‘Everybody likes BLTs,” declares chef de cuisine Andrew Whitney from his post inside Dell’anima’s open kitchen. “If you don’t, I don’t want to know you.” Whether or not your opinion allows you his company, one thing’s for certain: The classic American sandwich is everywhere right now — and with tomato season in full swing (and wild variations of greens and lettuces), all you have to do is add bacon. But not all BLTs are made alike. From Whitney’s BLT pasta to salads at Boulud Sud, try these playful takes at restaurants around town.
BLT PASTA, (Eilon Paz)
BLT PO’ BOY WITH CRISPY OYSTERS, , (PINT OF BEER INCLUDED) (Anne Wermiel/NY Post)
SWEET PLT SANDWICH, (Eilon Paz)
BLT WITH SHAVED BACON, FARMER’S CHEESE AND BASIL, (Astrid Stawiarz/NY Post)
Boulud Sud
20 W. 64th St., 212-595-1313
The thick cuts of house-cured pork belly in the BLT salad at posh UWS restaurant Boulud Sud are so perfectly salty, fatty and charred that bacon lovers might quickly be left with just a bowl of the L and T. But those would be the freshest purslane leaves, brightly marinated grilled radicchio and juiciest sliced-to-order heirloom tomatoes you can find at the height of summer — thanks to the fact that executive sous-chef Travis Swikard has a produce “in.” “I’m good friends with one of the farmers at Stokes Farm, from New Jersey,” says Swikard, who recently created the salad, topped with an onion-yogurt dressing. “He sends me texts with pictures of everything he has the day before he comes to the city.”
Dell’Anima
38 Eighth Ave., 212-366-6633
Whitney was thinking about having a BLT one day when he suddenly thought, “What about a BLT pasta?” He experimented with different recipes, trying everything from beefsteak to Sweet 100 tomatoes, and types of pastas, including gnocchi, which ended up being too soft. The final result includes roasted Sungold tomatoes, house-cured pancetta that had been cubed and twice-rendered for a crispy texture, and an orecchiette base. “The [pasta’s] little ears hold the pancetta and tomatoes like a scoop,” he says. To top it off, Parmesan cheese “melts easily and gives the creaminess of mayo.”
The Lion
62 W. Ninth St., 212-353-8400
The Lion adds fried oysters with fresh horseradish aioli for a New Orleans-style twist on the BLT. “The BLT is one of the best sandwiches around, so putting the two sandwiches together seemed to be a natural progression,” says chef de cuisine Alex Williamson, who added the plate to their BBQ-themed Sunday brunch menu this summer. They start with plump Naked Cowboy oysters from Long Island Sound, then combine them with house-smoked bacon, tomatoes poached in olive oil and sea salt, and petite iceberg lettuce (a less-bitter version of the regular kind). It’s served on a sturdy brioche roll with crisp, seasoned fries on the side and a pint of beer.
Van Horn Sandwich Shop
231 Court St., 718-596-9707
Jacob Van Horn’s namesake Cobble Hill restaurant offers a traditional BLT, as well as a Sweet PLT ($9), a vegetarian option substituting sturdily cut, crunchy, smoked sweet-potato chips for the meat. Raw sweet potatoes are sliced, smoked and finally deep-fried — all in-house — before the chips are piled on top of a bed of fresh lettuce, tomatoes and bread slathered in a homemade garlic aioli. “People love it,” says Van Horn, who first got the idea from a neighborhood spot in his home state of North Carolina.
Distilled
211 W. Broadway, 212-601-9514
This month-old Tribeca spot serves modern pub fare with “new American” flair — which translates into a melting pot of culinary influences — created by chef Shane Lyons. In the case of their BLT appetizer, a play between a bruschetta and an open-faced sandwich, the kitchen spends a week and a half prepping Dickson’s Farmstand bacon — cold-smoking, dehydrating and finely grating it with a Microplane. “[The bacon shavings] introduce a light, airy texture,” says Lyons, who originally called it BFT, or Bacon Fun Time. Add a creamy layer of house-made farmer’s cheese, fresh wedges of ripe tomatoes, and pea shoots and basil leaves finished off with a tart, rice-wine vinegar, and it’s time for fun, indeed.