Thoughts of a Middle Aged Man

We have had some different dining experiences the last couple of weeks. For a friends birthday, we visited a new restaurant in our area called The Winery Bar and Grill. Going into the evening, I was not expecting much, especially since the restaurant has only been open a few months. Developed by a couple of ex Morton Steakhouse boys and with a chef from the Ritz Carlton, the place is well run and the food was top notch. I am not much of a meat and potatoes kind of guy, but I was truly content with my oysters, braised short rib and a wonderful dauphinoise. It also helped that a friend’s brother is an investor in the restaurant, although we didn’t know that until early into our meal. That bit of knowledge and hopefully our friendly banter, garnered us some face time with the owners, who are truly nice guys trying to make a name for themselves in the crowded restaurant world.

The following week it was off to Pascale’s, a local french restaurant to celebrate the release of the Beaujolais Nouveau, the first release of the 2007 vintage. The meal was a five course, very french meal, which included things like a warm sausage and potato appetizer, a pike dumpling with a lobster bisque sauce, a main course of beef, chicken or salmon, a cheese course, followed by a desert trio including a rich chocolate mousse, an apple tart and a meringue cloud. The tart was great, but even though I am not a big meringue fan, I couldn’t get enough of the cloud.

We finished off the week with a visit to the first annual American Cheese awards. They opened to the public over the weekend and we sampled a variety of cheeses. My favorites, which you maybe able to find in a Whole Foods or Bristol Farms market were the Cantare Marscapone, the Sierra Nevada Cream Cheese (very good), Fiscalini Farmstead Cheddar, Sartori Foods Rasberry Beer soaked cheddar, and the Beehive coffee crusted cheddar.

All in all, a great week of food experiences and discoveries.