Our Man Sietsema: ‘But Really, What does it Mean?’

Our Man has been to the Market, and he wasn’t too impressed. Market Table, which SIetsema reviews this week, is the market/restaurant that now stands where Shopsin’s used to. Our Man finds it all a little too gimmicky, and the food itself is generally good, but not special enough to redeem the place.

No brilliant inventions or science-chef flourishes here. Instead, we have a standard braised lamb shank deposited on a yellowish amalgam that might be cheese grits or puréed root veggies ($20); and the usual skin-on-chicken piece with a single bone protruding like an amputee’s stump ($17). Both are competent but unexciting, and so is a strip steak ($29), disappointingly offered with an artichoke and olive mélange, but no starch.

In addition, the list features such over-fished specimens as cod and halibut, which makes the whole market-driven concept, which is traditionally tied to sustainability efforts, look a tad disingenuous.