How does one even begin to categorize the symphony of flavors that is a meal at Reyna? Purportedly Filipino, this brand-new restaurant from Chef Erica Paredes goes above and beyond the expectations, flavors, and techniques of the chef’s native cuisine. At Reyna, in the dusty rose dining room with its diminutive open kitchen towards the back, Paredes marries European and Asian flavors with aplomb, delivering on the promise – and her own reality – of Filipino roots with a nomad soul.
Grilled hispi cabbage affords fireworks of umami flavors, with shards of bottarga somehow emulating Parmesan in their nutty richness and sesame- and gochujang-spiked mayonnaise counterbalancing the rich, caramelized sweetness of the charred crucifer.
Roasted cauliflower defies all expectations of this now commonplace vegetarian main, with a Pinoy barbecue sauce and fennel-carrot atchara providing a welcome sweet-and-sour pickle component.
Turmeric rice was the first scent that hit me when I approached the kitchen, and it didn’t disappoint: In addition to generous offerings of sliced baguette, it provided the perfect mild base for sopping up all of those rich sauces.
Speaking of which…
I’ve saved the best for last: a burrata topped with kecap manis, ginger, and loads of chile – a mindblowing fusion of rich dairy and heat. I would eat this every day of my life and never tire of it.
The only apt descriptor I can come up with hails from the French language: une tuerie. Killer.
Dessert, it must be said, is delicious too: Cheesecake is seasoned with calamansi and topped with a polvoron crumble. More Basque than Brooklyn in its inspiration, it was creamy and light and not too sweet – perfect for finishing off the last of the bottle of skin-contact bubbles that accompanied the previous flavor explosions to a t.
What else can I say? Go. Go now. I will be there too. (Probably.)
Reyna – 41 rue de Montreuil, 75011