The previous evening's dinner at Hide Above set a very high bar, and we knew that we were going to the Café, not the actual starred Hartnett restaurant (due to scheduling issues.) But while the service was, for the most part spot-on and the food was, for the most part, perfectly (if not inspiringly) cooked, the overall effect was less than memorable. We started with a shared order of four small arrancini which were pleasantly light, but lacking in flavor ... a bit of sauce would have been most welcome. The star of the evening was an order of cloudlike gnocchi in a fresh San Marzanno sauce. My husband enjoyed an opening salad of courgette with (too)-large leaves of radicchio, basil sprigs and olives. His main course of halibut was good, with an excellent cauliflower mash while mine was a perfectly cooked chicken breast Milanese that again could have used some sauce to enhance the flavor and add a bit of moisture to the meltingly tender meat. Sides were adequate new potatoes and a salad of green tomatoes. The dessert of tiramisu was too large, too "cakey" for our taste, and generally a disappointment. A good English vodka (who would have thought it?) accompanied the mean, and a split of sparkling Moscato finished off the evening.
All in all, no major gaffes, but no star turns either.