Duck confit at Flea Market Café

Ya know that restaurant you pass by in your neighborhood all the time and keep saying “it’s so cute – we should go there”? Flea Market Café is that place to me. I finally went in and not only is the space absolutely adorable, and it’s staffed with servers who care, but it has duck confit on the menu (what did you think this post was going to be about?) And not a crazy preparation, this little café serves simple classic French dishes, so the set is simply French fries and a green salad. Did I mention this place is about a two minute walk from my apartment?

All of my requirements have been met in order for this café to become “my” local restaurant.

Ok. Well.


The French fries were great – with just a few overcooked (which I dig) and seasoned perfectly. The food runner even asked me as my plate landed whether I prefer mayonnaise instead of ketchup (duh). The salad was well dressed, not over doused, not naked, with a simple vinaigrette.

Aaaaaaaand I should end my post there. The duck confit was meh. The saltiness was in check, and that’s about the best thing I can say. The skin was rendered completely out so no pockets of fat at the corners like I enjoy. The meat itself was dried out, and whatever caused it to toughen out so much also subtracted the slightly gamey ducky favor in the meat.

The wine list was brief and listed by varietal and wines were from France and the US. In addition, they had a bottle of Guigal Côtes du Rhône open when I was there that they offered by the glass.

I will return someday, because it is a charming space, prices were reasonable, and there were enough people in the restaurant on a quiet Monday night to suggest that they do serve good food (mussels seemed to be the popular dish that night). I just can’t recommend the duck confit.

Flea Market Café
131 Avenue A between St Marks Place and 9th St.

Duck confit at Casimir

First off, this is the first French café I’ve been to in New York City where I really felt I was back in Paris: beat-up furniture, traditional menu (including an affordable wine list that only included the color of the wine and its AOC), and marginal service delivered by a French-speaking staff. Only the three top of dudes next to me in oversize Ranger jerseys bring me back to my Avenue B east village reality.

I started with a special that day: Cesear salad made with kale. The bitter, tough greens against creamy dressing worked really well. In fact, I much prefer it to romaine in the Cesear. But let’s talk about duck:



First off, the entrées come in two sizes: small and large. My server couldn’t explain to me how one divides a single duck leg in half (I actually don’t think she really understood my question), so I went for the full sized. I’ll just have to go back, in the name of science, to report on how a half of duck leg is delivered.


This is among the very good duck confit I’ve had starting with the seasoning. This one was not super-salty so the gaminess of the duck came through. And everything else hit just the right note: tender meat – check; well-rendered crispy skin – check; traditional set (in this case, garlic-roasted potatoes and frisée salad) – check. The sweet element I insist on came from balsamic-caramelized onions scattered throughout the potatoes. There was diced bacon on the frisée salad that I thought was a bit of overkill next to duck, but hey, it’s bacon.

The wines by the glass were rattled off by the server by AOC so I went with a glass of Bergerac Rouge, which I later discovered was from Chateau Laulerie (a wine carried by my employer). I was craving a Chinon or the like, so this was as close as I got. The other red wines by the glass were all from southern portions of France (Côtes du Rhône, Minervois, and a Vin de Pays which the server didn’t know the grapes nor the greater region it came from).


Overall, it’s a solid duck confit in a très Français setting (did I mention a garden out back?) at an affordable price. All that plus it’s only a five minute walk from my apartment means that you’ll be able to find me there several nights per week. Who knows. I might even try something other than the duck confit (they also had duck breast on the menu…)



Casimir
103 Avenue B (between 6th and 7th Streets)

Duck confit at Noah’s in Greenport

A new addition to the restaurant scene in Greenport, Noah’s, specializes in delicious small-plate seafood and a raw bar, but it was the duck confit that caught my eye. I’m predictable like that. And maybe ordering duck confit at a seafood-centric restaurant is not the best idea. Still, Long Island duck is as much of a local item as the seafood, so it’s not all that much of a stretch…

At first I was surprised that a duck confit dish would cost $23, but it turns out this is because two duck legs are served. I love duck confit of course, but maybe there’s a way to get a half portion next time?

The dish was served over a bed of lentils (with lardons of bacon) and bitter frisée. The duck meat was tender though not too ‘ducky’ or gamey in flavor. The dominant note of the dish was the earthiness imparted by the lentils with some relief via the frisée. I heart bacon, but it was lost as there is plenty of lovely fattiness in the skin of the duck, and the volume of lardons was not enough to season the dish. The skin itself was rendered and crispy.

So I do love my duck confit, but this is a fine example of why, in my opinion, a bright fruit acid counterpoint is important for a balanced dish.

PS – if you go there, have the gorgonzola rosemary French fries. Crazy cool little dish.

Duck confit at Alias

I was put on this earth to do two things: drink lots of delicious wine and enjoy many legs of duck confit.

I spent an entire summer in Paris and instead of visiting the museums I spent four months searching out the best duck confit I could find. And there were so many excellent examples.

First and foremost, to qualify as excellent duck confit, the duck must posses a slightly gamy, ducky aroma and flavor. The meat must be tender of course, and the props go to a well-rendered and crispy skin to contrast with the meat. I also like the meat to be well-seasoned (I think there should be a little bit of a salty flavor permeating the meat). Away from the duck, I personally like there to be a sweet fruit element for contrast. But I know a lot of people don’t like fruit with savory.

About Alias: they have a $30 three-course supper on Sunday nights that is a good value. They also have a duck confit I love. On a recent visit, the duck confit was served on toasted cornbread with a smear of crème fraiche and jam.



Corn bread was an unusual choice to pair with duck, but sweet is a very important counterpoint to ducky. Cornbread might be a bit too dense and the creme fraiche was kinda lost in both flavor and aroma. Requisite fruit was present, this time in the form of brandied cherries. Yum.

As for the duck confit itself: perfectly ducky. Ducky aroma came up to meet me. Skin was perfectly rendered. Perfectly seasoned.

This is the benchmark for duck confit.