A bit about the decor (straight from the website because I couldn't have said it better myself): "chocolate, blue, and caramel toned walls of new and century old douglass fir set the mood in this 1906 wood structure. adding to the warmth of the restaurant is artwork by local artists scott reilly and son nguyen." They also have these delightful long cylindrical light fixtures that hang from the ceiling in rows, which look very much like floating candles
that give off a soft glow in the summer evening.We started off with two appetizers, or as listed on the menu, "for the table". The "house cured duck proscuitto" with fruit compote was exquisite. Six paper thin slices of the salted duck were complimented by a mash of sweet diced apricot. The balance of flavors was every bit as delicate as the presentation in this dish.
The second appetizer was "truffled squash blossom flatbread" seasoned with sea salt and chili.
The entire flatbread was about 12 inches in diameter and maybe 2 to 3 millimeters at its thickest. The center was slightly doughy, soft and chewy with melted parmesan cheese topping, while the perimeter was crispy and browned, but not burnt. The squash blossoms were evenly spread out and each leaf beautifully arranged. They provided a hint of sweetness, contrasting with the sea salt, chili, and cheese on the rest of the flatbread.I had a tough decision to make for the main entree. On one hand was the special plate of the day which involved fancily-prepared scallops that made my mouth water just listening to our server describe it. On the other was beef cheek with horseradish and watercress. Due to my immense appetite that night, I went with the beef. When the plate came, I was surprised because the cheek was encased in a crust with horseradish poured over the top and a brown sauce on the bottom. The entire chunk of beef cheek was at least a full inch thick and five inches at its widest. As I sliced it open, steam practically billowed out of the beef! This was exactly how I like my food - so hot that it steams.
Each bite of the beef was tender, moist, steamy, and literally melting in my mouth. A minor flaw was actually the crust, which looked like a rub with bread crumbs and some sort of seed. After the first few bites, it had an overpowering taste which interfered with the original lovely flavor of the cheek, so halfway through I simply scraped it off. I dipped each bite of beef in the brown sauce, which was slightly sweet, and might have been the broth it was cooked in. With this, the beef cheek was pure heaven.We had also ordered a side of corn, most of which I spooned onto my watercress to eat the mix as a salad. The corn kernels by themselves was perfectly sweet with perhaps a hint of butter. There was still much of the beef sauce leftover, however, so I simply used it as dressing for the vegetables. Needless to say, the result was absolutely delicious and better than any bottled salad dressing I have ever tasted.
My cousin ordered "the catch" for his own entree, which according to our server was a whole grilled Mediterranean sea bass. The fish was a little over a foot long, topped with what seemed to be watercress and cilantro. He cut out a middle section for me to try, and just like my beef cheek, the sea bass was steaming hot. The meat was salty but extremely tasty, and the skin had a slight crunchy crisp. The fish tasted as if I had gone into the kitchen and stolen a bite straight from the grill. It was also cooked to perfection such that the bones had gone soft, but the meat retained its juiciness. I know this because I failed to pick the bones out before putting it in my mouth, and frankly did not wish to for fear that all the heat would escape. Fortunately for me, the bones were so soft I could chew and swallow everything.I finished my plate early because it was just too
good, and because I was hungry. My cousin asked if I needed another piece of meat, and I actually contemplated ordering another appetizer. In the end, we decided to order from the dessert menu instead. He went for the angel cake with meyer lemon curd, local strawberries, and wild huckleberry sauce. It was supposedly very good, but also very sweet, so I did not try it. I usually prefer desserts which have a delicate sweetness, not overwhelming my taste buds with sugar. Unfortunately, all but one of the sweet items fell in this category, and it came with cookies, which I had no desire to eat that night. I finally opted for the "tasting of three artisanal cheese" instead, which was actually present on the appetizer menu as well.
The very long plate of cheese triangles consisted of (from left to right) - blue cheese surrounded by walnuts, aged goat cheese underlined with what seemed to be either balsamic vinegar or chocolate syrup, and white cheddar with a side of sliced peaches. Our server also gave me a third of a baguette with olive oil in case my palate needed some calming down from all the cheesiness. Not being a huge fan of blue cheese, I decided to eat that first to get it over with. Apparently, I have been eating it wrong my entire life - not that I eat it often - the bitterness of the walnuts neutralized most of the unpleasantness of the blue cheese and left a very distinct but surprisingly good flavor in my mouth. After washing down the remaining taste with water and some bread, I went on to the white cheddar. Even with a clean palate, it was underwhelmingly mild and the sweetness of the peaches covered most of its taste when I ate them together. Last but not least was the aged goat cheese. I don't why I have never tried it before, but I am certainly going to start eating goat cheese from now on. The crust and semi-transparent parts near the edge had a brie-like taste and texture, quite soft and chewy. The goat milk flavor was the strongest in the middle solid white area. The dark brown sauce which I assume to be balsamic vinegar enhanced both flavors, and the entire piece made for a fantastic melting pot in my mouth.
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