups the money they lose on the grilled sweetbreads.