Old Mill Room at Boar's Head

Date
1/26/2013

Location
The Boar's Head Inn, just out Ivy Road
200 Ednam Drive

What I ate
Atlantic salmon tartare
Grilled flat iron steak
Blood orange panna cotta

Who came
Nora, Lindsay, Ali

Website
The Old Mill Room

Thoughts
It's Restaurant Week again!  I happened to have the flexibility to get away for the weekend, so I drove to Charlottesville and caught up with good friends.  First up was the Old Mill Room at the Boar's Head Inn.  The dining room feels very warm - not in temperature, but just like a rich, old banquet hall.  If our waitress hadn't seemed a little antsy to move us along, I would've been pretty comfortable just hanging out there for a while.  It just seems like a good place to nurse an after-dinner drink and catch up.  Alas.  Let's move on to the food.

My appetizer was really tasty; I may have to learn how to pickle things to help accent dishes like this.  The slightly sour taste put a sharp edge at the end of each bite, but the "salmonness" of the fish still led the way.  While I know a flat iron steak isn't exactly filet mignon, I was a little disappointed by my entree.  The complements were great - I especially liked the surprising crunch of the kale - so the dish was good on the whole, but the steak just was so-so.  It was a sort of mix between being a true medium rare and Pittsburgh, and it felt like a relatively small portion.  The dessert, however, helped the meal rebound in a big way.  Not only that, but I backed into this find when the girls all ordered the creme brulee and I felt the need to branch out.  Tart is not high up on my list of favorite flavors, but there was just enough of it and the panna cotta was so light and delicate.  The cranberry compote bumped the overall quality up a smidge, but there was only so far to go.  The ginger in the ice cream wasn't very strong.  I love ginger and, normally, this would've been a problem.  It worked in this case since it didn't distract from the panna cotta.

One of my favorite things about Restaurant Week is that I get to go places that are normally too expensive for a non-celebratory dinner.  I went to the Old Mill Room during my first Restaurant Week and really enjoyed it.  This meal was definitely good, but didn't live up to previous years.  The biggest difference was that it was obvious that it was Restaurant Week this time whereas it felt like we were getting the normal experience last time.  Our waitress seemed a little out of sorts and the portions all felt tiny.  I enjoyed going there, but I think it could be some time before it rotates back into my Restaurant Week lineup.

Recap
Pros - comfortable atmosphere, awesome dessert
Cons - underwhelming steak, small portions
Overall - A good meal that benefited from some late-meal momentum.  This is still a place to go if you are celebrating or catching up with old friends.  With so many other options in town, I'll probably wait a while before going back.

Atlanta Recap - Brick Store Pub, Cakes & Ale, Parish Food & Goods, etc.

I started writing these when I was in Atlanta, but I never got around to finishing them.  Now it's 6 months after I visited and I couldn't do the reviews justice.  I don't want to let them go unreviewed, so here are the quick hits.  Hopefully, I'll go back and I'll write full reviews.

BRICK STORE PUB
Location
125 E. Court Square, Decatur, GA

What I ate
Pickle jar - okra, zucchini, squash, pineapple
Pierogies
Cast-iron pot pie

What I drank
Rodenbach Grand Cru
Deproef Signature Ale

Who went
Courtney, Alex, Tara

Website
Brick Store Pub

Recap
Pros - Great beer menu, pickle jar was delicious
Cons - Atmosphere is good but not great, a little loud and not the best lit
Overall - Worth it for the beer alone, it's probably my favorite spot on the square in Decatur

CAKES & ALE

Location
155 Sycamore Street, Decatur, GA

What I ate
Arancini with citrus and fennel pollen
Lamb leg, potato-garlic puree, lima & pole beans, mixed greens
Bourbon pineapple upside down cake with salted caramel and gingerbread ice cream (and white pepper!)

Who went
Grandma and Grandpa

Website
Cakes & Ale

Recap
Pros - Delicious dessert, great atmosphere
Cons - Small portions, limited (though good) beer selection
Overall - For a place called Cakes & Ale, I had hoped for a bit more beer.  The food was really good, but it's a little on the expensive side.  Definitely a good place for special occasions.

PARISH FOOD & GOODS

Location
Inman Park
240 N Highland Avenue, Atlanta

What I ate
Deviled chicken hearts with roasted carrot puree, brioche
Roasted chicken thigh and leg, smoked onion and swiss chard gratin, sorrel pistou
Banana bread pudding, toffee sauce, whiskey vanilla ice cream

Who went
Anna

Website
Parish Food and Goods

Thoughts
Drinks, bartender, atmosphere, Inman Park

Recap
Pros - Tasty food, good beer selection, excellent atmosphere (and awesome bartender)
Cons - Frankly, can't think of any
Overall - This was a great evening.  When I get back to Atlanta, I'm definitely heading here.

OTHER PLACES
Tartufo Pizzaria - best pizza I've had south of NJ (the owner is a transplant)
Cafe Alsace - cute little French bistro
The Porter Beer Bar - best beer menu I've ever seen
Atlanta Fish Market - wonderful seafood

Brasserie Montiel

Date
1/28/2012

Location
Just off Hydraulic, west of 29
2001 Commonwealth Drive

What I ate
Smoked salmon, asiago, and mini farfalle in a light grappa sauce
Chianti slow cooked beef stroganoff with wild mushrooms and au gratin potatoes
Affogato al caffe

Who went
Cassie, Kelsey, Alex, Cathryn, Bobby, Stu, Chris, Raj

Website
Brasserie Montiel

Thoughts
What a day!  I'm going to try to keep this review to dinner, but I can't let the rest of the day go without mention.  Awesome times heading to Blue Mountain Brewery for lunch, wandering Grounds, and drinks after dinner. Those of you in the "who went" section - you know how much fun the day was.  The rest of you - I'll switch back into restaurant review mode from here on out.

Brasserie Montiel is far enough out of the main road to go unnoticed, but easy enough to find if you know where you're going.  It's a small, cozy space that worked great for our group.  We occupied our own little corner of the restaurant and it was exactly what we were looking for.  Our waiter was a little out of sorts and gave us the weirdest receipt I've ever seen, but that didn't detract much from the experience.  Looking at the non-Restaurant Week menu, it seems like it'd be a nice place to go for a fancy dinner if I'm ever back in Charlottesville for an extended period of time.

Now to our focus, the food.  Far be it from the Jewish kid to turn down smoked salmon; I'm glad I gave into that stereotype.  The sauce was the best part of the dish and I could've used a little more fish (surprise surprise), but it was a light, tasty way to start off the meal.  The cheese melted into the grappa sauce and coated all of the pasta.  I'm really happy that they gave me a spoon for the stroganoff.  I thought I was keeping up my dignity for the first half of the dish, but I switched over to the spoon when I realized how much of that delicious sauce I was leaving behind.  The beef was tender and the whole thing just made me feel good to be eating it.  I'm still not entirely sure what constitutes a stroganoff, but I think that's more because of what I ate growing up rather than what I was served at this dinner.  Whatever they call it, it was delicious.  The only disappointing part of the meal was my dessert.  Following the success of my birthday dinner, I was excited to try another version of affogoto (see Tre Piani).  While the taste was similar, very little else was.  The plate looked pretty and I liked the little pot the affogato was in, but it came to me already combined and starting to get soupy.  I did snag a bite of Cassie's much-tastier dessert, but mine just fell flat.  It wasn't enough to bring down the whole meal, but it was a disappointing finish.


Recap
Pros - tasty food, relaxed ambiance
Cons - confused wait staff
Overall - I had a great meal and recommend a visit, though be sure to choose your dessert carefully.  I'm happy they joined in on Restaurant Week because I'm not sure I would've found them otherwise.

Tre Piani

Date
1/4/2012

Location
In Forrestal Village
120 Rockingham Row, Princeton, NJ

What I ate
Mushroom pizza
Tortellini in bolognese (half-portion)
Spicy grilled tuna steak with avocado risotto
Affogato


Who went
Mom, Dad, Dan, and Julie

Website
Tre Piani

Thoughts
Another birthday(ish) dinner!  Again, there's a decent gap between the eating and writing dates, so don't expect the best details.

It amazes me to come home on breaks and find local places I've never visited.  I lived 15 minutes from Tre Piani for the first 18+ years of my life but never ate there until recently.  I don't think I've been to Forrestal Village since middle school.  I was definitely missing out.  We had a great dinner and I'll have to seriously consider going back next time I'm up at home.  The space is very open with particularly tall ceilings and it's really well-lit without being garish.  Our waiter was a little too doting, but had some great suggestions and was very knowledgeable about the food.  This is the first place in a while where the maitre d' really made an impression on me.  He made easy conversation, checked up on us during the meal, and even gave me a little background on my dessert.

The menu feels a little scattered, but it give you a ton of options.  We took advantage of that flexibility and turned a pizza and a pasta into family-style appetizers.  The pizza was great and the pasta was much tastier than anything I've tried to make myself.  I'm not sure how they made that sauce, but I'm going to have to keep trying to figure it out.  I got a taste of Dan's tuna tartare, which was excellent.  It's probably for the best that I can't find good-quality tuna around here or I'd waste a lot of money trying to recreate that.  Redundancy was certainly not a risk when it came time for the entree.  My tuna steak was quite tasty and the spiciness actually came through.  I'm not sure how, but the creamy avocado risotto was delicious by itself and an excellent complement to the tuna.  As good as rest of the meal was, the dessert may have been the best part.  I'm a sucker for anything interactive and dynamic, so pouring the hot espresso over the creamy, rich gelato satisfied both of those criteria.  Plus, the whole thing looked quite elegant in the balloon glass.  I just checked a thesaurus for synonyms for "delicious" and I still can't find a word good enough to describe the affogato.  It seems like such a malleable dish and I'm going to try to recreate that as well as make some new iterations.


Recap
Pros - awesome food, great ambiance
Cons - probably too expensive to go regularly, but great for special occasions (note: that's what Tre Bar is for)
Overall - This was just a really good meal, one of the best I've had in a while.  I thoroughly recommend a visit for fancy dinner.  Take a look at the specials (most are at the bar) if you're looking for a great-but-not-that-expensive night out.

Ho-Ho-Kus Inn and Tavern

Date
1/3/2012

Location
1 East Franklin Pike, Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ

What I ate
Fall squash soup with marshmallow, roasted pear, and brown butter
Sea bass, "sugo alla fagioli", broccoli rabe, smoked garlic
Fig hazelnut tart

Who went
The whole family

Website
Ho-Ho-Kus Inn and Tavern

Thoughts
Disclaimer - I wrote this almost 4 weeks after we actually went, so the details are a little fuzzy.

Our directions were a little screwy, but we found the Inn without too much searching.  The bar area seems like a great place to hang out, a nice relaxing evening with good food.  The dining room has a very cozy feel to it, complete with a fireplace.  Yes, they had candles in it instead of a real fire, but that probably would've made things uncomfortably warm and unnecessarily exciting for anyone coming too close to the flames.  I'm glad we were one of two families in our section of the dining room; it would've been a little cramped to have more people in there.  I don't remember much about our waiter other than that he was particularly knowledgeable about the food and the area (we had to get Dan at the train station), both of which were helpful.

When we were looking for a place to go, I remember the marshmallow in soup as a pretty striking idea; it lived up to expectations.  The little bit of burnt sweetness made those spoonfuls quite good.  I know it's tough to balance, but I would've liked that little background sweet taste to be throughout the soup, not just the little spot where the marshmallow melted.  The pear should have helped, but I couldn't detect much of that flavor.  The smoked garlic was pretty strong and helped keep the broccoli interesting.  The fish was well cooked; crispy fish skin is quickly becoming one of my favorite things.  I'm still not entirely sure what sugo alla fagioli is, but it was mostly beans and a tasty way to make it a more filling dish.  All of the things that go into that dessert are among my favorites, so I was off in my own blissful world during that course.

It looks like they do a bunch of special events, notably craft beer tastings.  If you're in the area, I'd keep an eye on their calendar and find something that sounds like fun; it shouldn't be difficult.


Recap
Pros - Good food, comfortable setting
Cons - Probably not great if crowded
Overall - It was a really good meal and a great time to catch up with my grandparents.  I don't know if the food alone was worth the hour-long drive, but that was because we were finding a central meeting point.  If you're in the area, I definitely recommend stopping in and getting a meal.

622 North

Date
9/25/2011

Location
North end of downtown
622 North Main Street

What I ate
Wisconsin cheddar ale soup
Linguine diavolo

Who went
Kelly, Justin, Jackie, Courtney, Curtis, Sheree, Tim, Sara, Emily, Chris

Website
622 North

Thoughts
I've driven past this place dozens of times without giving serious thought to eating there.  It's a pretty unassuming location - close enough to downtown to be lumped into that strip but far enough from the more highly-trafficked areas not to get that much notice.  We were in the dining area, but the bar menu looked pretty good and, while it's a bit small, the bar seems like a good place to catch a game.  That said, they should clearly mark where each section is.  It was a little off-putting to walk into the bar expecting a fancy dining room.

They did a good job with the decor, going for the quaint-but-fancy bistro look.  We were all a little surprised at the space, rather the lack thereof.  Our waiter was attentive and nice; our drinks were out quickly and quickly refilled.  Our food, however, took quite a while to make it to our table.  They have an impressive roster of beers and wines as well as a fun menu to read.  We spent a while discussing the range of options.  The 3- and 4-course tasting menus look interesting, though they aren't much of a deal compared to those items individually.

Once it arrived, the food certainly did not disappoint.  My soup was really good - I'm going to have to try to turn some homebrews into something similar.  Courtney got a massive salad that probably could've passed for a meal itself.  My pasta was one of the better ones I've had in a while.  The sauce was great - multiple people can attest to that - and the vegetables with it were surprisingly good.  The corn added a good texture and the peppers were tasty, too.  With any luck, the rest of the group will weigh in on what they had - there was a good variety of soups, salads, entrees, and desserts all around the table.

Recap
Good - really tasty food, nice ambiance
Bad - slow service
Overall - The food was great and it's a nice place for a good dinner out as long as your group likes conversation.  I'll definitely be back.

Amelia's

Date
9/16/2011

Location
Christiansburg, just off of 460
1130 Cambria Street NE

What I ate
Chicken of Modena (with tomatoes and broccoli, balsamic vinegar sauce, over breaded eggplant)

Who went
Will, Jess, Seth, Rachel, Cassie, Jay, Laura, and Sara

Thoughts
First impressions are not always the best impressions.  Amelia's is just off of 460, in a little residential area, and doesn't look that great from the outside.  Not bad, just nothing special.  Inside, it has all the hallmarks of "generic Italian place from home" right down to the little vending machines in the lobby.  I'm fairly certain we were in the room reserved for parties, so I didn't really mind the folding tables.  All of these things together were making me start to doubt the good reviews I had heard before making the trip.

The review were certainly vindicated shortly after we sat down.  Our waitress was nice and willing to give honest opinions about her favorite dishes which was very helpful because a few of us were paralyzed by the paradox of choice.  The menu had a bunch of interesting dishes (see: what I ate) to go along with a bunch of Italian standards.  There was also a good selection of sub and pizza options.  My chicken was really good, especially when I could pull together a bite of all of the elements of the dish.  There was more breading than eggplant under the chicken, but eggplant wasn't the focus of the dish so I wasn't too disappointed.  All in all, it was plenty of tasty food for a pretty good price.

Recap
Pros - Good food, friendly service
Cons - Nothing glaring unless you have restrictions on carbs or dairy, but then you shouldn't be getting Italian food...
Overall - Definitely worth the trip.  I admittedly haven't explored many of the options around town, but I'm certain Amelia's is among the best Italian places near Blacksburg.