Cook Hall, the prime food and drink spot of the W Hotel, has released a new menu. Chef Vijay Sadhu has successfully found a balance between American gastropub fare with small plate options and Texas-sized portions of Southern comfort food.
The new small plates include deviled eggs, pimento cheese croquettes, and pork belly bites. As part of their soup and salad menu they now offer a black bean soup filled with all of the things you would normally expect such as peppers, onions, cheese, and tortilla strips. A poached egg is added for flair.
Chef Sadhu pickles vegetables and adds them to his bone marrow, cheese and charcuterie plates. The strength of the pickled green beans and carrots were a good match to the bone marrow and toast.
Some new offers on the large plate menu are shrimp and cheese grits, red snapper, and a cowboy ribeye. The red snapper is served atop a bed of corn salad loaded with pork belly, sweet potatoes, and green peppers. The cowboy ribeye is perfectly paired with a couple of Southern favorites: smoked beans and collard greens.
There desserts are as comforting and Southern as you can get. There’s peach cobbler with bourbon ice cream, pecan pie and vanilla ice cream, and layered chocolate cake. The peach cobbler isn’t too sweet and is made with an oat crumb rather than a crust. Pecan pie was my favorite. The filling to pecan to crust ratio was perfect. The chocolate cake is moist and sweet with the cutest miniature malt balls sprinkled on top.
Cook Hall is also serving up some new drinks, too. A new standout cocktail on the drink menu is the pineapple mint caipirinha made with pineapple, mint, jalapeño, lime, and a Brazilian rum. As always, you can order a cocktail kit for your table and shake things up on your own.