Update: Network has closed.
Friday found us with loads of plans like the rest of the country has every Friday, but we restaurant folk never get to have. Husband was positively giddy with the prospect of having a Friday night off; his first since August, by his calculation. We headed out to meet a few friends, one of whom is responsible for making me a true restaurant widow in July, by nominating Husband to take a tour of Italy with a wine importer. (Be prepared to hear more whining about that as the day approaches.)
As I wrote yesterday, we were first off to Spice Bar; we decided not to chance the food there, what with our impatiently stomping server and all, and braved the 150 yard walk to Network, the restaurant with the worst name in history.
Network is a vast space. It is something like 7500 square feet; truly a risk when opened by a restaurant unknown. Although there is a cute dining room in the storefront, they never appear to seat any diners in there; since the rest of the restaurant is located behind all of the other store fronts in the block, it looks like they are never open. So here's a note to the restaurant managers: Seat the front dining room first.
Walking into Network is confusing, because you walk down a long hallway and then into a cavernous dining room; there really wasn't a visible host, but we wanted to sit at the bar anyway, so we continued past the sushi bar (we really should have sat there), and started to sit at what looked like a regular bar. The staff were all exchanging incredulous looks between us and each other until finally someone said "hey you guys, there's really no one working at that bar. The real bar is around the corner to the right." Okay, Network really could have used an ergonomic designer when they laid out the restaurant. And, while it may be common knowledge to their staff that no one works in the first bar at which the guest arrives, they could be a little nicer when they inform their patrons.
The Network space is full of corrugated steel and light colored woods. It's the kind of dated interior that people spend loads of money to create, and then in 4-5 years it looks very strange. Again, I wish I would have taken my camera because if you follow the link to their website, their photographer does a good job of making the place look cozy.
The first thing we noticed is that the restaurant was nearly empty at 7pm on a Friday night. We were the only people at the bar most of the time we were there. When we left at about 8:30, Network was about 70% full. That didn't stop them from having 3 bartenders and a barback for a 14-seat bar. At least we didn't have to wait for drinks. I just can't help but look at things from the monetary perspective. Anyway. . .
And on with the food. We decided to order a load of sushi and graze, and I ordered one entree, just to test things out. I decided to order the duck, since almost no one in this city has the patience to cook duck properly, and I think it's a good measure of the chef. There were six of us, so I chose the 2 breast option ($19/1 breast, $25/2 breasts). First came the bread; a large plate of decent peasant bread with sesame seeds, and something that resembled foccaccia, along with one of the best compound butters I have ever tasted; a blend of roasted garlic and herbs, we demanded more almost immediately (in a nice way). Seriously, I would have eaten this butter with a spoon if no one was around. And if I were a little naturally more prone to excessive butter eating and the proper metabolic burning thereof.
My entree included their house salad; the ubiquitous field green blend along with pistachios, chardonnay poached pears and Stilton cheese, bound in a Vidalia onion vanilla vinaigrette. A decent salad overall; the vanilla aroma was very pronounced if the flavor wasn't; I would have liked a little more bite in the salad or vinaigrette to balance out the sweetness of the vanilla essence.
The sushi arrived, followed closely by the duck. Let's do the duck first, and get it out of the way. Allow me to digress a little by saying that I went to Network hoping to like it, but maybe not with the most faith that I would. Let me just print first how the menu described the duck:
Seared breast of crispy skin-on duck served over sweet potato corn beef hash, accented with peppery fried Arugula, drizzled with a sweet and tangy pink peppercorn caramel-vinegar sauce
The first thing I noticed about this duck is that it was taupe in color. Now, if I am not mistaken, duck is typically red in color, and I was a little taken aback. I had ordered it medium rare, and although the centers seemed to still have a little fleshy quality in the consistency, they too were beige in color. I poked at the pieces with my fork a little, and tried to remember what the menu said. I couldn't think of any reason (curing, etc.) that would have caused the duck to surrender its ruddy beauty. "I think it's been microwaved," said Husband. The second thing about the duck is that the two breasts had been sliced into, count 'em, 8 slices. (To hear what is glorious about properly prepared duck, see my Refectory review) This meant that each chunk of duck was about 3 ounces of chewy duck meat and completely unrendered fat. I was not provided with a steak knife, and gave up after about 3 bites. There was no evidence of sauce on the plate, although the duck was covered in whole pink peppercorns, which I have to admit weren't completely unpleasant, I just wish they would have been balanced by the delicious-sounding caramel-vinegar sauce. The skin, as promised on the menu, had not been seared and was not crispy. Again, I know it takes time and love to properly cook a duck breast, but if you aren't willing to do it, DON'T!!* Alongside the duck was a corned beef sweet potato hash, which was tongue-blisteringly salty (and I do love salt), and a pile of deep-fried arugula; good as a garnish, but a more healthful option would have been appreciated.
Fortunately, there was sushi. Our sushi came out on a giant white platter, looking beautiful. We had ordered toro, but alas, it never seems to be available and Husband loves it so. Instead, we chose nigiri (slices of fish on rice) tuna, salmon, hamachi, and BBQ eel, and then for rolls: dragon roll, spicy shrimp tempura, spicy tuna roll, salmon roll, and crispy salmon skin hand roll. All of the fish was extremely fresh and bright. The colors were beautiful, the sushi artfully displayed on the platter; there was even a giant turnip rose in the center of the plate. My only complaint, and it's a small one, is that the fish for the nigiri was simply too large. At about 4.5" by 2.5", it was a little hard to handle.
So, was the sushi good enough to get me to go back to Network? It is hard to find consistently good sushi in Columbus, Ohio, a fact which should surprise no one, as it can be difficult to find reliable sources of fresh fish, and I have heard consistently good things about the sushi at Network. I will have to return to Network, to sit at the sushi counter and see if we can make friends with the sushi chef, so that when he leaves to open his own place, we can follow him there. And I promise to take pictures.
Info: Network Restaurant & Video Bar 525 Park Street Columbus 614.586.1888
*Duck should be put in a relatively low-heat pan, about medium. The skin should have been scored and seasoned, and the breast placed skin-side down in the pan. It should stay there for at least 10 minutes, if not longer, to render out as much of the fat as possible, while leaving the skin crisp. The duck can then be finished in an oven. It should take about 20 minutes to do it properly. The breast will then be sliced into as many ONE-bite pieces as possible, so that the diner can have a good fat to meat ratio, and not have to pick off large, chewy fat chunks.
