Bouchon at Time Warner Centre, New York

I enjoy fine dining, and I'm not bothered about eating alone. But there are certain places that I would never go to by myself - zi char restaurants, because you can't order much, and super fine dining places. Oh on that note, I have to say I'm so excited that Eleven Madison is the latest kid on the 3 Michelin star block!

When I knew I was going to be in New York, I was super excited at the thought of being able to have the chance to try out a Thomas Keller restaurant. However, the excitement quickly faded when I realised (1) the price of a meal there and (2) that I would be short-changing myself of maximum enjoyment without someone to share it with. So the next best alternative was to look for a cheaper substitute, which was a bakery owned by the same group, located in the same building as Per Se. Thomas Keller had already established Bouchon in Las Vegas and LA, with another branch at Rockefeller Centre. But I wanted to visit Time Warner Centre to understand how the architects had managed to cram hotel, residential and commercial (office and retail) use all within the same development.

This was right at opening time, at 11am. The tables filled up pretty soon after.

The view from our seat.

We ordered the set lunch. This was the Heirloom Tomato tart, with ricotta and roasted garlic served with a salad at the side. Ordinary, but nice.

A closer look. The flavours were milder than expected, which I appreciated.

My friend had the Caesar's salad with prawns. I didn't think it was worth coming all the way to Bouchon to try a salad : )

I had the Steak Tartine, which was basically a sirloin steak sandwich served with tomato, aioli, scallion on a batard. This was pretty average.

The desserts were the best part of the meal. We shared the macaron and chocolate tart.

It was one huge macaron, and I really liked the texture. It was the perfect mix of crumbly and chewy.

The chocolate ganache and praline crunch were absolutely fabulous. The chocolate was very smooth, rich and not too sweet.

The set cost around $20 or $30, which was not too bad considering the association with Thomas Keller. But next time, I'll stick to the desserts.

Restaurant details at http://www.bouchonbakery.com/