I generally avoid the Meatpacking district like the plague. I'm too old to wear mini lyrca dresses and care about going to clubs with the bridge & tunnel set. I have less than zero interest in the restaurant-club hybrids that occupy this neighborhood. The food and service are never good because they don't have to be. Catch is absolutely the exception.
The atmosphere & service leave nothing to be desired. The bar is a great place to people watch. It's full of everything & everyone you want to see. Euros wearing way too much cologne. Bachelorette parties. Wall Street guys and their wannabe wives. My friends & I, 3 drinks deep before our dinner. I'll say this- everyone is young and attractive. The 3 story restaurant is an explosion of energy. Everyone is loudly drinking & eating merrily. The staff flies in and out of the tables continuously refilling drinks and bringing more food. At night it's dark and the music is great. During the day it is open, sunny, and much slower paced. If you're looking for somewhere with a stellar view to sip cocktails as the sun sets, you need not look any further than the rooftop.
The food is generally meant to share. The menu is broken up into sushi, raw bar, cold & hot items, etc. As the name suggests, the offering are seafood heavy. I can’t recall a time I've ever been unhappy with the food here. It’s beautifully presented & creative. The tartare trio is almost too gorgeous to eat. The truffle sashimi is topped with caviar making it all the things I need in my mouth. The crispy shrimp, which looks hilariously like Cheetos, are breaded to perfection and coated with a sticky-sweet sauce. All of the sushi combos are incredibly innoative and fresh.
For lunch they have some fantastic light & vegetable forward options in the form of salads. I'll never say no to an avocado toast or lobster roll. Both versions are done to perfection at Catch. Their burrata and tomato salad is elevated nicely with the addition of roasted peppers and oregano. Lastly, and most important to me, is the macaroni & lobster cream made with mascarpone & breadcrumbs. It is sinfully decadent and creamy. It makes all my cheesy-carby-lobstery dreams come true. Here's what we had:
Tomatoes w/ burrata, roasted peppers, basil pesto, herbed oregano
Farro health bowl w/ market veggies, falafel, feta, toasted sesame seeds, egg, and sumac vinaigrette
Cucumber-quinoa carpaccio w/ pomegranate seeds, toasted whole grain croutons, spicy yogurt dressing
Smashed organic avocado toast w/ pomegranate seeds, toasted almonds, roasted tomatoes, poached egg, 7 grain bread
Tartare Trio salmon, hamachi, tuna, american caviar & wasabi creme fraiche.
Truffle sashimi w/ tuna, hamachi, chili oil, ponzu, osetra caviar, black truffle
MRC roll w/ seared tuna, shrimp, ponzu butter
Roll Trio:
MRC roll w/ seared tuna, shrimp, ponzu butter
Hellfire roll w/ spicy tuna 2 ways, pear, balsamic
Catch Roll- Crab, salmon, mison honey
Crispy Shrimp w/ spicy mayo
Macaroni & Lobster Cream mascarpone, breadcrumbs
Wagyu short rib tacos w/ grilled pineapple, asian pear, ginger aioli
Lobster rolls
Assorted sorbets
