The depth of King of Prussia’s dining scene continues to grow.
The new food-hipster kid in town is a globally-inspired, seasonally fared, “interpretive-American” restaurant that already has a fine dining blueprint for success from a location in Princeton, N.J. It’s called Mistral (which their website says is a certain strong Mediterranean wind) and it’s in the King of Prussia Mall at the entrance between Lord & Taylor and Neiman Marcus at 160 N. Gulph Road, Upper Merion.
An element of Mistral’s signature cuisine is eclectic curated small plates served in such a way that sharing is encouraged.
The progressive menu’s categories cater to both mall shoppers looking to get a quick bite, and those on an intimate culinary adventure with family and friends – snacks, salads and sandwiches, small bites, large bites and dessert.
Adventurous picks on the snack menu are beef tartare, and hush puppies served with a bacon infused horseradish and dill sauce. Standout-star snack courses are pork riblets with scallion pancake and pickled cucumber, and toasted sourdough with bacon jam, broccoli and cheddar.
Rock-star small bites are ricotta cavatelli with roasted squash, capers, pecorino tartufo and an egg yolk; and crispy maitake mushrooms accompanied by broccoli, grilled onion and creme fraiche.
Inventive examples among the salads and sandwiches are pork belly ramen, Thai duck salad, and a corned beef sausage sandwich on ciabatta with cabbage and beer mustard.
An unusual twist among the entrees (if you didn’t already fill up on small plates) is the carrots-three-ways that comes with the day-boat halibut, making an explosion of orange on the plate.
Check out the “open-concept” kitchen that offers a glimpse of these dishes being prepared.
Mistral King of Prussia’s menu differs from that of Mistral Princeton because of a commitment to ingredients indicative of local Montgomery County butchers, farms and fisheries. In a press release, 2017 James-Beard nominated executive chef Scott Anderson said: “At Mistral we rely on the seasonality of ingredients to inspire and create our menus. The farms in Pennsylvania are rapidly developing with longer seasons and more availability, consequently allowing us to offer diners fresh, out-of-season flavors that they wouldn’t normally expect to see on the menu at that time of year.”
With a cozy ambiance, there’s seating for 111 – including an 18-seat bar (happy hour half-price beer and wine specials are from 4 to 7 p.m. daily) and, as weather permits, outdoor seating for 48.
Speaking of the bar, there’s a house-made lychee-raspberry soda on the beverage menu, and a craft cocktail menu that’s a creative mixtape of specialty cocktails and classics like the corpse reviver and the cable car. House cocktails include the Supernova – a concoction of limoncello, Aperol, sparkling wine and orange blossom water – and a rum drink called the Prussian Dark ‘n’ Stormy.
Mistral King of Prussia has a spirit of individuality to its upscale tastes, style and atmosphere. Learn more at www.mistralkop.com and follow @MistralKOP on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Hours are 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, till 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. For reservations, call (610) 768-1630.
