Modern without pretension

Saturday night my husband and I met up with our friend that lives downtown. I love the MoMA so we decided to start at the MoMA bar, The Modern. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it is a beautiful space and was staffed by knowledgeable and very friendly people. There was absolutely no sense of people wanting to be seen or seeing anyone despite the fact that there probably are quite a few regular 'successful' people that dine there. Thee interior is great with modern furnishings throughout. Each of the kumquat mojitos I enjoyed were perfectly muddled and not too sweet and the small plate of scallops with lobster consomme were excellent. The food is leaning toward Alsatian with lots of seafood choices but there's a little bit of everything to choose from and it is all beautifully presented.

I learned afterward that this is actually a Danny Meyer restaurant - it is very different than his other places (Union Square Grill, Gramercy Tavern, Blue Smoke and one of my favorites - Tabla). The energy is much more sleek and well, modern than his other restaurants which tend to feel like nice but kind of corporate neighborhood restaurants. The Modern is a place you can go to get consistently good food and the staff would know your name by your 2nd or 3rd visit. I suppose that is what makes it a Danny Meyer restaurant. Cheers.