Twice between courses, diners were presented with "gifts" from the chef: first, a duet of minuscule buns smeared with tomato jam, alternating with miniature bowls of sweet-sharp peach gazpacho; later there were tiny, yellow cherry tomatoes stuffed with goat cheese, and roulades of romaine, ham and parmigiano in rice paper wrappers.
In addition to the four-course and seven-course options, diners may order five or six courses.
For the main course, five diners ordered skirt steak with potato gratin and broccoli ($24).
Opening remarks from the guest vintner, as well as introductions to each paired course, give diners a personal and intimate education in local food and wine.
Additionally, at every course, one diner was kept waiting long after tablemates had been served.
But runners who try to deliver main courses while diners are plainly still working on a full table of appetizers need to be restrained, or retrained.
As courses arrive, diners might find themselves asking a perfectly reasonable question: Does the food I'm eating justify the stiff tariff?
Of course, a diner is not a new concept, even on the South Fork, which has its share of the cutlery-clanging, cholesterol-raising, BLT-with-slightly-soggy-fries restaurants.
A good handful of main courses allow diners to construct their own meals, choosing side dishes like ginger-glazed carrots and chive potato croquettes to go along with grilled quail, roast duckling, fish of the day or sirloin steak.
