Feasting Out: New Year's Eve Prix Fixe ― or Not ― at Orson

Michael Berch/Flickr

​Where: Orson 508 Fourth St. (at Bryant), 777-1508
When: Thurs., Dec. 31
Time: 6 p.m.-11 p.m. for dinner; cocktails and champagne "into 2010!"
The deal: Six-course prix fixe and à la carte menu both available; the prix fixe (with options) might include avocado-wrapped dashi with genmai and roe; crispy sweetbreads with bacon, rutabaga purée, brined celery leaves, and vanilla gastrique; Dungeness crab pad Thai; New Year's cassoulet; and Poire Williams sorbet in absinthe gelée
Cost: $75 (for the prix fixe); reservations here
Add-ons: Champagne, wine, and cocktail pairings start at $25 per person