Gem

There are many things to like about Flynn McGarry’s official New York restaurant debut, from the intimate tasting-room layout (diners sit at small tables, instead of the usual formal bar), to the laid-back L.A.-style décor and vibe (flickering low-lit candles, a woodsy color scheme). But mostly what we like is the cooking itself, which veers from a kind of polished Japanese influence (local raw clams over ice, uni sprinkled with pumpkin seeds, diver scallops wrapped in shiso leaf) to some of the best elevated-vegetable creations we tasted all year (truffle-rolled carrots, ash-grilled sunchokes, slow-roasted pumpkin spooned with melted Gruyère), all of which make it difficult to believe that this young, wunderkind cook is still only 19.