The Amazing Sardines At French Louie In Boerum Hill | Tasting Table NYC

At French Louie, the new Atlantic Avenue restaurant from the team behind Buttermilk Channel, Ryan Angulo makes a lot of nice things. Maybe the nicest is this beautiful dish of smoked sardines ($9) under a great big slab of butter. Sounds simple, but it's one of the most delicious things we've had this year. Here's how it works:

① The massive butter brick. Shot through with a dark, salty confetti of algae. Yes, algae. Presented, of course, at precisely the right temperature so that it holds its shape but is soft enough to spread.

② The fish is filleted, brined and smoked in-house for just a few minutes, so it still tastes like what it is: a super fresh sardine from Rhode Island.

③ Bien Cuit's wonderfully crusty, ever-so-slightly sweet rye ficelle.