Amalia$$$$$

Restaurateur Greg Brier brings style and sophistication to new heights with the opening of Amalia adjacent to hotelier Vikram Chatwal’s Dream Hotel at 204 West 55th Street. Named by Conde Nast Traveler among the best new openings in the world, executive chef Ivy Stark offers seasonal Mediterranean-American cuisine at this decadent 7,000-square-foot property, comprised of intimate and richly textured enclaves evocative of a Baroque-inspired European palace.

A subtle reference to the restaurant’s proximity to adjacent Dream Hotel and name of Sigmund Freud’s mother, Amalia is the artistic vision of Chris Sheffield and Steve Lewis of SL Design (Aspen, Marquee, Butter), layering custom hand-painted wall coverings, fabrics and ornate fixtures with striking architectural elements such as exposed structural beams encased in glass, leather clad barrel-vaulted ceilings and existing brick and stone wall surfaces. In 2007 SL Design was nominated for the Hospitality Design Award for their work with Amalia.

At the entrance, a floating staircase descends alongside a candlelit wall while an opulent black Murano glass chandelier hangs above, inviting guests to discover artistic elements throughout the restaurant. The eighty-eight-seat main dining room upstairs features French blue Chinoiserie wallpaper panels and modern twists, such as an eclectic art gallery mounted to the ceiling. Below, the fifty-eight-seat dining room is divided by arched doorways, with lavish chocolate brown leather banquettes and a lustrous gold finished bar, contrasting the simple beauty of the exposed granite walls.

Incorporating spices and ingredients from the coastal Mediterranean and utilizing house-made flavored saffron-citrus and smoked Aleppo peppered salts, Chef Stark’s signature appetizers include White Tuna Crudo with Tangerine, Vanilla Pickled Red Onions, Urfa Chile and Peppercress; and Golden Beets and Blood Oranges with Avocado, Crunchy Chickpeas, Star Anise-Pomegranate Vinaigrette. Signature entrees include Chorizo Stuffed Crispy Chicken with Romesco, Golden Raisins, Escarole and Toasted Almonds; and Charmoula Crusted Wild Salmon with Cucumber-Lime Yogurt and Couscous.

Additionally, Stark, certified by the American Sommelier Association, has created a food-friendly wine list of indigenous varietals which includes Old and New World wines hailing from countries such as France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Lebanon, Turkey, Morocco and the Americas. Amalia’s cocktail program, conceived by Holly Roberts, includes Mediterranean-inspired classic cocktails such as the Metaxa Sidecar, Dried Apricot Bellini, and Arak the Kasbah, a spiced arak and red wine punch, along with a rotating selection of house-made eau de vie with pear-cardamom, rose-vanilla, rosemary-lemon thyme and dried apricot flavors.

Pastry chef John Miele, most recently of Charlie Palmer’s Aureole restaurant, offers a selection of seasonal desserts such as Turkish Yogurt Tatlisi with muscat grapes, pasta pignoli and accompanied by fresh rhubarb sorbet. Or try the decadent Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache Tart with Mediterranean Sea salted caramel and a malted chocolate semi-freddo.

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D’Or at Amalia is a subterranean lounge located adjacent to the Vikram Chatwal’s Dream Hotel. D’Or is explicitly decorated where lively crowds come to enjoy themselves. The guests enter through the restaurant upstairs via a mosaic staircase cantilevered from a brick wall. An oversized Austrian crystal chandelier hovers above the cavernous candelabra-lit lounge where a DJ spins into late hours and bartenders at the gilded bar churn out inventive libations infused with pear cardamom and dried apricot eau-de-vie aged in-house.

Featured In:

Conde Nast Traveler, May 2007

Elle Décor, May 2007

Hospitality Design, April 2007

Crain’s New York Business, April 2007

Newsday New York, April 2007

The New York Observer, April 2007

Nation’s Restaurant News, March 2007

New York Magazine, March 2007

The New York Times, November 2006

Time Out New York, September 2006

New York Post, August 2006

Amalia Bread Spread Trio—Avocado hummus, meyer lemon green olive tapenade, pomegranate walnut butter

Moroccan Baby Carrot Salad—Mache, green olives, orange flower water

Grilled Hudson Valley Foie Gras—Pumpkin, ras el hanout, barberries

Colorado Lamb Osso Buco—Barley risotto, harissa, tangerine gremolata

Wild King Salmon Charmoula—Cucumber-lime yougurt, herbed couscous

Honey-Brined Smoked Berkshire Pork Chop—Roasted Fuji apples, Moroccan mustard, rosemary jus

Grilled Calves Liver—Roasted tomatoes, fig balsamic, creamy corn polenta