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If it's unclear from the crafty phonetic spelling, El Ay Si—a narrow, arm's-width eatery—is one of few recent openings along Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City, a restaurant-starved nabe that is more known for two highly focused boites (Sasha Petraske's cocktail den Dutch Kills and uber-spacious beer garden Studio Square). Chef Chris Frakes, formerly of East Village shutters Butcher Bay and E.U., works under the restaurant's hand-in-fist mission, which is spelled out on its menu: "Comfort. Food." So, why yes, there are fried chicken and mac-and-cheese updates on his menu. We hear they're pretty big these days! —MR
Long Island City: The Next Big Thing. For realz!
Great move for El Ay Si to stake its claim on this nabe. We're rooting for L.I.C.—it's always been The Next Big Thing that never could quite take off. It's a great location, and has a waterfront vibe that evokes a pre-boom Williamsburg. It even has its own longtime destination restaurant, Water's Edge. But the next wave? So many false starts. A few years back, L.I.C. did juice up its profile when "Top Chef" alum Josie Smith Malave briefly became exec chef at Island Café, but the area's buzz quickly died down. (Not helping: a failed Olympic Village bid.) What the area needs is a next-gen restaurant to anchor it, in the way the late Chickenbone Café sent gourmands back to Williamsburg. Can El Ay Si fit the bill? Judging by the inconsistency of its dishes, though, it has a ways to go. —ALL
Good cop: Jalapeño fritters, rib eye, mac-and-cheese, bourbon pecan pie
Sweet corn fritters were fried to a perfect golden brown and laced with the right amount of jalapeño (that is, not a lot). The big hit was a dry-rubbed rib eye, a hulking $24 cut with Memphis-style spice notes (a mix of red pepper flakes, porcini mushroom powder and brown sugar). Though overcooked-to-order (medium; we asked for medium rare), the chef obviously made the right decision with this delicious steak. We've debated mac-and-cheese in the past, but Frakes' was a win with applewood bacon taking center stage to a chorus of white cheddar, Swiss and parmesan reggiano. A rich bourbon pecan pie was a buttery, boozy, sweet final note to an overall off-key performance. OK, promise, no more music metaphors, like, ever! —MR
Bad cop: Grilled chorizo, orange-glazed striped bass, pork belly, chicken fried chicken with gravy
What was most disappointing about El Ay Si wasn't the fact that there were clunkers—even the best restaurants have their off days—but that the clunkers crashed so tragically. Our grilled chorizo starter, for instance (served with pickled onions), was so tough and chewy, it was like beef jerky; you could barely slice it, and when we tried to spear it with our forks, it flew off the plate. A criminally undercooked striped bass sat on a bed of greens, and everything was drenched in a kind of "orange glaze" that tasted more like super-sweet vinaigrette. The dish was inedible: mushy, raw, oppressively sweet and fishy all at once. Not much luck with the pork belly, either (it was paired with a roasted pork loin stuffed with parsley and sage); the underseasoned belly was so dry that the meat jutted out like jagged shards when you sliced into it. We were excited to try the chicken fried chicken, which was well-fried—crisp coating that hugged tender meat—but the dish OD'd on pepper, and the white gravy (punched up with paprika, onion and garlic) was almost as thick as paste. —ALL
All told...
It's tough to see a restaurant stumble in a up-and-coming neighborhood in need of more quality dining options. That said, El Ay Si is clearly in a great position to cash in on the inevitable L.I.C. upswing, if it manages to troubleshoot its weak spots. Who knows: El Ay Si—with its appealing Southern-food concept—might finally become the next-gen restaurant that this neighborhood so richly, and belatedly, deserves. —ALL
Photo by Sam Horine
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