Once again, we defy our usual modus operandi but visiting a new restaurant within three months of its opening (we must be getting younger). This time it was Grondin, the brainchild of husband and wife team of David Segarra and Jenny Grondin along with Chef de Cuisine Andrew Pressler whose namesake restaurant blends French and South American dishes. Over the past several years, the couple was involved in opening many of the Fatty Crab and Fatty 'Cue Malaysian themed restaurants in the Big Apple and finally decided to open their own. Grondin is tucked into a small space - just 36 or so seats with another 7 bar seats - located in the fledgling revitalized area in the heart of Chinatown.
Since local celebrity mixologist Chandra Lum Lucariello created the initial cocktail list, we started with a round including the Dark "N" Stormy ($8) with Goslings rum, housemade ginger syrup, ginger beer and lime. A little sweet with a nice hit of ginger.
The N. Hotel ($9) with gin, cucumber, sage, coriander, lemon and ginger beer. My favorite cocktail of the evening with loads of fresh herbs then a hit of ginger.
And the Check Mate' ($10) with rye whiskey, bitters, local honey, lemon and Yerba Mate tea. This was a close second with the dried herbal quality of the tea balancing the citrus and whiskey.
I sampled a glass of 2012 Vini Pinot Noir ($8) from Bulgaria with our starters which included...
The Charcuterie ($14) with pate de campagne, house cured ham and chicken liver mousse served with cornichons, pickled onions and persillade. Definitely on the upper echelon of house made charcuterie especially the pate and mousse with pickled elements to cleanse the palate between bites.
The Pulpo ($15) or tender morsel of octopus with olives, onions and red pepper served with plantain chips (that I also used for the mousse).
And the Crepes Mole Negro ($13) with confit duck tucked in a crepe with cilantro and lime creme fraiche. Loads of different flavor sensations goin' on with this hybrid dish!
For our main courses, I tried a glass of 2009 Vega Rioja ($9)
With the Cassoulet ($24) with Shinsato Farms pork shank, house cured lardons and saucisson (garlic sausage).
The Pan Roasted Jidori Chicken ($21) with fingerling potatoes, carrot and a sage beurre monte sauce. This was the MOST juicy and tender chicken breast I've ever sampled!
And a special of the evening Pig Face which was a huge patty of guanciale (pork jowls) that was panko coated and deep fried served with Romanesco cauliflower. Very rich since most of it was succulent fat. Yes, mostly pork fat so I enjoyed what I could but left a couple of pieces.
We were so stuffed (me mostly with pork fat) that we couldn't manage dessert. A plate of guava gellee was left as an after meal treat when we closed our bill. Would I return? Most definitely! Especially since I also wanted to sample the Chuleta (pork chop) and the Mrs also wanted the Duck Breast with honey gastrique. And the Charcuterie board still calls to me... But if decide to try Grondin, since it's a small restaurant, reservations are a MUST as it was pretty packed when we arrived and still packed when we left.
Grondin
62 N. Hotel St
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
(808) 566-6768
Lunch: Mon-Fri 11am - 3pm
Dinner: Mon-Sat 5pm - 10pm
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