Perennial favorite Aquavit moved down the street from its waterfall-bedecked digs to the Park Avenue Tower on 55th Street in 2005. The minimalist, space-agey new venue is full of Scandinavian chic. Swedish chef Marcus Samuelsson won the James Beard Foundation's 2003 Best Chef: New York award, and he continues to astound locals and critics alike with his modern Nordic cuisine. Snag a spot on an "Egg Chair" or "Swan Sofa" in the bar and lounge, and take a bracing shot of the liquor for which the restaurant is named - there are numerous flavors, in addition to aquavit cocktails. The prix fixe dinner and the chef's tasting choices (with optional wine pairings) constitute the menu. Signature appetizers such as the herring sampler and the foie gras ganache headline, while second-course favorites include hot-smoked trout and the seared rib eye with red onion marmalade and oxtail. Or, if you're short on time, stomach capacity or appropriate attire for the prix fixe main dining room, stop in the café for Swedish meatballs, steamed mussels, herring à la carte or the chef's Smorgasbord, an "assortment of Swedish bites." Jacket suggested for dining room. Reservations suggested. Full bar. Dining room serving lunch Mon-Fri, dinner nightly. Sun brunch noon-2:30 pm. Café serving lunch Mon-Sat, dinner nightly.
Where The Locals Eat rating
Best Scandinavian
Top 100 Restaurant, New York City
"Aquavit combines the age-old culinary tradition of Sweden with the ambitious creation of a young chef in America. ... Entrees boast a dazzling display of ingredients and influences. [Chef Marcus] Samuelsson demonstrates his fondness for marrying flavors in unexpected ways. ... Vibrant colors, bold shapes and visible textures all work together to create food so vibrant and beautiful that it needs no garnish."
– Aquavit website
"High-minded interpretations of Scandinavian cuisine that issue from his kitchen-order the duck breast, which is cured in lemons, or the salmon, sealed in a light brioche crust-are as excellent as ever."
—New York magazine
"Aquavit's food is beautiful: arranged on the expansive white plates with such attention to color contrasts and geometric balance that it qualifies as visual art. It's also frequently enchanting and consistently engrossing."
– Frank Bruni, The New York Times, Jan 21, 2005
"In the casual café, the Stockholm-bred chef turns out pitch-perfect Nordic home cooking, featuring classic dishes like gravlax and herring. In the main restaurant, past the long sultry bar, lurks some of the city's most innovative seafood."
—Time Out New York
"This isn't nouveau Viking fare. It is, as always, a tantalizing experience."
—Newsday
How others rate Aquavit
James Beard Foundation
Marcus Samuelsson, Best Chef in NYC, 2003
The New York Times
*** (excellent)
Top Pick
New York magazine
**** (exceptional; consistently Eeite)
Zagat 2009
25 food rating (very good to excellent)