Ed's Chowder House

I stumbled upon Ed's Chowder House at the Empire hotel in my quest for a pre-theater snack before seeing War Horse at Lincoln center.  And by snack I mean pisco sour and full-on meal.  The restaurant is absolutely stunning, but as the description I linked to above mentions, it does not match a typical chowder house conception.  It's far too elegant.  Taken in another setting, however, the decor is breathtaking.

The meal started off well with a twist on a pisco sour and a too-die-for bread basket.  For those of you who know me, if I could order bread for dinner, I'd probably do so.  Biscuits and cornbread equals heaven.  We followed that with a nice salmon cooked rare on top of a ratatouille, a tuna tartare with crispy wontons, and a side of asparagus.  All quite tasty and an overall perfect meal before catching a show.  FYI there is also a $39 pre-fix for theater goers, but we opted for ala carte.

Heavenly

Salmon and ratatouille

Tuna tartare, seaweed salad, and wontons

Asparagus with melted cheese