One White Street

One White Street is located in a 19th century townhouse, that was a downtown hangout for John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Much of their produce is source from Rigor Hill Farm, located in the Hudson Valley. They practice sustainability, and much of their menu revolves around showcasing these ingredients. Originally opened in 2021 by chef Austin Johnson, this restaurant has 1 Michelin Star, and reservations are very easy to come by. We booked a pair for 5:30 PM on a Friday evening just a few days in advanced.

Ambiance & Service

Because this is located in a townhouse type setting, the space was a bit cramp, but the restaurant has done well to create enough space for the diners when seated. We were seated in the second floor close to the window in a corner seat, and the adjacent table was very close.

Once diners filled this second floor, the noise level was loud but not unbearable. When some of the wait staff came over to explain the dish and as the night went on, it got more difficult to hear them. It was either the ambient noise was too loud or they were not loud enough.

Regardless, our primary waitress and sommelier were delightful to interact with. The sommelier was very friendly and happy to answer any of our questions about the wine without trying to be pretentious. When we paid for the bill, the tip percentage was calculated post-tax. For us, it was just $9 more, which I had no issue paying because I appreciated their service.

One example of this was when we asked about the bread and if it was homemade, they mentioned we can purchase it downstairs, but the store closes at 7 PM. When we finished our dinner, they overheard this comment from the beginning of the dinner and gave us 4 slices with butter to take home. That was very nice of them to listen and provide this themselves.

Food

The tasting menu was $178 per person, and the wine pairing was $148.

This was the welcome drink, which was a carrot and ginger spritz drink from their farm. As you can imagine, it was very refreshing.

For the snacks, this was the Klein Constantia Cap Classique from Western Cape, South Africa 2020. I actually had the 2019 version of this from The Modern. This Blanc de Blancs had nice aromas of green apple and stone fruit, and it had a creamy texture to it.

This was some sort of vegetable on top of some what appeared to be pea sprouts and biquinho peppers. It was all crispy and good. It reminded me of some of the veggie courses at Blue Hill at Stone Barns. The biquinho peppers are prolific in Brazil. They are not sour like banana peppers, and they have a different type of sweetness to them.

The Charcuterie came with coppa and lonza. Coppa is the circular shaped slice and is an Italian cured pork, made from the pork shoulder and neck. The lonza is made from the loin. This was definitely a bit more salty than the coppa.

For the RHF Beans, this was the Stein, Riesling, ‘Blauschiefer’, Trocken from Mosel, Germany 2024. When they initially poured this and I took a sip, I thought the flavor was subtly sweet and unlike other German rieslings. It reminded me of liquids that run off of rocks. When I let this settle, it started to provide that very typical riesling flavor.

They brought Rigor Hill Sourdough made from seven grains and served with house cultured butter. The sourdough was crispy and absolutely delicious. The crust was crispy and the meat was fluffy and delicate. The butter was salted, but along with the bread, it was very tasty. They told us that they also sold this sourdough downstairs in their store.

The Charred RHF Beans came with bottarga butter, rhf crispy leeks, smoked trout roe, and chive oil. This was an interesting dish in that I got a lot of farm vibes out of it, bringing that farm-to-table type of presentation. Overall, the dish tasted pretty good though it won’t necessarily wow you.

For the Shrimp Tagliatelle, this was the Pormenor, Rose from Duoro, Portugal 2022. This was surprisingly very red, but it did not taste like a red wine of course. This had some interesting flavors such that I probably wouldn’t get this to sip. However with the tagliatelle, it was surprisingly good. It was rich and hearty and pairs well with savory dishes.

The Tagliatelle came with royal red shrimp and Jimmy Nardello peppers. This had a slightly spicy kick to it, though the peppers also added some nice flavors. The tagliatelle was overcooked for me, but maybe that is what they desired. The sauce had a lot of shrimp flavors in it. My first thought while eating this was that the shrimp reminded me of those rock shrimp from a frozen Trader Joe’s bag. Despite that first impression, the shrimp was very plump and bouncy.

For the Grilled Monkfish, this was the Cameron, ‘Giuliano’ from Willamette Valley, Oregon 2024. I actually had tried this wine previously by itself from Chambers Street Wine, so I was pleasantly surprised that a wine that I picked also showed up in a wine pairing within a restaurant.

The Grilled Monkfish came with radicchio, whey-miso glaze, and lemon verbena butter. The monkfish was a thick cut, and I didn’t really get much of the miso glaze. The lemon verbena butter sauce overwhelmed most of the dish, and that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. My first thought was that this butter sauce could have used a tad more acid in it to cut through the butter.

For the American Wagyu, this was the Bergstrom, Syrah, ‘Gargantua’ from Santa Barbara, California 2017. This 2017 syrah was very nice to drink. The dark berry notes were very pronounced and flavorful. This had a silky, chocolate, and currants where it matched red meat very well. It finished with balanced tannins and had a very layered texture.

The American Wagyu came with zabuton, rhf gai lan, herb jus, and shiitake. The zabuton steak is a cut of Wagyu coming from the Chuck area of the cow. What I found delicious about this piece was that the steak was very tender and flavorful with a perfect amount of fat. The gai lan is also known as Chinese broccoli and is somewhat similar to broccoli rabe. They charred the ends decently, so it comes off crispy. The shiitake was something I just did not care for, and I gave to my partner. The one downfall for this dish is the herb jus. The jus is simply way too salty. It was so salty that my partner who typically loves salt didn’t like it. Due to this excessive flavor, the steak was better without the jus.

For the desserts and Pear & Parsnip, this was the Kracher, Zweigelt, Beerenauslese from Burgenland, Austria 2020. This dessert wine has a very bright aroma of a myriad of different cherry flavors. It was rich and sweet and ultra smooth.

The RHF Crab Apple Sorbet came with mint and lemon. This granita was basically crushed ice with some nice, bright tree flavors to reset your palette.

The Pear & Parsnip came with pear cake and sorbet, beurre monte, and crispy parsnip. Despite the crispy parsnip, most of this dessert course was a bit of a miss. There wasn’t a whole lot of synergy of flavors, and the pear flavors were very mild.

The last course was these set of bites, going left to right:

• corn bread madeline - this tasted like a basic madeline, so it wasn’t punchy in other flavors.
• fig jam macaron - my partner thought this had a slight chocolate flavor.
• cherry pate de fruit - this was dusted in fig, and the flavor wasn’t punchy with cherry flavors. The texture was good though.

Finally as a gift to take home, this was the Fennel Cranberry Biscotti. I ate this the following day, and it was good. It seemed to have some pistachios to give it a nutty flavor along with the sweetness of the dried cranberries.

Overall Impression

One White Street was overall pretty good and comparable to many Michelin 1 star restaurants in the city. The food was mostly good, though some courses were seasoned too heavily. Despite the inconsistency, I thought the value was tasty for this price range. The service was probably the most memorable for me since they went above and beyond for us.

Yelp & Google Jabs

Unsure why this is a Michelin star. No disrespect but I view Michelin is an experience. That wasn’t the case. The waiter also didn’t help. Granted we were on top floor and it seemed better on the floors below. However the prices and the food don’t measure up to a Michelin star.

I’m sure that a lot of people like this Elitist attach the experience along with a Michelin star. The problem is that in its purest form, Michelin stars are given only for the food. It just happens to be coincidence that many Michelin stars also provide some sort of service at a higher standard. I think the food here is most definitely a Michelin star caliber food, despite some slight seasoning issues which is subjective.

We swapped the monkfish for the duck, and absolutely do the same The meat was so juicy and perfectly fatty, sauces weren’t even necessary. The skin and that thin sliver of fat were insanely good. The wagyu also had that deep, primal beefiness which paired so well with the black garlic sauce. The sourdough felt like overkill tho, good but just too much carb.

Definitely give the monkfish a try next time. Monkfish, despite it being a fish, is actually quite tasty and lean. Not a whole lot of restaurants serve monkfish, so trying different preparations can be adventurous. If you’re a bread lover like me, don’t skip on the sourdough because it was delectable.

Revisions

1. Oct 17, 2025 - Initial revision.