Beacon Learns New Tricks

i first visited beacon shortly after it opened, 10 long years ago. at that time, it was primarily a steakhouse, celebrated for its roaring gigantic wood-burning stove, proudly displayed in the open kitchen at the end of the main dining room. with the intense proliferation of steakhouses in manhattan during the years since beacon opened, the highly versatile executive chef and co-owner, waldy malouf, took the restaurant in much wider culinary directions. today the menu is as multi-faceted as any american menu i've ever seen, and every last dish that we tasted was forcefully scrumptious.

the complicated multi-leveled space features black-and-white-striped upholstered banquettes, relaxing lighting and wraparound balconies. there are two private dining rooms, one with buffet seating for 32, and the other with seated dining for 56. the main dining areas have a certain relaxed elegance, and you can tell that a lot of regular customers come there often. you'll rapidly discover why.

the staff is conspicuously focused, thorough, and friendly. our server, fernando, has an almost psychic grasp of his diner's needs.

beverage director joe stevens has devised some zippy, complex house cocktails. his mojitos change flavors weekly. the cherry mojito is minty and rummy, with a smack of a wild cherry aftertaste. and his caipiroska achieves a rare balance between lime and cucumber, stirred with potato vodka.

chef malouf is a veteran of the four seasons, la côte basque, the st. regis hotel and the hudson river club. he's written two terrific cookbooks, and his consulting firm, waldy malouf hospitality concepts, is involved in a variety of projects all over the globe.

beacon's mouth-watering menu includes a number of my favorite dishes, but i'd return to the restaurant right this minute if only for a plate of malouf's lightly smoky wood-roasted oysters, dribbled with buttered verjus and scattered with softened minced shallots. i don't remember ever having better cooked oysters.

the seafood chowder is manhattan-style, a tangy ruddy broth with rumors of saffron, bits of shrimp, lobster and scallops, and a lightly citric afterglow.

wood-roasted artichoke really gets a good blistering. it's nicely trimmed and doused with buttery, lemony, garlicky, toasted-crumb goodness. i don't usually order artichokes in restaurants because they can have such pale flavor, and they really take a long time to enjoy, but i'd sure get one again at beacon.

mostly boned "buttermilk fried" quail is carved into manageable finger-food pieces of juicy succulence. the meat is so rich and flavorful that you don't need the accompanying honey-lemon dipping sauce.

roasted lobster and shrimp salad is refreshed with plenty of shredded basil. the lobster is perfectly cooked-no mean feat!-to remain tender and juicy, the shrimp are plump and juicy, and the salad is finished with cherry tomatoes, onions, greens, croutons and cucumbers, all napped with a light vinaigrette.

spit-roasted suckling pig is almost unbelievably rich and deeply flavored. two fried plantain strips are criss-crossed over a five-inch wedge of blackened and crisped pork skin, all over a generous heap of tender, but quite meaty sliced flesh.

beacon's fries are nicely tossed with garlic and parsley and placed in a clever cone device that also holds a little ramekin of sweet light barbecue sauce. grilled shishito peppers are mostly light and mild, but one in eight or so has some real kick! creamed spinach arrives in a small cast-iron kettle. the spinach is so finely minced that the dish is extremely smooth and creamy, with a slight vanilla aftertaste.

pastry chef kissima sisoho is certainly up to the task of following all this deliciousness. rich devil's-food cake comes with smoked vanilla ice cream fluttered with cocoa powder and fresh mint leaves. even better is a white chocolate shortcake with roasted peaches and blueberries. the shortcake has real heft and crunch, and it stands up to the pool of blueberry sauce in which it rests. the dish is finished with a scoop of lightly sweetened buttercream and a few curls of white chocolate. with dessert, we sipped a shot of dow's 10-year tawny port, rich and smooth with butterscotch notes, and an unusually sweet and lemony nardini aqua di cedro grappa.

it's certainly easy to see why beacon is so popular and so beloved. the food and the restaurant itself are teeming with personality. from the moment you enter, you know you can relax completely, because you can tell that you're in highly experienced, professional hands. -- beacon 25 w. 56th st. near fifth avenue 212-332-0500 entrées: $17 to $29 tom@hugeflavors.com