Excelsior

WOW. I LOVE this place.

BF took me to Excelsior for my birthday and I can't wait to go back! We got an awesome bottle of wine: Turley Zinfandel from CA. Then we had a sampler of oysters - with three kinds of sauces to put on them - which were fantastic. I especially loved the ones from Duxbury. Then we had the Tuna Tartare - which I loved as well. The soy-lime dressing on it and wasabe was so tasty. Very complex mixing of flavors. And then bf had the duck, and I had the lobster dish which was so fabulous. Each thing got better and better. For dessert we just got the cheese plate with 3 cheeses, fruits, and bread/crackers. Also fantastic, and we were so full we took it home and enjoyed it the next day.

Service was fantastic, and I loved the cozy seat we got. All around it was a perfect birthday meal. I cannot WAIT to go back.

BF: hint hint - book reservations next week. ;)

Sunday Disco Brunch

@ Gargoyle's is awesome!

I love going to Gargoyle's for dinner - their signature Hoisin & Honey Glazed Duck dish is just fantastic with rice, mango, cashews, and coconut milk. It's soooo tasty. Cocktails are always great there, and it's even fun to go for an after dinner dessert and a drink.

But I had never checked out their Sunday Disco Brunch - until today. I am officially addicted. It's my favorite brunch in Davis. BF got corned beef hash with eggs, potatoes, and some kind of dijon sauce on top. They brought it out in the skillet it was cooked in. It looked great, but I don't like eggs, BF said it was fantastic though. I got french toast sticks with a strawberry maple salsa and a side of bacon - *yes I realize I don't like eggs, but some how like french toast - only when it's not too egg-y. I'm strange, what can I say?

I thought I loved the stuffed french toast at S&S - this beat that hands down.

Coffee was self serve and pretty tasty, and they had a great selection of breakfast cocktails, and coffee drinks (with booze). And who doesn't love a little disco with their coffee in the morning?

I cannot wait to eat there again next weekend!

Troquet

We went out to eat on Valentine's Day, which often, is a crap shoot. But this year it turned out well. We decided to try Troquet - the location is a little too close to the Alley for me. So I was worried it might me college-y, but luckily it wasn't at all.

First impression was that it had a nice, simple decor with lots of cherry colored wood. They took our coats and led us upstairs - where we were seated 3 tables from the window. We still had a pretty decent view from the windows of the Common. The size of the restaurant reminded me of a row house - it was multiple floors (2) and narrow and long. There were mirrors hung along the walls - which I assume was to make the space seem less narrow - and I think it worked well.

Our waitress came right over and brought us water and explained the specials. We decided to go with the tasting menu with wine pairings. She asked if we were allergic to anything, or disliked anything - to which I said that I hated cucumbers.

As the first course is coming out and being placed on our table by a runner she comes running over to say they put cucumbers on the oysters and was I allergic do I need another one. I said it was ok and I could just scrape them off. I was slightly annoyed about the cucumbers, but it seemed it wasn't her fault and she offered to take it back. I'm used to cucumbers in sushi that I have to pick out so this wasn't much different. One oyster had yuzu, green apple, and wasabi sorbet on it - which was quite tasty. Each course had a wine pairing and she brought us two different glasses of wine - so we could also sample each other's. Which I thought was great - so instead of tasting 5 wines I got to taste 10.

All of the wines we tasted were fantastic - which is good as they are a wine bar. The food was also quite good. My favorite dish was a pasta with mushrooms and truffle oil - it was fantastic. And the Lagostine wrapped in a phyllo pastry shell over a sauce (made of things I forget) was also great. And we had Tuna tartar as one of our courses that I loved as well. The main course was a lamb dish - which was decent, but by this time I was really full, and it wasn't quite as great as the other dishes. Had I just had it on it's own I think I would have enjoyed it, but after tasting so many other things I really, really liked this one wasn't quite as good.

The main entree took a little while to come out. Right before each course our waitress would bring over the two glasses of wine, explain a little about them and point to them on our the wine list. Up until the main course the wines and courses had come out quickly. But at the main course the wine came out quickly, but not the main dish. We ended up finishing the wine before the main dish came out. I think the restaurant just got slammed at this point as the entire restaurant was full and everyone was eating. I was already getting a little full so I didn't mind the delay anyway. However, our waitress was once again fantastic and brought over two more glasses of wine since the food had been delayed and we finished our wine. Dessert was nice and light - which was perfect after a really filing meal.

Overall, they had great service, wine, and food - I would definitely eat here again. Our car was already waiting for us when we got downstairs - even better.

When we were leaving - around 10pm I was shocked to see how packed the streets were, I guess I forgot that Thursday night was the big night out when I was in college. We were really close to the alley so it was just insane with cars and people trying to go into the clubs etc. All I could think about was going to bed - I couldn't believe these people were heading out at 10pm. But 10 years ago that would have been me doing the same exact thing.

Brasserie Joe

We went to Brasserie Joe this weekend with some friends. I had never been there before and I love French food so I hoped it would be good. I know it's been there for a while, but I've never gotten around to eating here. And I have heard the Colonnade has an awesome roof deck and pool to hang out at in the summer. Perhaps this year I will finally check that out as well.

We ordered some martinis - which were super tasty. And shots of patron, but that was the guys...

While we were chatting and having our drinks before we decided what to get they brought over sliced carrots that were marinated in what I thought was parley and vinegar. They were good however they were prepared. And each couple got their own baguette of bread - which was so great - it was warm and quite tasty.

We ordered salad, escargot in garlic butter, and some kind of smoked salmon for appetizers. Which were all good and the entrees were also good. We got steak tartar, sea bass, steak frites and lamb chops. There was enough food that I brought home my dinner for lunch the next day. For dessert we got the classic creme brulee, and something else - which I can't even remember? Hey I had 3 martinis by this point - I'm glad I remember my meal! It's not the best French food I've ever had, but it's definitely solid and the drinks were fantastic. I would definitely go here again.

Highland Kitchen Take 2

I meant to write about this sooner, but forgot to. We went back to Highland Kitchen over the past weekend and it was still packed. Seems like every time we drive by this place it's packed too - which is nice to see in the neighborhood.

The first time we had gone to Highland Kitchen the hostess screwed up our seating somehow - making us wait about 45 minutes after she told us 15-20, then when we asked she realized she had sat someone else (or something not really sure what happened). However the nice bartender, great drinks, and good food made us consider a second visit.

I'm glad we did. The second time around the hostess was fantastic. She sat us promptly - only about a 15 minute wait. Bartender was excellent again and so were the cocktails. We tried some different foot and it was quite tasty. I would like to see the specials change up more frequently (it was the same specials as they had the last time), but the menu seems like pretty decent comfort food and the dishes we've tried so far have been good.

Highland Kitchen in Somerville

I have been wanting to check this place out. We had been to the restaurant that was at this location previously and it had been horrible. So we figured this place had to be an improvement.

We decided to go out for an early dinner at 6:30 - much to our surprise the place was packed! There was already a 25 minute wait, so we sat at the bar to wait. The bartender was great. He made fantastic drinks (pretty inventive ones too) and was really nice. Some kind of lime blackberry drink - made with fresh muddled fruit made at the bar. I got a hot buttered rum - never had one before so I figured I would check it out - very tasty - wished I had gotten it for dessert instead though - because it was a perfect end to a meal, but since it was so cold out it was really warming.

After 35 minutes or so we decided to see what the holdup was about our seats. Turns out the hostess screwed up and sat other people or something. First she says to me: "oh I think I sat someone else instead of you guys, it will just be another 20 minutes"... um if you screwed up - say sorry and seat us right away - don't make us wait another 20 minutes!! So my bf was not happy with the answer I returned with - and he went up to her and she said "I thought you guys left so I sat other people". Um no we sat right at the bar in front of her - and she never called our name, and what's up with the totally different story!!?? So bf says we never left, we sat right here in front of you, you've seated people that came in after us, and you never called out name I've been listening. She is like fine after this party I will seat you - so she sat another party of 2, then sat us. Not sure what went wrong there, but they found us a seat fairly quickly after that, but WTF the hostess should have just said sorry and sat us next in the first place. We almost left and didn't get to enjoy the food.

Our waitress was very nice and the food was solid. The beef short ribs and mashed potatoes were tasty. The cheeseburger was also good and the fries were super tasty. As we ate there the place only got busier. I would definitely eat here again - I just hope we don't have to wait so long for a seat next time. HUGE HUGE improvement over the previous restaurant at this location. Great local place.

New Fancy Restaurant in Burlington?

The guys that own Arrows in Maine (voted one of the top 50 restaurants in the US) opened a new place in the Burlington Marriott: Summer Winter.

In the Burlington Marriott? Who knew? Guess I will have to check it out. They will also be added to Open Table soon for reservations.

Boston.com says "With an emphasis on seasonal and local fare (some produce is grown in the on-site greenhouse), this is exactly the kind of elevated comfort food - roasted chicken with lemon and garlic; grilled tuna with pink-peppercorn butter; devil's-food cake - that diners dream of, especially those far from home."

Their first wine dinner is scheduled for Tuesday February. 5, 2008