EMERSON'S RESTAURANT


















I recently had the pleasure of visiting the casually elegant Long Island restaurant Emerson's on two occasions, sampling a number of gluten-free dishes in the process.

In fact, one of the great things about this addition to the Gluten-Free Restaurant Program (GFRAP) is that one can actually choose among a variety of gluten-free appetizers, entrees, and desserts. So I've still got a lot of Emerson's menu items on my "to eat" list, but I've also managed to come up with enough favorites for an excellent three-course meal.

For starters, I was impressed by the Tuna Tartare, a succulent cylinder of sushi-grade tuna and guacamole topped by ginger.

My pick for the main course: Long Island Duck 2 Ways (pictured). Crispy on the bone or sliced and swimming in a sweet and pungent sauce, both ways were moist and very tasty snuggled alongside mashed potatoes.


















For dessert I was bowled over by the Crème Brûlée. A thin layer of chocolate syrup rested underneath the incredibly smooth custard—billed as pistachio but tasting almondy to my companion and me. The flavors complemented each other marvelously.

Located at 69 Deer Park Avenue in Babylon (near the southwest shore of Suffolk County), Emerson's is fairly close to the Babylon Long Island Railroad Station. There is metered parking on Deer Park Avenue and a large set of parking lots east of the entryway.

Photos: David Marc Fischer