10 Arts

There is nothing wrong with a top-grade product cooked simply to perfection - a prime filet mignon in classic green peppercorn sauce, a thick filet of wild striped bass cooked "Grand-Mere" style in a Dutch oven with baby vegetables, or a meltingly tender salmon over buttery cabbage and bearnaise-scented red-wine sauce, a variation of a classic Le Bernardin monkfish dish.

Le Bernardin devotees will recognize other tastes of the restaurant's signature classics - the addictive salmon rillettes salad made from both smoked and wine-poached fish; the freshest oysters on the half-shell; a pristine round of olive-oil-slicked tuna carpaccio, which Ripert says was invented at Le Bernardin.

But it all feels so restrained. And there are flashes of fresh inspiration - like the seviche special of fluke draped over sweet watermelon and tiny charred tomatoes with a frozen "snow" of shaved goat cheese granita, or the tender square of braised pork belly over summer bean succotash - that give an intriguing glimpse of Jennifer Carroll's real creative talent. Indulging that further, freeing this kitchen to express a more ambitious personality, could allow 10 Arts to step up to the next level.

The desserts, conceived in part by Le Bernardin pastry whiz Michael Laiskonis, are already there – from the sugary little beignets with a shot of star anise-infused chocolate milk, to the cubes of creamy cheesecake with wild strawberry sorbet, and a moist clafouti pudding bursting with hot blueberries.

Overseen by pastry chef Monica Glass, another Le Bernardin-trained local (originally from West Chester), the "ChocolatePeanut" even comes with a witty Philly twist: the dark chocolate tartlets filled with liquid caramel, ganache and salty nuts are topped with an ice cream churned from TastyKake peanut butter Kandy Kakes. It's not so much dressed-down luxury as the casual elevated to luxurious heights. In the Ritz's bold new dining room, it tastes like a perfect fit.