Cereal Rush

I don’t care how old you are, cereal’s one of those creature comforts we never grow out of.  Everyone’s got their favorite.  Mine are Honey Nut Cheerios and Cap’n Crunch, the crack of cereals.   No other comfort food captures the simple pleasures of childhood like a bowl of cereal.  A box of Cocoa Krispies or Frosted Flakes reminds me of Saturday morning planted in front of the TV watching cartoons.  I’ve noticed that some of New York’s best chefs feel the same way.  Momofuku Milk Bar’s pastry chef, Christina Tosi, pioneered the nostalgic trend with her signature soft serve flavor, Cereal Milk.  Suddenly, everyone from Johnny Iuzzini to Daniel Humm’s finding inspiration in a box of cereal.

Jean-Georges
1 Central Park West
212-299-3900
www.jean-georges.com
Johnny Iuzzini’s always playing around at the pastry station.  Right now, he’s buying a lot of boxes of Rice Krispies for his Chocolate Tasting Plate.  He sculpts them into a crisp tuile, the perfect foil for a smooth, malted chocolate bread pudding with vanilla bean ice cream.  

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Ave.
212-889-0905
www.elevenmadisonpark.com
Lobster and granola are an unlikely marriage to say the least.  But Daniel Humm’s been awarded quite a few stars this year for his flawless cooking.  At Eleven Madison Park, he casts granola in an uncharacteristic role sprinkled over lobster.  He coats the granola with an Indian
spice mixture, garlic, and shallots for a sweet and savory element. The
granola is sprinkled over a wonderful entree of lobster, poached with ginger, citrus, and carrots.

Momofuku Bakery & Milk Bar
207 Second Ave
212-254-3500
www.momofuku.com
Fess up.  We all slurp the sugary remains at the bottom of the cereal bowl.  Now you buy pints and quarts of cereal milk.  at Milk Bar’s.  To capture the taste, Pastry Chef Christina Tosi toasts corn flakes,  steeps them in milk, strains them, and adds a dash of sugar and salt to get that bottom-of-the-bowl flavor.  And now, you can grab to-go containers to keep in the fridge for midnight sugar cravings, or for breakfast. 

The Oak Room
768 Fifth Ave.
212-546-5200
www.oakroom.com
Chef Eric Hara has lots of experience with upscale whimsy in the kitchen, having worked with David Burke.  His latest invention is foie gras bon bons (pictured above.) First, he purees foie gras with thyme and
cognac, then fries it in a batter of egg, flour and Rice Krispies.  The
result is crispy bon bons, accompanied by bing cherry sauce.

Park Avenue Summer
100 E. 63rd St.
212-644-1900
www.parkavenyc.com
The menu, the decor, and even the design change with the seasons, so you can never predict what’s in store.  The chef breathes new life into a bowl of fresh berries by topping them off with Froot Loops straight from the box.  The finishing touch is a lemon grass-infused milk, which manages to mellow outs the sweetness of the dish.
 
Max Brenner
841 Broadway, btwn. 13th & 14th Sts.
212-388-0030
www.maxbrenner.com
Once in awhile, everyone loved to indulge in something entirely decadent.  Max Brenner’s desserts are all over-the-top. Skip the traditional chocolate fondue there and order something different.  It starts with toasted granola and caramelized Rice Krispies and gets complicated.  The two are mixed with nuts, berries and bananas, drizzled with honey and a dollop of yogurt.  If that weren’t enough, the whole thing’s coated in alternating layers of white and dark chocolate truffle cream.