Narcissa, what a beautiful name. As a matter of fact it is not only the name but the place itself is also beautiful. Located at Cooper Square at The Standard Hotel this restaurant has a soul, it has a style and even though it is two room space, it is very cozy. The night we went there was slow, only 4 tables taken out of 20, yet the place felt very special, romantic, inviting and small in a way.

It is obvious everything about this place was carefully chosen, wooden panels on the ceiling, lamps and overall decor seems like a cross between 80’s and modern design. It works. We chose this place because of the chef John Fraser. His excellent reputation when he worked at Dovetail drew our attention.

Before our appetizer arrived we were served home baked bread, which was delicious. Soft butter and sourdough bread with a pinch of salt was perfect start of the dinner. For the appetizers we ordered Locusts Farm Egg and Charred Octopus. Locusts Farm Egg, was scramble eggs with blue crab meat baked in clay pot and served with grilled baguette. Unfortunately the dish was so salty that it was impossible to finish. We had the same problem with Charred Octopus, nicely plated pieces of octopus with kabocha squash and feta but too salty. Maybe that day the sous-chef was preparing appetizers and had “heavy hand” with salt. It is a shame as we were really excited about all food creations at this venue. For main we ordered Carrots Wellington and Pork Terrain special. Carrots Wellington, were perfect, not too soft, not too hard. Golden dough wrapped around carrots, mushrooms underneath that and small pieces of pickled onions were excellent combination. The pork dish was well prepared as well; the meat was carefully plated along with pieces of apples and sausage. We also ordered Locusts Farm Kale as a side dish; it was spicy and too salty at the same time. Both main entrees had good flavors and they were not salty which immediately made us think that appetizers and side dish were prepared by a different person; definitely not the chef.

We decided to split one dessert and we ordered Spiced Pumpkin Crepes. The pumpkin filling was flavorsome and not too sweet, the white sauce poured all over the dessert upon arrival, was excellent. Fresh berries not only added some color to overall look but also brought that settle fruit sourness. My only complaint was the actual crepe dough, too thick, not soft or fluffy enough.

I think this is great place as a location with fantastic ambience; I want to think we had bad luck and for some reason our dishes that night came out way too salty. That was an execution mistake, as the menu in my opinion is fresh, interesting and surprising because you do not really know what is coming after you placed your order. I think I may give it a second chance one day, just because I really enjoyed the atmosphere and service.

Cuisine: Farm to Table, California Cuisine

Avg price per person: $50-60, all major credit cards accepted

Attire: Casual

Overal Rating: 3 plates