on Sunday, there was work _and_ play
Mar. 8th, 2009 09:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lauraanne_gilmanFor those who wonder, it was Pandora the Duchess who was kitty insane at a painful hour this morning (6 am 'new time' but not according to my very tired brain).
Mostly I don't mind the time change for the same reason I don't get jet-lagged in most instances -- my sense of time is fluid to begin with, and so long as I've had a few hours of sleep I can function normally. But the first few mornings of getting out of bed when it's still dark were always painful. Thankfully, in my non-commuting life, I don't have to! Freelancing FTW!
(actually, waking up before the sun is out always flashes me back to summer vacations and going fishing with my dad. So it's a pleasant memory, and makes me crave Nature's Valley granola bars.)
And, in a rare moment of indulging my slothful ways, I then went back to bed until 10am. Then it was off to a Sekrit Hideaway sans internet connection to workworkwork until it was time to head over to Dovetail for dinner.
You must understand: I've wanted to go to this restaurant since it first opened to rave reviews. Alas, it was not to be, for I am a freelancer of only occasional paychecks, until I was IM'd out of the blue and informed that we had reservations to celebrate the fact that Flesh & Fire was finally into production.
I'm good with that. :-)
So, Dovetail. Innocuous entry, small but welcoming space. We were seated immediately, and asked if we preferred ice water or bottled. No tacky 'tap' water on offer here! *is amused* I cannot say enough about the staff -- they were attentive without being annoying, and our waiter, when asked, could reel off specifics about menu items without referring to his notes. (a small note: instead of order pads, each waiter had a small notebook. I thought it charming and classy)
The amusee bouche was a salmon mousse with horseradish wrapped in..something, I'm not sure what. It was excellent. The individual cornbread loafs were also good, and they offered to bring us more when the plate was empty. I was handed the wine list, and drooled over the "significant swills" (yes, that is what they were called -- the price range started at $400 and went into 4 figures) before settling on an Oregon Pinot Noir (white) and a Montepulciano D'Abruzzo (red). Both were very nice, although not exceptional [we were on a budget, alas, because OMG some Really Nice Wines there, at restaurant markup]
For appetizer I had the forest mushroom risotto, which was quite good but paled compared to the potato gnocchi with short ribs. Main course was braised lamb that was succulent and satisfying and I refused to share. :-) Dessert was pain perdu with rum vanilla ice cream, and I was evil and ordered a Sauterne and asked for it to be shared with my companion who had never had a sticky before. The pour came, as I suspected it would, as two full pours rather than two halves.
And there was much discussion of books, travel, wine, and Embarrassing Childhood Stories.
Overall:
Decor 9/10
Food: 9/10
Service 10/10
Highly highly recommended. Dovetail, West 77th and Columbus Avenue.
And now, despite many things pending I need to respond to (yes, you), I need to go fall over and digest for the next 12 hours....
Mostly I don't mind the time change for the same reason I don't get jet-lagged in most instances -- my sense of time is fluid to begin with, and so long as I've had a few hours of sleep I can function normally. But the first few mornings of getting out of bed when it's still dark were always painful. Thankfully, in my non-commuting life, I don't have to! Freelancing FTW!
(actually, waking up before the sun is out always flashes me back to summer vacations and going fishing with my dad. So it's a pleasant memory, and makes me crave Nature's Valley granola bars.)
And, in a rare moment of indulging my slothful ways, I then went back to bed until 10am. Then it was off to a Sekrit Hideaway sans internet connection to workworkwork until it was time to head over to Dovetail for dinner.
You must understand: I've wanted to go to this restaurant since it first opened to rave reviews. Alas, it was not to be, for I am a freelancer of only occasional paychecks, until I was IM'd out of the blue and informed that we had reservations to celebrate the fact that Flesh & Fire was finally into production.
I'm good with that. :-)
So, Dovetail. Innocuous entry, small but welcoming space. We were seated immediately, and asked if we preferred ice water or bottled. No tacky 'tap' water on offer here! *is amused* I cannot say enough about the staff -- they were attentive without being annoying, and our waiter, when asked, could reel off specifics about menu items without referring to his notes. (a small note: instead of order pads, each waiter had a small notebook. I thought it charming and classy)
The amusee bouche was a salmon mousse with horseradish wrapped in..something, I'm not sure what. It was excellent. The individual cornbread loafs were also good, and they offered to bring us more when the plate was empty. I was handed the wine list, and drooled over the "significant swills" (yes, that is what they were called -- the price range started at $400 and went into 4 figures) before settling on an Oregon Pinot Noir (white) and a Montepulciano D'Abruzzo (red). Both were very nice, although not exceptional [we were on a budget, alas, because OMG some Really Nice Wines there, at restaurant markup]
For appetizer I had the forest mushroom risotto, which was quite good but paled compared to the potato gnocchi with short ribs. Main course was braised lamb that was succulent and satisfying and I refused to share. :-) Dessert was pain perdu with rum vanilla ice cream, and I was evil and ordered a Sauterne and asked for it to be shared with my companion who had never had a sticky before. The pour came, as I suspected it would, as two full pours rather than two halves.
And there was much discussion of books, travel, wine, and Embarrassing Childhood Stories.
Overall:
Decor 9/10
Food: 9/10
Service 10/10
Highly highly recommended. Dovetail, West 77th and Columbus Avenue.
And now, despite many things pending I need to respond to (yes, you), I need to go fall over and digest for the next 12 hours....
