Foodies everywhere know the routine when specific holidays roll around. Valentine’s Day? The go-to food is chocolate, natch. And on New Year’s Eve, we all toast the passing of the old and the birth of the new with that sparkly beverage from France.
Now it’s your turn to play food association. We say, “Easter.” And you say … “eggs,” of course. Or maybe you’re more of a spring traditionalist and say “lamb.”
Both will be on hand this coming Sunday at Jones Wood Foundry, on the Upper East Side, which has all the Easter culinary bases covered with a single à la carte menu that includes eggs (think Benedict or its royal brother, which substitutes smoked salmon for the Canadian bacon) or buttermilk fried chicken and waffles, served up with scrambled eggs and bourbon maple syrup. Roast Leg of lamb is accompanied by market vegetables, roasted potatoes, gravy, and mint sauce, and — because JWF is a British pub — roast beef with Yorkshire pudding will also be available. The menu is served all day long. Jones Wood Foundry, 401 E. 76th Street, bet First and York Aves, 212-249-2700.
At La Cafette in Williamsburg you can express your solidarity with your French Christian brethren, who are in a bad way this Easter, by tucking into a rustic three-course prix fixe ($45) consisting of deviled eggs, herb-crusted roast rack of lamb with seasonal vegetables, and poire belle Hélène. Add a pitcher of mimosas for $30. La Cafette, 103 Havemeyer Street, 347-529-4060.
At Tom Colicchio’s Temple Court, just north of the Financial District, the emphasis this Easter is on togetherness. Accordingly, the three-course $50 table d’hote begins with offerings for the entire table, including shared first courses of donut holes with banana caramel, avocado toast, buffalo’s milk burrata, and more. Choose your own main course from one of four choices that include salmon Oscar (with heirloom grains, asparagus, and peekytoe crab) and a Niman Ranch hanger steak (with green asparagus, ramps, maitake mushrooms, and bordelaise). Temple Court, 5 Beekman Street, 212-658-1848.
In Mexico, Easter is Pascua de Resurrección, and the holiday feast might include churro pancakes and chilaquiles verdes (that’s soft-poached eggs, tortilla chips simmered in salsa verde, queso Oaxaca, and crema mexicana to you). Both dishes will be on the brunch menu at the five locations of Dos Caminos. Other options embrace Mexican “french toast” — which translates to crispy pan torrejas in a sauce of rum and cajeta caramel, garnished with roasted bananas — and smoked salmon and avocado Benedict. The à la carte price, which ranges from $16 to $22, includes coffee or tea and your choice of a cocktail. Check the website for locations and hours.
