Saturday, August 04, 2007
It's a celebration......!
(If you're a Dave Chappell fan, you can add your own word to the end.)
To celebrate my passing the CISA exam (and because it was Friday), The Boy and I went out for a nice dinner. I looked through a local newspaper for restaurant listings to find a place we didn't usually frequent. I came up with a list of 2 "old standbys" we haven't been to in a while and 2 new places. We chose Imagine a Restaurant at 11525 Cantrell in west LR. We got there at 7:30, which is typically prime wait time. The dining room was maybe half full. Slightly worrisome.
The menus (wine AND dinner) were anything but concerning. Imagine's focus is on using seasonal, locally grown ingredients. I had an asparagus vichyssoise garnished with smoked salmon, Mr. EY had a lovely salad with some very nice tasting tomatoes. We both had a very nice Viognier.
My entree was seared scallops with a charred tomato risotto. The scallops were HUGE and cooked perfectly; the risotto very good. Mr. EY had an ahi tuna with a pineapple salsa over roasted potatoes. I think both of us were expecting a big slab of tuna next to a pile of potatoes. Not so. The tuna (which was beautifully rare) had been sliced and placed on top of roasted sliced potatoes. The pineapple salsa was sprinkled on top. The dish was flat out goregous. My wine was Anne Amie Pinot Gris and Mr. EY got a Pinot Gris from the Loire Valley. My wine would have been perfect with his dish. His wine was a little more delicate. I offered to trade, but he wouldn't. He took a few sips of mine, which was just fine to me.
Dessert was also impressive. I had a warm chocolate cake and Mr. EY had a pecan pie cheese cake, which was crust, a layer of pecan pie filing-like stuff and then cheesecake on top. Pecan pie being his fav dessert, he loved the cheesecake. When I said I'd like something to drink with dessert, he asked our waitress to bring a bottle of Veuve Cliquot. Veuve is one of my favorite champagnes, but not one we order when we're out because it's pretty expensive. This definitely put a celebratory exclamation point on the evening.
Everything about our evening was great. The atmosphere, the food (oh, my, the food), the wines were great. After dinner, I was surprised that it wasn't really busy on a Friday night. Our waitress said they hadn't done much advertising and were relying on word of mouth. I posted a summary of our evening on a local food blog. I certainly hope it helps.
To celebrate my passing the CISA exam (and because it was Friday), The Boy and I went out for a nice dinner. I looked through a local newspaper for restaurant listings to find a place we didn't usually frequent. I came up with a list of 2 "old standbys" we haven't been to in a while and 2 new places. We chose Imagine a Restaurant at 11525 Cantrell in west LR. We got there at 7:30, which is typically prime wait time. The dining room was maybe half full. Slightly worrisome.
The menus (wine AND dinner) were anything but concerning. Imagine's focus is on using seasonal, locally grown ingredients. I had an asparagus vichyssoise garnished with smoked salmon, Mr. EY had a lovely salad with some very nice tasting tomatoes. We both had a very nice Viognier.
My entree was seared scallops with a charred tomato risotto. The scallops were HUGE and cooked perfectly; the risotto very good. Mr. EY had an ahi tuna with a pineapple salsa over roasted potatoes. I think both of us were expecting a big slab of tuna next to a pile of potatoes. Not so. The tuna (which was beautifully rare) had been sliced and placed on top of roasted sliced potatoes. The pineapple salsa was sprinkled on top. The dish was flat out goregous. My wine was Anne Amie Pinot Gris and Mr. EY got a Pinot Gris from the Loire Valley. My wine would have been perfect with his dish. His wine was a little more delicate. I offered to trade, but he wouldn't. He took a few sips of mine, which was just fine to me.
Dessert was also impressive. I had a warm chocolate cake and Mr. EY had a pecan pie cheese cake, which was crust, a layer of pecan pie filing-like stuff and then cheesecake on top. Pecan pie being his fav dessert, he loved the cheesecake. When I said I'd like something to drink with dessert, he asked our waitress to bring a bottle of Veuve Cliquot. Veuve is one of my favorite champagnes, but not one we order when we're out because it's pretty expensive. This definitely put a celebratory exclamation point on the evening.
Everything about our evening was great. The atmosphere, the food (oh, my, the food), the wines were great. After dinner, I was surprised that it wasn't really busy on a Friday night. Our waitress said they hadn't done much advertising and were relying on word of mouth. I posted a summary of our evening on a local food blog. I certainly hope it helps.
Their wine list (yes, I know I'm getting to it last when it was one of the first things we saw) was diverse. No Kendall Jackson or basic Mondavi (nice wines, but it's nice to have more choices), but a good selection of varieties from all over the world. All but 2 of the whites were available by the glass, which I thought was great. I saw a favorite label of mine (Masi) being poured. Love that. I didn't look too close at the reds since I wouldn't be having one, but they were impressive as well and plenty by the glass. Some familiar names and some not familiar. I've had Turkey Flat Rose, but not their syrah. Imagine might be an anniversary spot so I can try that wine with something appropriately fall-ish.
