Hell’s Kitchen is known for its plethora of cheap Thai restaurants and trendy bars, but the farm-to-table concept hasn’t made a big splash in this part of town. Furthermore, restaurants rarely spread father west than 9^th Avenue, let alone to the car dealerships of 11^th Avenue. Print, the restaurant at Ink Hotel, is thus one of a kind.

This restaurant, run by Adam Black, is so committed to seasonality and sustainability that it has hired a fulltime forager whose sole job it is to source products and produce from local farmers and indigenous plants. Black, who has previously consulted for both Thomas Keller and Alice Waters, has put together a menu that seems more at home on a farm in Vermont that on a busy street in Midtown.

The look of the restaurant is sleek, streamlined, and a bit sexy. It feels a bit corporate, but sufficiently sophisticated enough for a weekday lunch or business dinner.

Black bean soup with cilantro and crema is good, if not excellent. The beans are tender and meaty, and the soup has a thick consistency. Spiked with fragrant cilantro and a drizzle of tangy crema, it is nonetheless flat tasting. Some additional Mexican spices like cumin or coriander would round in out, adding smokiness. Even some fried garlic chips would have added texture, but the soup is serviceable as is.

For brunch, go for two poached eggs on a bed of seasonal vegetables with speck, Parmesan cheese, and toast. The eggs are perfectly cooked, with velvety whites and gooey yolks that spill out over the salty speck and nutty parmesan cheese. The vegetables vary by the day, but if you are lucky enough to get some freshly foraged mushrooms and spicy arugula in your mix, you won’t soon forget this dish.

Print does simple food very well. It brings a well-known trend to a lesser frequented part of the city, and as such has endeared itself to the neighborhood. The service is quite good, and though the prices are a bit high, the food and atmosphere makes up for it. Hell’s Kitchen now has a new type of restaurant to add to its mix.

Print
653 11th Ave.
New York, NY 10036
212-757-2224